How odd is this?

It has been evident since the time Ashley was an infant and batting at rattles that she was left handed. She ate with her left hand, when she started drawing, writing, and cutting, she used her left hand, etc. And, has done so ever since.

A few weeks ago we were at a restaurant and I noticed that we weren't bumping elbows. (We always bump elbows because she is a lefty and I am a righty). I looked over and she was eating with her right hand. I didn't say anything as I wanted to watch and see if it would happen again. Throughout the next couple of weeks, sometimes she'd grab the fork with her right hand and sometimes with her left hand. But, for everything else, her left hand continued to be more dominant.... until last night.

I walked in the room while she was doing her homework last night. She had a pencil in each hand, and had her math homework sheet and her spelling homework sheet out, one on each side of her. She would alternate back and forth between the two sheets, writing one with her left hand and the other with her right hand. The math sheet, which she was writing with her right hand, was legible, but not as good as it would have been with her left hand, but her handwriting is awful anyways... LOL. Again, I didn't say anything as I wanted to watch and observe, but I think I am going to ask her about it soon. It may be just something she is experimenting with, but I found it odd that she would switch hands after 9 years.

Not odd at all. We started noticing this with Kylie about a year ago. The only thing she does left-handed now is write. Everything else she does right handed. As a baby she did almost everything left-handed. I don't know the reason behind why they change. Ryan and I have been discussing it a lot lately because we are interested in learning why, as it seems pretty neat that the mind can do that. We are also a little sad that we aren't a family of 4 left-handers, though.

ETA: Kylie can still do all the things she does with her right hand, with her left hand, too. She just uses the right more now.

This post has been edited by coasterqueen on Sep 13 2011, 05:16 AM

Interesting Karen. Maybe it is their way of adapting to the right-handed world. Do you use your right hand for other things or do you still mostly use your left hand? Just curious as Ashley is the only one in our family that is left handed.

Megan still only uses her left-hand for everything and I think she'll stay that way. I don't think it has to do with adjusting to a right-hand world. Ryan and I had to endure a lot growing up left-handed, mainly in school. I even had to spend an entire summer in a school program to learn how to write more like a right-hander because no one could read my left-hand writing. Ryan and I both do almost everything left-handed. Cutting with scissors we do right handed, but that is because our parents had right-handed scissors and so we had to learn to use those that way. My father is left-handed. My mother and sister are right. Actually my sister was a little ambidextrous, not sure if she is still that way, but she was predominantly right-handed. I honestly don't know the answer as to why they change, especially later in childhood as everything I had read a long time ago stated left-handers usually decide exactly what hand they will use by age 5, and it was after age 5 when Kylie started doing more things right-handed. It is really interesting and some day I plan to read up more on it and figure out why she is so unique in that way.

I'm right handed, but not dominant. I write with my right hand, but I can't use cutlery like another right handed person I use my cutlery like a left-handed person. I throw a ball better with my left hand, and I lay guitar hero on the left hand setting.

Does Ashley spend a lot of time with someone who is left handed? My brother is left handed, so we use cutlery the same, and when I was younger and we would play ball games, I must've just copied his actions - hence, years of using my left hand to eat, throw a ball, etc have stuck with me.

I don't think it's odd. Chris (8) used to be a lefty - I personally think his preschool/kindy forced him to use his right hand instead of having to deal with a lefty. When he dislocated/broke his right pinkie and was in a cast up to his elbow, he started working with his left again and now goes back and forth. We actually found during this baseball season that he bats better as a lefty but throws better right handed.

I am only a lefty when it comes to writing and brushing my teeth. All other things, I am a righty. It is my stronger arm, I throw with it, etc.
Will has always been a lefty, so much so that Santa even brought him a left-handed bow last year. Well, the draw length on it was a little too long until just this past month. And guess what.... he keeps trying to shoot it right handed.
I assume he is going to end up about the same way I am. I don't know why, and I don't remember if I was ever a full lefty or not so I can't compare it to my development either. I figure he'll just use whatever hand he is more comfortable with.

By the way, I notice a pattern in the age this is happening. Maybe it is a stage in the development process where things like can change. IDK. Kind of cool to me, though.

I think it is AWESOME!!

I have an aunt who used to teach school. She would, for fun, start writing on the board with her left hand then switch the chalk to her right and keep on writing just to see if anyone noticed. I can not imagine being able to use both hands like that! She's using both sides of that big brain!!

My son is mixed up too - he has always written left handed but we discovered after buying him a left handed baseball glove that he is bats and throws right (although he can switch hit). His left foot is his kicking foot.

I really think people like this do tap into more of their brain and probably are more intelligent than folks like me, completely right side dominant. But that's just an accountant's theory ... I am no brain surgeon!!! I know you have said how intelligent Ashley is, well, she is adding to my theory!

Keep it up Ashley!!

Mary, I've always said left-handers are smarter. They have to be because they are so unique. And I don't just say this because I'm left handed.

I think that is pretty cool! I mean how great would it be to double hand it like that? She is Mensa right? I love this! I wouldn't ask her, but just watch for interest sake.
Oh and Jack has horrible printing - OMG it is so bad!

Mary, I've always said left-handers are smarter. They have to be because they are so unique. And I don't just say this because I'm left handed.

I agree with you Karen, but didn't want to insult my fellow righties ... although when I shared my "lefties are smarter than righties" theory with my boss, his response was "you apparently have never met my sister"!

I see more and more kids that are lefties. I wonder if this is only because we now "allow" kids to be lefties or is there something else causing this?

And, as a note, both DH and I are righties and so is Erin, but my boy got some lefty gene, primarily from DH's side (his father and sister) and a bit from mine, but sadly DH and I were skipped!!

Naomie is left handed...and writes with her left hand.

I am predominantly right-handed when it comes to writing, but I seem to prefer writing on chalkboards and dry-erase boards with my left hand.

SO is also left-handed.

We make the kids eat with their fork in their left hand, and knife in the right hand. That's proper table manners according to most sources, although eating right handed is accepted as well, these days.

I agree, I find this all fascinating. I think I am just going to observe a bit longer before I ask her though. Personally I don't think it is a sign of being more intelligent or less intelligent, but I think it is more a reflection of how people adapt to their environment (but that is just my theory).

Update: She has gone back to writing with just her left hand. While she still eats with her left hand most of the time, I have seen her use her right hand on occasion. She was playing basketball the other day with some friends, and I noted she was swiching hands when she would throw the ball. I think the writing thing was an experiment but I think the other oocurences happen without thought -- but then, this is just me guessing. I do still plan to ask her if she is purposely using her right hand just to satisfy my curiousity.