Left-handed writers are far more likely to make cross-strokes from right to left than left to right and similarly, left-handed writer write circular letters and numbers with clock-wise strokes, rather than counter clock-wise.
Ideally left-handers should hold the pen or pencil 2-3cm from the point to enable them to see round their fingers and avoid “hooking” with the writing hand or adopting and awkward neck posture when writing.
Left handed people face a lot of difficulties in everyday life. Handwriting can be particularly hard for lefties, especially if they are taught by a right handed person, as the grip of the pen and formation of letters is different.
Left-handers often make their cross marks (such as on the letter “t”) from right to left. They also write symbols like “O” in a clockwise instead of counter-clockwise direction. Don't try to change this; this is more comfortable and much easier. There are handwriting charts available specifically for left-handers.
Babe Ruth. The Babe is probably the most famous left-handed slugger of all-time.
Lefties make up only about 10 percent of the population, but studies find that individuals who are left-handed score higher when it comes to creativity, imagination, daydreaming and intuition. They're also better at rhythm and visualization.
For the child who writes with their left hand, learning cursive handwriting can be especially difficult. Below, you will find information about teaching cursive handwriting and letters that are similar and should be taught together in groups for ease of learning.
Causes of left-handedness
Just why one in 10 people favour their left hand is a mystery. A straightforward genetic link hasn't been proven, and it is possible for two right-handed parents to have a left-handed child. Theories include: Genes – perhaps genetic factors predispose a child to favour the right hand.
When a left-handed person tries to write like a right handed person, it doesn't work, because the action of their wrist makes the writing slant the wrong way: This form of left-handed handwriting is usually called backhand; it's main disadvantage is that it tends to be illegible (since it distorts the letter forms).
Only about 10 percent of people worldwide are left-handed, experts say. They're more comfortable writing, throwing a ball and doing other manual tasks with their left hand.
Fountain pens present the biggest challenge for lefties, since nibs are generally cut for right handers. Only a few brands produce nibs dedicated for the left hander, which are cut in the opposite direction. Nearly all Lamy ranges are available with left handed nibs.
Left-handedness — sometimes called "sinistrality" — means you prefer to use your left hand rather than your right hand for routine activities, such as writing. Most people who have studied left-handedness believe that approximately 10 percent of the people in the world are left-handed.
Right-handed people are more skillful with their right hands. Studies suggest that approximately 90% of people are right-handed. Left-handedness is less common. Studies suggest that approximately 10% of people are left-handed.
Nearly 1 in 10 people worldwide reported using their left hand to write, with some variation from country to country. This was somewhat confirmed by an analysis of nearly 2.4 million individuals published last year which reported a range of 9.3% to 18.1% depending on how handedness had been measured.
Special or not, lefties are born, not made: Genetics are at least partially responsible for handedness. Up until last year, it was assumed that hand preference comes from asymmetrical genes in the brain—two hands, two brain hemispheres, one is dominant.
Like many complex traits, handedness does not have a simple pattern of inheritance. Children of left-handed parents are more likely to be left-handed than are children of right-handed parents.
Left-handedness occurs in about 8% of the human population. It runs in families and an adoption study suggests a genetic rather than an environmental origin; however, monozygotic twins show substantial discordance.
There are many aspects to handwriting that can be complicated by having a child who is left-handed. Often, the hand smears the ink or pencil as the child writes across the page. The hand also gets in the way of reading directions and examples in the left-handed margin.
Left-handedness was associated with differences in brain asymmetry in areas related to working memory, language, hand control and vision. Some of these brain areas were linked to specific genes. Scientists have long been fascinated by left-handedness.
As previously shown, from this study, when left-handers used their non- dominant hand (right) and when right-handers used their non-dominant hand (left), the result showed left-handers to be faster in change in hand than right-handers.
While some reasons for the differences in thinking and functioning may be genetic and anatomical, left-handedness is behavioral as well. Things left-handers do differently are often influenced by the societal implications of having a dominant hand that differs from the general public.
“Most left-handers seem to have similar language processing to right-handers,” Grimshaw says. For other one-sided brain functions, such as attention, emotion, music, and face perception, she says, there are less data. “But for the most part, left-handers do not differ obviously from right-handers.
King George VI and the Queen Mother were both left-handed. Prince William is left-handed, but none of his children are. Infanta Elena and Princess Leonor of Spain are left-handed, as well.