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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

When do children show a preference for right handedness / left handedness?

19 replies

PumpkinPatty · 22/10/2008 12:50

Just curious really.

DH is left handed and I am right handed. Just wondering which DD will be.

She tend to hold a spoon in her left hand. But holds a crayon in her right hand. So no preference yet....she is 16 months

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abear · 22/10/2008 13:00

My DS could write his name equally well with both hands at 5, this caused confusion at school and he was encouraged to wear a tennis wrist band on his right hand when he started to show that preference shortly after. By the time he was 6 he was definitely right handed, we have ditched the wrist band and he is fine and writing fine. Two OTs told me it is not unusual to take until 7yrs.

Flum · 22/10/2008 13:02

My eldest dd is left handed. She always used her left hand to write with from as soon as she picked up a crayon. She eats the right handed way though and cuts with her right hand if using right handed scissors (they con't work in left hand very well).

She is 4 now. I would say she is definately left handed.

Acinonyx · 22/10/2008 13:07

I'm pretty sure dd is left handed - she's 3. She has always favoured her left hand and now always uses pens or scissors in that hand (she has both kinds of scissors). It's not so clear when she's eating though.

There seem to be more left-handers these days - maybe because kids are 'allowed' to be left-handed now.

Stinkyfeet · 22/10/2008 13:29

Ds2 is 2.5 is definitely right handed, but appears to be left footed!

LadyOfRoffle · 22/10/2008 13:30

We noticed about 18 months with DS and are 99.99% sure he is left handed now @ 2.7. Neither DH or I are though...

LIZS · 22/10/2008 13:36

dd was clear from before a year as left handed, ds didn't show any dominance until 5 ish - he's dyspraxic though

bigTillyMint · 22/10/2008 15:24

My DD was left-handed as soon as she started holding finger foods - 6mths+!

stealthsquiggle · 22/10/2008 15:26

DS was clearly left handed from very early - he did everything first with his left hand.

Now 5 he definitely writes with his left hand but plays all sports in a right-handed way.

ChezzaB · 22/10/2008 21:03

My DS (7mo) picks everything up with right hand even if offered to left side he will hold out right hand to grab so we're guessing he is right handed!

LostGirl · 23/10/2008 08:46

DD is 5 and will still switch hands halfway through whatever she is doing when one gets tired!

Waspie · 23/10/2008 08:53

Left handedness is recessive. About 10% of the population are left handed. I am left handed, DS' father is not. Neither of my parents nor my sister are left handed, but both of my grandmothers were.

DS's father has a child from a previous relationship who is left handed and yet neither he nor his XP are left handed and neither are their immediate families. So where she gets it from we don't know!

Boys are more likely to be left handed than girls but I don't know why this is. Left handers are more likely to suffer from dyslexia. I am very mildly dyslexic.

My son is 11mo and has shown no preference yet. I hope he's right handed. Being left handed in a right handed world sucks big time!

christywhisty · 23/10/2008 09:23

DD is left handed, neither dh or I are but I do have a lot lefthanders in the family.
I think she always was left handed, however when she was 2 she badly burned her left hand and heavily bandaged for 6 weeks. She then used her right hand with no problems, but as soon as the bandages were off she went back to being a lefty.

berolina · 23/10/2008 09:25

ds1's RH preference came out increasingly clearly between 2 and 3.

berolina · 23/10/2008 09:27

Am curious what ds2 will be. dh is LH but trained himself to write with his right hand. I am RH (for writing, cutting etc.) but there are a few things I can only do with my left hand and some things I use both for.

RhinestoneCowghoul · 23/10/2008 09:30

DS is 2 and seems to mostly favour his RH, but does sometimes swap over for eating. Both DH and I are RH but tend to use cutlery in the 'wrong' hands for some reason (drives my mum mad when I lay the table at her house!)

mistlethrush · 23/10/2008 09:30

I'm afraid we encouraged ds to use his right hand early on - clear preference for left hand to reach out when he was quite small (months) - I encouraged RH more until they evened up. I have encouraged him to eat right handed and draw righthanded just because it is so much easier for children who are righthanded for writing etc. Ds (3.5) now does favour his right hand for things like writing, but is quite good with both. I'm righthanded, but dh is fairly lefthanded - although he calls what he is 'ambisinetris' ie he's not much good with either hand!

RhinestoneCowghoul · 23/10/2008 09:31

Oh and have an ex-bf who was LH but was not 'allowed' to write with his LH at school so learnt to write with his RH...

His handwriting was appalling, and I'm sure would have been much easier for him if someone hadn't got a bee in their bonnet about it.

selfevidentnamechange · 23/10/2008 09:33

ds was 4 and a half before a clear preference (LH) came through

Mumwhensdinnerready · 23/10/2008 15:24

DS2 was still not showing a definite preference when he started school at 4.5.
His teacher agreed with me not to push one way or the other but to observe him over a period of time and see whether he was in fact using one hand more than the other. In the end he emerged right handed but uses his left hand more than most people.
Bats left handed for cricket.

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