When could you tell what 'handed' your child would be?

[Lelophants]

I've been told 9 months is way too young, but my son is already very left hand dominant when drinking, holding spoon etc. I know it'll probably change again but find it really interesting.

He's also born in November which is apparently more common for left handedness.

My daughter was using both and mostly her left at that about 2 years. I'm left handed and her dad is right handed. She is now primary school aged and right handed only.

At that age until about 2 years

I could tell with both my dcs by around 6 months as both showed a strong preference for one hand from very early on (one is right handed the other is left), so I certainly wouldnt say 9 months is too young to tell. I suppose it doesn't really matter much at this age but it was good knowing with the left-handed child when he was a toddler to buy left handed kids scissors for him rather than leaving him to struggle with right handed ones (like they keep doing at school ).

Mine was ambidextrous and used to switch about all the time. She didn't settle one way or the other until she was about 3.

My youngest is 3.5 and I’m still not sure!! She’ll switch hands in the middle of doing something! At the moment it’s looking like she might be left handed though.

One of my dc only chose a writing hand when forced to by school in YR, the other was clearly right handed from about 2yo.

My daughter was clearly right handed at that age. My son is nearly two and doesn’t have a clear preference.

The worry about babies displaying very early preference for one side over another, is whether in fact this is because there is some weakness or difficulty with the other side. So at 6 or 9 months of age, if I found myself thinking a child was right or left handed already, I'd want to assess whether they are able to use both sides appropriately, whether there is anything odd about posture and so on.

Most kids will be fine, of course, but if thinking about these points raises any questions in your mind at all, see your GP and get an objective opinion.

My daughter was left hand dominant around 4/6months, we did baby swimming lessons and even the swim teacher noticed she would always try to grab with her left. She is a lefty, my son was later as he switched between the two until he was around 1 when he became right hand dominant

As Pythonesque says. My DD favoured her left side as a baby (only rolled in one direction, for example). Age 3 she was diagnosed with a mild case of cerebral palsy. Not to panic those whose children have shown early preference but if it seems that a baby is not using one side as much as the other then it is worth investigating.

We were utterly convinced our DD was going to be LH dominant, like her dad, it was her preference for everything up to about 2.5

She's just turned 3.5 and is very clearly RH dominant.

Mine didn't settle until the age of 4! Could use both hands for most things, seemed to favour left slightly, but settled on right when they started school.

My 1st was another early lefty dominant at around 6 months. I used to laugh at the books saying you couldn’t know. I bloody did and so did my daughter!

The Subsequent rights hadnt really settled until 2/ 3.

DD1 was about equal handed until 3, then started to prefer left (but still used both). She broke her left arm at just turned four. When she started school 2 months later, she just her right hand. She still has very scruffy writing at 9yo, and her own grip isn't strong. She uses her left hand for things like scissors, throws with her left etc. Had an unsuccessful attempt to try to swap her writing hand.... But it seems she's a lefty that writes with her right hand. Maybe. Or she's just takes after her father who has illegible handwriting. The broken arm is a theory her yr1-3 teachers shared.

My son my left handed from very early on, in fact he was referred to be reviewed by a paediatrician as he only used his left hand and it concerned the health visitor.
He is now 8 and right handed.

My DS showed a clear preference for his right hand from starting BLW at 6 months. At almost 3yrs, he still seems very right handed. As a lefty, I’m a bit disappointed 😆

I often worried by youngest had broken an arm because he would only use one from a few months old!

Eldest is ambidextrous and didn't choose a preferred hand until he was 7years old!

It's different for every child

DD1 showed a preference for using her left hand at around 6 months.

I was convinced that DS was going to be left handed from 2 to 3.5. Then it became more ambiguous and now, at 5, he is clearly right handed.

I'm interested in why babies born in November would be more likely to be left handed. Do you have a source for that?

My eldest didn't have a strong preference till she started school, she is right handed.

My youngest is left handed and showed a preference from 6 months old.

I started noticing my daughter favouring her left hand at about one year old. She had used both hands equally previously. I remember telling my mum I thought she was going to be LH but she thought it was too early to tell. My daughter is a December baby. I put her into martial arts quite young to get her to learn intricate patterns from a RH POV as thought it would be beneficial for her down the road (learning to drive etc) It really seems to have helped her when she is in a situation where everything is geared for RH people.

I am not fully ambidextrous, the only thing I don’t do with my left hand is write, I use it for everything else. My dad is fully ambidextrous and he used to get belted from his teacher on his hand with the ruler when he tried to write with his left. No-one else in my or husband’s family is a leftie so my daughter being one is weird. My son is right handed.

My DD has done everything with her left hand since about 6 months old! I was quite surprised by this as I thought most babies switched around a lot, but she has always reached for things with her left and is definitely left handed now.

I would go so far as to say from birth, but it probably wasn't! DC was definitely left hand dominant as soon as is possible to notice. Definifely by 6 months. Also always only sucked left thumb.

My son didn’t exhibit a preference until 7. (Years).
Dd1 was about 3. Dd2 should have been right handed but is forcibly left handed due to brain damage affecting her right side more.

www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/07/140703102940.htm