Left handed

blue72 wrote: Luke favors his left hand. I'm teaching him how to write his name. Should I try and get him to use his right hand.

Mommy2Isabella replied: I think you should try it with the hand he uses most ... what i am guessing is that is his left!!! It may be a little difficuly if you are right handed!!!

BOL

mom21kid2dogs replied: I'd give him the pencil and let him choose the hand he's most comfortable with.

jacobsmama replied: I believe that Jacob is left handed too. I will give him pencil and he will switch to Left hand every time so I agree to let him use the hand that he chooses!

Brias3 replied: I found myself trying to encourage the right hand as soon as my kids started using more and more small motor skills as young toddlers but then I asked myself, why? I suppose it doesn't matter one way or another if they ARE a lefty. Ryan and Aliyah used both hands pretty intermittently until they were learning to write and then favored the right hand on their own. Mason is favoring his left when he colors and uses utensils so we'll see.

coasterqueen replied: Why? What's wrong with being left-handed? Dh and I are both left handed. Kylie is both, but leans more toward left-handed. I just let my kids decide for themselves.

Brias3 replied: Nothing's wrong with the lefties of the world at all! In fact, I had to ask myself that question as I mentioned when I started finding myself trying to "switch" the kids to their right. I don't think it matters one bit! In fact, I find "lefties" to have really nice handwriting as a rule too

NEWMOM05 replied:
Okay, that sure that doesn't apply to me and my mom. I usualy pass off my bad handwriting as being lefthanded, but I just write bad. It's just an excuse. My Mil is lefthanded too and so is her mom. Kathryn has a good chance of being lefthanded herself. We'll see.

luvmykids replied: Colt uses utensils with his right, colors and draws with his left. We'll see which he really favors later, I guess.

MommyToAshley replied: I agree with letting them choose. Just put the pencil down and let him choose.

Ashley is definitely left-handed. Not sure where she got it from. DH and I are both right-handed.

I thought someone at Ashley's preschool was trying to switch her to her right hand. She could write and cut perfectly with her left, but she came home one day trying to do it with her right hand. She can cut pretty well with her right hand, but she drew a few of her letters backwards when she did it with her right hand. When I brought it up at the parent-teacher conference, the teacher said that they don't encourage one hand over the other. But, maybe Ashley took it too literal when they said, "hold your scissors like this"? Or, she may just be trying to immitate the other kids or trying out her right hand. She's pretty much back to doing everything wiht her left again though.

jcc64 replied: Always best to follow their lead. Usually, righties "declare" their preference earlier than lefties, probably b/c there is blatant or subliminal encouragement to be a righty all around them.
My 13 yo ds is a leftie, which has been a HUGE asset to his baseball career. Lefties RULE!

mom21kid2dogs replied:
My brother in law is a HS baseball coach and already wants dibs on O. She's never been anything but a lefty (born of two "righties"~poor child) bats right handed and pitches left handed. Daddy thinks she should go for a golf scholarship, though!

BAC'sMom replied:

I agree let him write with whatever hand he chooses.

I am ambidextrous. I use both left and right.

redchief replied: There is scientific evidence that supports the theory that people are born with a "predominant side." If I accept that then I have to accept that trying to change a lefty to a righty would have profound negative effects on that person's development. Let them be who they are I say!!!!

coasterqueen replied: Just talking about this brought back horrible memories of spending an entire summer learning how to write. I used to write like a left-hander and so teachers couldn't read my writing. My parents agreed to sending me to writing sessions over the summer to learn how to write with my left-hand but to look like a right-handers writing or else teachers were saying I'd fail. I hated that.

Another thing I hated was I'm left-handed but use right-handed scissors. Teachers would FORCE me to use left-handed scissors and I couldn't cut with them. I'd just sit there and cry.

You just have to let someone be what they are going to be. Forcing them won't help them accomplish that.

luvmykids replied:
Ed, I was completely sure you were going to say that scientific evidence supports the theory that lefties are smarter, funnier, and overall more intelligent .... and that you were a leftie!

coasterqueen replied:
THAT would be something I would say. I do that often. Isn't it true?

redchief replied:
Nope, I'm a righty. There's also evidence, as suggested, that different personality traits tend to be more predominant in lefties than righties, and I seem to remember that creativity is one of them. It's been a very long time since I read on that.

I don't have a single creative bone in my body. My brother is a lefty, and his talents run toward being able to absorb sports data like we do sunshine.

coasterqueen replied:
I must have missed the creative gene and so did DH because we both don't have one in our body.

redchief replied:
Whew... I thought I was the only one in PC who was in awe of the other creative talent here! That's okay Karen, we may not be creative, but we can steal other people's ideas!!!

coasterqueen replied:
THAT I do quite well.

My3LilMonkeys replied: I agree that you should let them go with what they want. I am left handed and DH is right handed. Both our girls asserted their predominent hand very early - Brooke is a lefty and Madison is right handed.

blue72 replied: I think he is left handed or maybe he is right handed. I'm confused He changes all the time but always starts with the pencil in his left hand. He says writing is hard. I know teaching him to write has been hard. Should I continue to let him change hands with every stroke of the pencil.

Hillbilly Housewife replied:

This is something I don't have to deal with... I can write with both hands. My handwriting is fancier with my right hand... but I can write just fine with both hands.

I just can't use scissors or cut with a knife with my left hand.

I can play sports right or left handed, but I prefer my right for throwing, my right arm seems to be a little stronger.

msoulz replied:
You know, I have NEVER met a dumb lefty! But my boss says then I have never met his sister . . .

BTW, I am right handed as well as DH but my 7 year old writes with the left and plays sports with the right.

DH's family has lefties in it so I guess maybe that is where he got it.

Kittilicious replied: Let 'em choose.

My youngest is left handed and I never thought to teach her to write with her right. Years ago (many many years ago) they used to force kids to write with their right in school. Why it was so wrong to use the left, I don't know.

What I have a problem with is how some teachers feel that there is only one correct way to hold a pencil. "Pinch your pencil"... OMG I want to cringe when I hear that. My lefty daughter was hounded in Kindergarten because of the way she held her pencil... she would come home upset because she couldn't write her name well because of the way the teacher wanted her to hold her pencil. The teacher would litterally stop her and make her hold it this way, drove me nuts!

I went into school and told the teacher to let Krissy hold her pencil however she wants to. "But we are showing them the correct way to hold it". I showed her how I hold a pencil... I practically hold the entire pencil in a fist-type hold and I have very nice handwriting.... and she shut up. I also told her that I cannot teach Krissy to "pinch her pencil" when I can't even do it.

The 1st grade teacher tried the same thing... I found out at conferences that Krissy boldly told her "I don't have to pinch my pencil, my mommy says I can hold my pencil anyway I want to!".

msoulz replied:
Isn't that the craziest thing? Who cares how one holds a pencil. A friend of mine went through the exact same thing with her son, arguing with a teacher about it. If the writing is good, does it really matter? I highly doubt how one holds a pencil will adversely affect his or her physical or emotional well being!!! Of course, I am not a physical therapist, but then, neither are the teachers!

TheOaf66 replied: i think it is most important to let the child choose. My son eats left handed and now writes left handed (like me) and I supported it from the start.

Boo&BugsMom replied:
No! If he feels more comfortable with the left, let him use the left. Never ever force a child to use the hand they are not most comfortable with. Sorry to sound harsh, but as a preschool teacher I have seen many parents do this and it only hinders the child's abilities more and will tamper with their self esteem if they struggle and feel uncomfortable.

Also, on a side note, I would recommend having him trace and write his name using the correct phonetical spelling...first capital letter and the rest lower. This is the way most K classrooms will have the children write it and if they are not taught the proper way first, they will only have to relearn how to write their name when they enter K. It makes it easier on the child in the longrun. Just my two cents.

Ashlynn's Mommy replied: I think you should let him figure it out himself. He will use whatever hand he feels most comfortable with.