Left Handed DS2 can still hardly write his name.

[dropinthemanger]

Which is only 4 characters long.He will be 4 in January but looks so awkward holding a pen.Any suggestions? Am I worrying over nothing?

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Do left handers take longer to write than right handers? ds looks as if he's going to be left handed - but gosh doesn't it look awkward?

Dont worry about it, I think in dd2s reception class theres only 2 of them that can write their own name so it would seem being able to write their would be the exception and not the norm.

ds (also 4 in Jan) isn't even sure which hand he wants to use yet.

Think it will be left (like dd) but sometimes he uses his right.

I wouldn't worry too much about it - get him doing things he likes (colouring or dot to dot etc)...
If you start getting 'anxious' it may rub off on him and he may go totally off writing all together (as happened to my friends son at this age... needless to say he is 7 now and writing fine!)

DS1 (4 in March) is looking like he is going to be left handed and is nowhere near ready to write his name yet. He can attempt to do certain letters from it, but is still mastering how to hold the pen properly. Loads of other children from his nursery class are at a similar stage apart from the ones who are amongst the oldest in the class. Tends to be the girls that can master writing a lot earlier than boys IME. I wouldn't worry about it, they develop in their own time.

DS 5, left handed, has just about mastered his name. Still looks a bit strange and he has a habit of trying to write backwards but he is getting better with practice. Teacher is not concerned.

As a lefthander myself, I would add it is slightly more difficult to write than a righthander because you are pushing the pen, rather than pulling it. Also, as you write, your hand covers up what you write - I used to smudge all my manuscript and had to do it backwards.

And they say lefthanders are natural mirror writers/readers ... so there is a bit more going on. It will come

My RH 5y10m dd has only just mastered her name.

Hi dropinthe manger.
I work in a nursery and we don't expect any of the 3 year olds to be able to write their name. We do work with them during thier pre-school year and most of the older 3's can write thier name over dots. We only have 2 4 yearolds at the moment. One of them is just beginning to be able to write her name if she copies it, the other one still writes her name over dots although she can copy some letters.
So don't worry as you can see it's normal for a nearly 4 year old not to be able to write thier name.

my ds is lefthanded but is pretty happy holding a pen and writing, doesn't look awkward at all which I'm surprised at. but he only started writing this term, aged 5 - he certainly couldn't have done it aged 3.11 (and I don't think I ever made him try tbh). I wouldn't worry, just give him time and he'll be fine.

He's only three. He doesn't need to write his name.

Feeling much better after reading your posts-last poster-he is four in 2 weeks so not really 3 but am not losing sleep over it!!

the yoropen is fab, my DS uses one as he has trouble gripping a pen, they were invented for left handed people but they are good for people with handwriting problems. You can buy them from www.lefthanded.com, they are very fast to deliver too.

see here

As another left-hander, I have to say I have 8never8 had problems with smudging my writing. My hand goes nowhere near where my script is and I find it really difficult to watch l-handers who write odd!!!

As for mastering the grip - this seems to be something no longer taught in schools. Children are allowed to hold the pen however they wish and some of them find some very odd ways (watching my right-handed daughter is painful)

Ds (right handed) started nursery just as he turned 4 and couldn't even write the first letter of his name. By the end of his year there, he could wirte a good approximation of his name (7 letters) - and now after a term of school can write it quite well.

Don't worry.

BTW - dh and I are both left handed, and can both write OK, even if it looks awkward!

belgianbun, I loved your post! I wish everyone would cool off about education. It's my obsession at the moment because the reality of my three and a half year old going to SCHOOL in september has hit, and there are no two ways about it, he is too young!

I personally won't judge him or how he gets on but I know teachers are using different (govt) criteria and I dread my son feeling a failure from the word go. he seems to have all the things that make progress at school a bit slower - he's a boy (a very active one), he's left handed and he's shy and sensitive. I just wish he could have more time really before 'the system' gets him.

Dont worry, my dd is 5 and left handed. She can right her name now but still has real problems getting letters the right way round. Her teacher told me her handwriting progress would be impaired because of lefthandedness[ is that a real word] and not to worry.

actually I'm not too worried about lefthandedness because I am too and although I did write some letters the wrong way round, it certainly had no impact on me - apparently I read very early and I remember having a reading age the highest in the school age very young. (Not trying to sound clever btw, was in remedial maths!!!!) It's not a handicap as such is what I mean.

one of my dd is left handed and it was only when she went into end of yr 1 in a new school that the teacher picked up that her grip was so bad that physically it would have hurt her to write, at the time there was a student teacher int he class who sat with her for a week to teach her how to hold a pencil. Her previous school had said that she wouldn't write - sad that they didnt pick up that she couldn't not wouldn't but tbh I don't think they were that bothered because she could read.

She is now 13 and still not confident about writing its really stuck with her that school said she wouldn't write, and she wsa one of the youngest in the class