hi!

As for encourageing and stuff from a learning point. Pay really close attention to which hand he generally picks up his fork in. (or whatever he generally eats with.. fork, spoon, chopsticks.. whatever) and encourage him gently to use that hand as his writing hand.

I'm ambidextrious with strong left tendencies, and generally left handed.

Regardless, starting gently encouraging him to use whatever hand he seems to reach with first.

I say let him choose what he wants to do. Let nature take its course. You may create a battle later on that doesn't need to exist.

My nephew started out ambidexterous, but through the years has opted to use his left hand predominantly. I don't know that my sister encouraged/discouraged anything... I think she just let him be. I'm not sure if that was the recommended course of action, but he turned out fine.

As for the Strawberry Shortcake plate... who cares? I'm of the mindset that girls should play with trucks if they want to and boys should play with dolls if they want to, too. It's all good.

Get that baby some piano lessons...quick! Ambedexterity is a great assest for playing the piano.
My degree is in early childhood education and I have to disagree with Hawk's comment. You should only encourage him one way or the other if he shows a general pattern of favoring one hand for writing. If he is truly ambedextrous (showing no preference on his own for one hand or the other) don't discourage or encourage either way. Allow him to develop strength in both hands. Watch out for reading dificulties. Ambedexterity has been linked to dyslexia-like problems. But then you were a teacher so I bet you already knew that :0)

who cares. If they eat off it, everything is great.

I have not heard much in the way of worries for ambidextrous children in education. The dyslexia comment from jessy is very interesting and something I'd like to learn more about (this could be useful info for future students). Looks like I need to do some research!

The Strawberry Shortcake plates made me laugh. Eamon would so love to eat off one of those....

I didn't even think of the dyslexia issue. I was adopted, so I don't have dyslexia, but my entire afamily does. My abro started out ambidexterious, but he eventually favored his right hand. He could only throw with his left, and catch with his right. Both my abro and anephew couldn't tell their left from their right. Both wear their watches (as adults) on their right hand so they know its their right hand.

So, yeah ... watch out for dyslexia. I'm not saying its definitive, but its something to be aware of.

Kevin is also ambidextrous at this point, but I figure when he gets to school that will change.

I'm also ambi, so I'd recommend just letting him use whichever hand feels "right" at the moment. Eventually, he will probably start to do certain tasks with a certain hand most of the time. I happen to write with my right hand, but prefer to mouse with my left hand. It just works out better for me. I could probably have done it the other way, but don't. I think the only big mistake you could make would be to "choose sides" for him!

I just read some of the comments and I found the dyslexia thread interesting. I have no problem reading, per se, but to be honest, I have a very hard time with Lefts and Rights and have to give it considerable thought when following verbal directions. Interesting....

Anyway, Mazel Tov on the wonderful additions to your family! We adopted non-twin, non-bio boys just over two years ago and they have brought us nothing but joy!

I don't know if you will look through older commments but here is my 2 cents.

You may be the first woman on the planet to raise a multitasking man!!! I would absolutely encourage him to use both hands. Once that is mastered I would introduce doing different tasks with each hand. Eating and coloring, or something like that. What an awesome way to build the brain!

Oh, one other thought, most children when they are developing a dominant hand will experiment with what feels more comfortable. Take into account the amount of time that he was in the orphanage and compare it to when your older kids developed their dominancy and you may find a correlation. I second the piano lessons.

I have 2 adopted children and the oldest, my son, age 8, is right handed but suffers from some type of learnig disability (currently undergoing testing) and my daughter, age 6, seems to be ambi. When she was little I thought she was a lefty, but as she approaches writing she switches her had between words and sometimes even between letters!!! It is very difficult to deal with. In the last 3 years since preschool, kindergarten, and 1st grade her writing has gotten worse, almost illegible. THe school finally took my parental request for OT testing and she qualifies for services. I am a teacher and find all of your comments very interested. I too never thought of the possibility of dyslexia. Her OT evaluator brought up the thought that ambi students usually will have issues with letter reversals and directionality and it could possibly be an ongoing issue. She is having issues with letter and number reversals and issues with being slightly below level reading 1st grade texts. I plan on following up with some of these issues with her pediatrican. any thing else i should be aware of? any help would be appreciated. It's funny to me that I found this info. from you guys on an adoption site. I often wonder what things my children come up with and if it is an issue due to adoption, biology, or some other influence.
Debby

I am ambidextrous and a twin. All my sisters are right handed, so they think I am backwards due to my left handed tendencies. I still switch back and forth such as writing right handed and using the mouse on the left. I can also do it the other way around without any difficulties. Allow him to use either hand since he will be able to do things that other people can not. Another thing to keep in mind is that people that are ambidextrous and dyslexic are average to above average intelligence so encourage him in whatever he likes to do. Teachers tried to force me to be right handed only, but I think that only hurt me in the long run. He might even be great in sports by switching which hand he is using. It is common for people that are ambidextrous to confuse left and right but he will find something that will help him.

My son is a "true ambidextrious", rare at birth. I've been an easy going single mom for six years now...NO PRESSURE HERE! I noticed he was kicking a soccer ball with his left foot, riding the scooter with his left foot,batting with both; right and left. Hockey stick swings both...golf with both! Throws with both, stronger with the right though. Writes strictly right handed. Holds fork, spoon or chopsticks with both. He has a high IQ and enjoys working on complex projects. Loves puzzles and can do a 300 piece by himself without loosing focus.He is so much fun to be with and watch.I've learned a lot from him and he is only 6 years old. No signs of dyslexia here. I never thought that being ambidextrious would be a problem but more of an asset...and it has been a fun and great asset in our case!
In addition, I've done a lot of reading on the subject (ambidexterity) and consulted with experts...my son is defenately a "true ambidextrious" and I never doubted him!
Have a wonderfula and productive day!