The Left-Handed Child in a Right-Handed World

By Clinton Hackney, Ed. D.
Language Arts Consultant

We live in a right-handed society. Our civilization has been built around a tradition that regards the right hand as preferable to the left. Hand tools, machines, even doors were designed on the basis of this attitude. However, several years ago, Dr. Frank Freeman observed:

"The number of left-handed children seems to have increased in recent years. This may be due to relaxed home and school discipline as well as the recommendations of medical authorities that children who show early preference for the left hand should not be changed. Whatever the reason, these children are entitled to just as much guidance and help in the development of the skill of handwriting as the right-hander receives."*

By Carma Haley Shoemaker

One in every 10 people is left-handed, and males are one and a half times more likely to be left-handed then females, according to Lefthanders International. Medical researchers have looked long and hard for what causes people to be left- or right-handed. Their answer? The same reason why brown-eyed people have brown eyes: genes that manifest their trait one out of every 10 chances. With 90 percent of the population being right-handed, how can parents help their "lefty" learn to successfully navigate his or her world?