My four year old daughter is left handed. She can use her right for eating, but it has been apparent that she is left dominated since she was under a year old. She even struggles using a computer mouse because it is on the right side. We have been working on numbers and letters recognition, and I have noticed she sometimes switches the numbers around. For example, we were at a store and a huge sign said pricing special, $45. She said "look Mommy, a 5 and 4!" I told her good job and pointed the numbers, explained that together it says 45. She lost interest before I finished lol, but that has happened a few times. Another example is while reading together, she will start at the end of the sentence and run her finger to the left like highlighting what I am saying.
My aunt is a lefty and dyslexic, and so is my BIL. I read online it is common with lefties (never knew that). My best friend is a lefty also and said she never had problems. Funny thing too, my daughter is a "stereotypic" lefty. She is amazingly smart, has a fantastic memory and can pick up musical tunes and pitch and recite it back after hearing it once or twice! I predict she will take over the world by the time she is 10 lol :)
I know she is young and it is common to switch numbers around, write them backwards, etc. I am not concerned, just curious if anyone has noticed a link in their kids or anyone they know.
Thanks for the input! Just an informal survey on my end. As I stated in the question, I am NOT concerned. My son mixed up letter b and d and transposed numbers til first grade. I was just curious if anyone noticed a link.
And thanks Riley J! I never heard if that. So far she wants to dance, but I will keep that in mind once she starts music. Our district school is a music magnet school, so she will start in kindergarten.
My husband and 3 out of my 4 children are left handed. None are dyslexic. My right handed 7 yr old grandson just started writing all his letters and numbers correctly; a very common issue when kids are young.
Nope. The dyslexics I know are all right handed, and none of the lefties I know are dyslexic.
Heres a musician trick, btw... Teach her right handed if she does strings. Why? PHENOM playing. The right hand picks up skills, while the left can do AMAZING patterns. My ex is an example (and he's played with guitar greats since a teen), as are many many pro musicians I know. Back then it was an unintentional thing... But now that lefties are taught left, they've seen first hand the results with THEIR kids. Same kid, taught left is GOID, but then when taught right handed, after a few months of Ugh!, is GREAT. Such mindblowing results they've started teaching their righties LEFT. Lol.
Everything she's doing, my son did at her age and he is neither left handed or dyslexic. I'm guessing that both are inherited traits, and since both are in your family, it might be linked, but don't know about the prevalence in the greater population.
hm. i am left handed and have never had issues with dyslexia. my 5 year old (right handed) son often gets numbers backwards, has since he started learning them, and i've been told more than once that kids first learning numbers and letters often get mixed up which direction they go. my husband is right handed, and IS dyslexic. sooo. take that for what it's worth. no, i have never associated left handedness with dyslexia.
*oh something i forgot to mention - i didn't learn to use a computer till i was in my 20's, and i never had trouble with the mouse. she's only 4, give her a break - most of these things you mention, to me, sound like typical 4 year old things. don't label it or make an issue of it. the only thing i ever had an issue with was using right handed scissors - but by the time i got some left handed ones, i was used to using the right handed ones so that turned out to be a non-issue too.
All the lefties I know are not dyslexic. I know 2 dyslexics that are right handed however.
My sister and I are both dyslexic, she's a leftie and I'm not. I don't know if that helps or not.
We have quite a few lefties in our family...none of them are dyslexic....but ALL of them can play sports and snowboard as a righty, not sure if that makes a difference?
No the lefties in my family are not dyslexic, they are highly intelligent but I dont know if that correlates to anything? And, as a K, 1st, teacher I'll add that wondering about a four year old reversing letters is like wondering about a six yr old losing teeth.
My son is left handed (4 1/2) and he is learning to read pretty well and doesnt seem to by dyslexic. He does read numbers back to me in the wrong order, which I have read can be common at this age. I wouldnt worry about it.
yes I am,my husband and our daughter are all lefties and all dyslexci.
no-my lefty is not dyslexic.
I'm a leftie. I used to write everything backward, especially in kindergarten, my teacher used to yell at me like you wouldn't believe. Anyway, I learned by the time I was in 1st grade (with a much nicer teacher and a little more maturity) how to properly write.
Fast forward 30 years and my son who is 6 is a righty and completed kindergarten and is writing 25% of his letters and numbers backward. The teacher and I are not concerned. We decided if he didn't rectify the problem by the end of 1st grade we would do some intervention.
My advice to you would be NOT to make a big deal of it and give her little brain a chance to develope more before you get too concerned.
My husband is left handed and he is not dyslexic.
I've had a few friends who were dyslexic and right handed.
Handedness (left, right) does not settle out usually until the 1st or 2nd grade.
Learning to print/write, it's common for letters and numbers to be drawn backwards, and they switch up letter an number sequences for awhile.
The things you are noticing are pretty typical and most just grow out of it sooner or later.
My husband is left handed for writing and using scissors, right handed for shooting, and he can use both hands at the same time for using a mouse on 2 different computers. We say he's 'ambi-mouse-trous'.
They thought I was dyslexic when I started kindergarten because I did the same thing. Do a little more research, but it has something to do with the brain. Lefties brains work a little different and it can be quite normal for lefties to switch things around. Give her some time, it didn't take me long to figure things out.
Me
My husband
My Uncle
My best friend
are all lefties..... No problems here :)
My daughter is a lefty and my son is ambidextrous. Neither is dyslexic.
Both of my boys are lefties, and they both started off writing their names backwards, but neither one is dyslexic. I am an English teacher, and I haven't noticed a pattern of dyslexia in my students (left or right handed). It's an interesting idea, though.
My husband, daughter and myself are lefthanded. When my daughter began to write it was all backward and would look "normal" if held to a mirror. I learned this is totally normal for left and right handed kids. Don't worry - totally normal stuff! Can you move the mouse to the other side for her? Enjoy
