Dr. Robert Needlman
Specialist in pediatric behavior and development.
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 Ask Dr. Needlman
Left-Handed Child Forced to Use Right Hand in School | | | QUESTION | | | Dear Dr. Needlman,
My six-year-old daughter is left-handed. Her kindergarten teacher is trying to make her learn to use her right hand with cutting and coloring; this upsets my daughter because it's making her work look "messy" and she feels like she's going to be in trouble if she uses her left hand.
Is it possible to train a child to use her other hand? Why would you? I feel it would cause mental or emotional issues for the child because it implies that she needs "fixing." I know it's a disadvantage to be left-handed in this society, but I'm not going to force her to do something her body doesn't do naturally. Is there any evidence that being right-handed is better than being left-handed? I appreciate your feedback!— Sandyp | | | ANSWER |
November 16, 2001 | | | Dear Sandy,
There is no evidence at all that being right-handed is "better" than being left-handed. Left-handed people have to deal with certain frustrations (at crowded dinner parties when everyone has to sit close together, for example), but modern society has learned (or should have learned) to accept differences in handedness as we accept many other differences, to our overall benefit as a society.
There is an old belief that teaching a left-handed child to work with her right hand causes emotional disturbance, and perhaps bedwetting. More recent research suggests that it is not the matter of teaching the child to change hands so much as it is the harshness with which the teaching was done, relying on a lot of shaming and physical pain. Of course, that approach to teaching anything is likely to cause emotional distress.
So, I think it probably is possible to teach a left-handed child to use her right hand, without causing emotional upset, if the teaching is done with skill and kindness. On the other hand, I'm not sure there is any good reason to do this. Even with very good teaching, it would take a lot of effort and concentration for a left-handed child to learn to use her right hand. If you need convincing of this, just try doing everything with your left hand for a while (if you are a "righty"). All of a sudden, things that were easy become difficult. You quickly use up all of your frustration tolerance dealing with your hand, and you don't have a lot left over for other challenges.
I would encourage a kindergarten teacher not to try to teach a left-handed child to use her right hand, unless the child were very motivated to do that herself. It's more important that the child feel comfortable and interested in learning about a whole range of subjects--including letters and numbers, but also art, science, the natural world and of course friends--rather than use up all of her energy working on handedness issues. Look at the other information on handedness for tips on finding left-handed scissors (a real essential in kindergarten!), and other accommodations. You might also invite your daughter's teacher to research this topic on our site.— by Robert Needlman, M.D., F.A.A.P. |
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