any left handers trying to teach children right handed ways

[loves2walk]

Sounds a bit trivial but I am left handed and both my DSs are right handed as is H. I have recently noticed that both DSs eat like me - in a left handed way. I have asked them to switch to right handed eating because they are both very messy but they seem to struggle with that now.

My H is not often there for meas so they have obviously picked this up by watching me - maybe picked it up subconsciously. But left handed eating does not look 'natural' for either of them and even though they're messy with right handed eating it looks more natural on them, so I'm wondering if I should make them persist with it.

I think they have been doing the left handed eating thing for a while and I've only recently noticed.

Anyone else found this? I also found it impossible to teach my DS1 to knit when he was doing a school knitting project. We got in a right muddle!

meals sorry!

2 left handed parents of a righty and an undecided but probably righty, here. We don't try to teach DS1 anything specifically right handed. He just works it out for himself, despite having some dyspraxia. We actually hold our forks in our left hand and knives in the right, since we had parents who taught us the "correct" way, but we noticed the other day, that now DS1 is getting the hang of using a knife and fork together, he holds his fork in his right hand.

My right handed mum did find it impossible to teach me how to knit, too, but that was because she was trying to change things around for me and got us both confused. I've since taught myself to knit and do it English style, knitting onto my right needle just like she did.

So I'd say don't try to push them in any direction and let them work it out for themselves. They will start to do what they find most comfortable and that way will be more adept at it. Some things they will learn by looking at you as in a mirror and then it'll automatically be the right way around for them, anyhow.

I'm a lefty but both my children are righties. I hold my knife and fork the conventional way round, as does my DD. DS holds them the other way round. I don't know why but I don't particularly care. If anything, DD is a messier eater but I think that's more to do with her age than cutlery.

I've not tried teaching knitting largely because I can't knit . As ouryve says, things like shoelaces worked out because I just faced them and they mirrored what I did.

I'm a righty with 2 righty's a leftie and an undecided

I think most children are ambidextrous at some point while they decide wht they are going to be, my leftie child writes with her left but always uses a mouse with her right hand, the list goes on.....

They will work out a way to do things so that they feel comfortable to them.

Thanks, I appreciate all your comments.

I think you might be right, to just leave them to work out their own way with eating. They are 9 and 5 yrs and even the 9 yr old still seems to struggle to eat without making a terrible mess. But then I think he has some mild dypraxia too so it could be that.

I'm amazed /amused by how they seem to have copied my way of eating even though it looks very awkward for them and the 5y old shows absolutely no other left handed characteristics so it does not seem his natural way. But I'll let it go and see what happens!

One thought is that when a right-handed child is first learning to eat, they'll likely hold their spoon (and, later, fork) in their dominant hand. But to eat the conventional way they'd then need to swap once they get to grips with a fork and knife together. Looked at that way it would make more sense to keep the fork in your dominant hand and the knife in your other hand.

I am the left handed mother of 3 right handed children and I never really thought about it till now. They can all write, put their own clothes on etc. Must have learned by magic.

I don't think I would have thought about it either as I was taught to do things by right handed parents and it was not an issue for me at all.

Only came up because recently both DSs have gone backwards in terms of their eating style and when I was trying to help them I realised they were both eating left handed. Is odd that's all. Not sure which way they eat when I'm not around.

I think if you're the sort of person who is not strongly dominant in either hand, it can make you more clumsy - think this explains a lot with DS1 who at 9yrs still struggles to brush his teeth - he often bashes his gums and can't easily do the 'flicking' motion the dentist taught him. He swaps hands for this and hasn't settled into one hand so maybe his practice time with each hand is halved therefore takes twice as long to master the task??

Just a bit of homegrown theory there!