Handedness question

[CCJWGM]

Could someone help me with the whole left/right handed thing? I am right handed myself but am noticing some things with DS, 3.

First of all, I have no clue when "handedness" is developed.

Here is what is going on with DS.
- He uses his right hand for coloring, cutting, and eating. I have actually tried to get him to use his left but he resists it. I won't push what he resists so that's ok.
-He tracks Right to Left. If he tries to copy a word that is written down he starts his words with the left most (last) letter and works to the first letter. When he copies the letters he does it right to left. For example, M. He writes "M" (as much as an untrained 3 year old can) but does it completely backwards from me.
- He can't hold a pencil correctly in his right hand to save his life. This isn't a biggie with me because he's so young but just another mental note.
- I just put him in gymnastics. The instructor asked me if he is left handed because he puts his left foot forward and gets discombobulated if he tries right foot forward.
- We were doing something at home that required fine motor skills for hands the other day and he couldn't do it right handed and was getting frustrated. DH taught him how to do it left handed which he could do but then he refused to.
- He is extremely visual is an unusual way. Since lefties use their right brain more I know they tend to be more visual. An example is all drawings DS does are sideways. He is ahead of the curve in drawing skill yet it's all done sideways holding his pencil in weird ways. Go figure.

So, left-handed, right handed, not sure, dyslexic, ambidextrous, or what???

If he is left-handed what can I do to help him use his left hand more if he resists it?

[ellemenope]

Oh boy, this is kind of a hobby of mine.

Handedness is inhereted. I believe the theory is that an individual can have the genetic makeup to be 'strongly right handed,' 'mostly right handed,' or have genetic makeup that can go either right or left. Genetically, right handedness is a dominent trait. Left handedness isn't even something to be inhereted. It would be seen in an individual who has inherited both the two non-right biased allels. But, that could also equally produce a right-handed person. (this is an unconsious biological decision which is unexplainable and might involve more genes.)

Personaly, I am mixed-handed. I am predominatly right-handed, but If someone saw me write with my left hand they wouldn't know. I never think of it, but whenever I am on the phone, I write with my left hand. When my hand gets tired, I switch, etc. I was especially great in sports because I had equally strong sides. I snowboard like a lefty. I am left eye dominant. I am also nery strong in the visual spacial realm. Oh, and a weird thing about being me, I cannot for the life of me tell the difference between left and right. I have found a bit of research in the past to find this is common among ambidextrous individuals.

An ambidextrous person is believed to have inherited two non-right biased alleels, and has developed both sides pretty equally.

There is also correlations between handidness and hair whorls, as well as fingerprints, and even homosexuality. (very vool, but kind of weak)

I think about 1 in 10 people are left handed. Dominance is completely developed in the womb (I don't know if I believe that.) You can be able to tell anywhere between 6 months and 3 years.

anecdote: My daughter is right-handed and sucks her right thumb. My husband is left handed and sucked his left thumb.

Also, two of my sisters as well as myself (all right handed) have fallen for left-handed men. One sister is still undecided.

I don't think you have to do anything. Just let him do what he wants to do. He can be a little mixed up (like me) and that is just fine.

[A&A]

Handedness can take up to age 7 to be fully formed (and did, in fact, take almost that long with my son. I am left-handed, he seemed like he was going to be left-handed, and then turned out to be right-handed.)

My basic advice about handedness is "just chill." Obviously don't try to influence handedness either way--that could cause stuttering.

Just FYI--if two parents are left-handed, then there is a 50% chance their children will be. (And with one left-handed parent, the chances are 25%. So there is a strong genetic component.) I've heard left-handedness called a "birth defect" but of course I think that is a load of bull.

[~cassie]

My 5 yr old is left handed, I knew since he was about 12 months. I don't know all of the "correct" ways to be lefthanded, I just know what my child does, but he writes like I do, just with his left hand. He starts at the same points of a letter to form the actual letter and writes left to write. He just figured out to turn his page sideways to write.

[CCJWGM]

Originally Posted by A&A

that could cause stuttering.

Hmm......interesting. DS is a stutterer as well.

[justKate]

Originally Posted by ellemenope

Oh boy, this is kind of a hobby of mine.

Handedness is inhereted. I believe the theory is that an individual can have the genetic makeup to be 'strongly right handed,' 'mostly right handed,' or have genetic makeup that can go either right or left. Genetically, right handedness is a dominent trait. Left handedness isn't even something to be inhereted. It would be seen in an individual who has inherited both the two non-right biased allels. But, that could also equally produce a right-handed person. (this is an unconsious biological decision which is unexplainable and might involve more genes.)

Personaly, I am mixed-handed. I am predominatly right-handed, but If someone saw me write with my left hand they wouldn't know. I never think of it, but whenever I am on the phone, I write with my left hand. When my hand gets tired, I switch, etc. I was especially great in sports because I had equally strong sides. I snowboard like a lefty. I am left eye dominant. I am also nery strong in the visual spacial realm. Oh, and a weird thing about being me, I cannot for the life of me tell the difference between left and right. I have found a bit of research in the past to find this is common among ambidextrous individuals.

Interesting. I'm "mixed-handed" too; love the term. Left-eye dominant, write left-handed, cut, shoot, drive, and bowl right-handed. I cannot distinguish left from right to save my life. Two right-handed parents and thankfully, a decidedly right-handed 19 month old. The world is really designed for right-handed people.

Any good books on the topic? I'm interested...

[Logan's mommy]

My dad is a lefty and my mom is right handed. I'm also a lefty, my brother is a righty. Ds1 is right handed, but ds2 looks like he's going to be a lefty (which secretly makes me smile, because he looks nothing like me in any way)

I forgot to add: my right hand is fairly useless. I type with it and that's about the extent of use that it gets. I do everything with my left hand, including using scissors (not lefty ones, either) I can't draw to save my life, but I'm a fairly good photographer.

[kcstar]

Handedness, eye-dominance, and footedness are three separate (but possibly related) things. I'm primarily left-handed, but very much right-footed. I don't remember which eye is dominant, I might switch.

My experience matches with the previous poster, that handedness may not be fully determined until about 5. So while my 3-year-old shows strong right-handedness, I'm certain there are many other children out there, like yours, who haven't decided yet.

You say that he colors, but can't hold a pencil... tell me more about the crayons he uses. Are they the big preschooler kind, or the triangular kind, or the regular small ones?

I'm thinking that DS may still reach for pens or pencils with his whole fist, rather than using the fingers to direct it. I really don't worry about this sort of thing at 3 years, I'd worry about it more about 5 and kindergarten.

You say he does use scissors right-handed, this is good because scissors help develop the muscles used for writing. I guess I didn't have access to left-handed scissors when I was young, so I use scissors right-handed and my handwriting has suffered for it.

[ellemenope]

Originally Posted by justKate

Interesting. I'm "mixed-handed" too; love the term. Left-eye dominant, write left-handed, cut, shoot, drive, and bowl right-handed. I cannot distinguish left from right to save my life. Two right-handed parents and thankfully, a decidedly right-handed 19 month old. The world is really designed for right-handed people.

Any good books on the topic? I'm interested...

I can't wait to tell my DH I have met another person who cannot tell their left from their right. When he first met me he thought I was making it up. After 7 years, he finally admitted "you really can't tell your left from your right, can you?" (No, I just love making myself look stupid.)

To elaborate on my footedness, I played soccer competetively, and when it was realized I could kick equally hard with my left foot if not harder than my right, they put me on the left side, because there were always very few left footed people.

I would actually say that I am left footed based on that plus I snowboard and slide like a left footed person. But, right handed dominance along with left footed dominance is rare, so I don't know.

And, my hair whorl is counter-clockwise (more common among lefties).

And, finally, my mom says I showed a preference for my right hand as soon as I could write. It was a never an issue. I only started writing with my left hand in first or second grade when I started to get fatigued. But sometimes I wonder if I was pressured into using my right. I was very impressionable.

My left handed writing is as good as anyone's these days lol. But, I write faster with my right.

When I played softball (at a high level) and goofed around without my glove on, I seriously had a hard time remembering which hand to use to throw the ball. I would accidently use my left hand and throw well. And, I actually did switch hit with a lot of success.

I wish someone could figure me out.

This is an obscure and debated subject. I have been interested in it forever trying to figure out why I cannot tell my left from my right. Unfortunately, I no longer have access to online journals, so I cannot brush up on the research right now.

[Kidzaplenty]

OK, a question for anyone that might know.

If about 50% of clockwise whorls are Righties, and 50% or counterclockwise whorls are Lefties, what happens if you are a "bouble whorlly" and have both a left and a right whorl?

[ellemenope]

Cut from a random article's abstract:

The general public, consisting of mostly right-handers (RH), shows counterclockwise whorl rotation infrequently in 8.4% of individuals. Interestingly, non-right-handers (NRH, i.e., left-handers and ambidextrous) display a random mixture of clockwise and counterclockwise swirling patterns. Confirming this finding, in another independent sample of individuals chosen because of their counterclockwise rotation, one-half of them are NRH.

RH sample ~ 8.4% Counter-Clockwise Hair Whorl
Counter clockwise sample ~ 50% are NRH


From wikidoc (not the best source, but seems very fair towards double whorls out there. I like how they qualify normal scapl patterns.)

Parietal whorls which are considered to be normal scalp patterns could be a single whorl or double whorls. Cases of triple parietal scalp whorls are less common but do not necessarily indicate abnormality. Abnormal brain development is usually indicated by the complete absence of hair whorls or abnormal placement of whorls on the scalp.

Abnormal hair whorls and birthmarks have been found right on top of abnormal brain development and benign brain legions.

[cristeen]

I just want to say that hand foot and eye use do not always coincide. My DH is right-handed, but left-footed and left-eyed. In the army, he had to use rightie weapons which meant having scorching hot ammo casings flung across his face because he has to aim/shoot w his left. It really is a rightie's world.

But i also wanted to point out that tracking r2l may have nothing to do w handedness. It is actually pretty common around the world, in fact Japanese and i believe Arabic are written r2l because its considered more 'natural' than l2r.

[physmom]

Ever since DD started grabbing things she's always seemed to favor her left hand. There's been times that she'll use both equally but never a time that she's used her right hand more. Right now at 20 months she loves to color and definitely favors her left hand. It's to the point where many people have commented on it... However, who knows? Maybe she'll end up being right handed after all this!

[ellemenope]

Originally Posted by cristeen

I just want to say that hand foot and eye use do not always coincide. My DH is right-handed, but left-footed and left-eyed. In the army, he had to use rightie weapons which meant having scorching hot ammo casings flung across his face because he has to aim/shoot w his left. It really is a rightie's world.

But i also wanted to point out that tracking r2l may have nothing to do w handedness. It is actually pretty common around the world, in fact Japanese and i believe Arabic are written r2l because its considered more 'natural' than l2r.

Yes, that is true. I don't know which way is more natural than the other, though. That is interesting.

I studied arabic for many many years. I never found switching back and forth from r2l reading to l2r reading difficult.

It is also interesting that across the entire human population left handedness hovers around 10% or so regardless of which way you write.

The middle eastern culture as a whole is very anti-left hand. To varrying extents they believe the left hand to be dirty.

[thehighernest]

Though I know handedness can still take a lot of time to settle (DS is 18 months), I too am fascinated by noticing what DS does with his right and what with his left.

He picks food up with his left and throws balls with his left. If he's trying to pull apart Legos, he holds the stack with his right and pulls single blocks off with his left (DH and I do the opposite, and we're right handed). His first scribbles were on a Magna Doodle, and he tried to hold the pen with his left then too, but because of the placement of the string, he couldn't get it to work, so he figured out how to use his right hand instead. Now he always uses his right hand to draw - but I have no idea if that's because he's destined to be right handed, figured out how to compensate, or is still doing the typical switching between hands I've read toddlers do.

My older sister is left-handed and my father is too, though it was "beat out of him" because where's he from at that time, they thought left-handedness was evil, so he had no choice but to learn to be ambidextrous. I don't fully understand the hereditary aspect of it all, so I'm not sure if DS can even be left-handed if neither of us are but it still runs in the family?

[Kidzaplenty]

Of my family, my brother is a lefty. Never paid much attention to him in as much as how he does everything, but now I wish I had. One of my sons (2yo) is showing a real preference for lefthandedness.

I am not both handed, but for some strange, unknown reason, I decided years ago to teach myself to write with my left hand. I am proficient at it now, though much slower than right handed writing. I also routinely work my computer mouse with my left hand, for the fun of it mostly, but some because I had developed tendunitus in my right wrist for a while.

I am glad, though, because, of my son, I feel that I can teach him to write now when he is ready.

As for the double whorly thing, my baby has one. So, I was wondering if it could show a predisposition for both-handedness.

BTW, after reading this thread, I looked at my boys' heads (strange, I know, but fun). I have three "rightys" with two counter-clockwise whorls and one clockwise, one "lefty" with clockwise whorl, and one double whorly - handedness undeturmined.

[justKate]

Originally Posted by ellemenope

This is an obscure and debated subject. I have been interested in it forever trying to figure out why I cannot tell my left from my right. Unfortunately, I no longer have access to online journals, so I cannot brush up on the research right now.

I gave up trying to tell. My major problem is when learning new things, neither way feels intuitively correct. So I usually learn the right-handed way. 90% of the time when I sit down to eat I have to look at the fork and knife to really see which goes in which hand. You know, like think about it. I just thought I was a freak.

cristeen, I target shoot, and I know what you mean. Left-handed guns are $$ and obviously not an option for military members (as far as I know). I shoot right and lay my whole face across the stock to get my left eye on target. Looks terrible and doesn't work that well.

[physmom]

Originally Posted by justKate

I gave up trying to tell. My major problem is when learning new things, neither way feels intuitively correct. So I usually learn the right-handed way. 90% of the time when I sit down to eat I have to look at the fork and knife to really see which goes in which hand. You know, like think about it. I just thought I was a freak.

You know how I could always tell the difference? I know that my left hand makes an "L" shape with my pointer finger and thumb. It really helped when I was younger and always confused.

[justKate]

Originally Posted by physmom

You know how I could always tell the difference? I know that my left hand makes an "L" shape with my pointer finger and thumb. It really helped when I was younger and always confused.

I do that ALL THE TIME when driving.

[LynnS6]

Handedness and footedness are definitely different.

Ds is right handed and left footed. quite a combo when trying to teach him sports!

Dd is left handed and left footed.

Dh and I are both right handed and right footed, though dh doesn't have quite the strong preference I've got. My grandmother was left handed, and there's a strong streak of left-handedness that runs through my family. 3 of my parents 8 grandchildren are left handed.