MIL insisting my left-handed toddler to use right hand - What to do?

My son is also left handed and is 8 years now. He uses left hand for writing, playing etc.. we didnt try to change him and its considered wrong to change. However for eating with hands we ask him to use right hand and he's ok with it. However if eating with spoon he uses left hand as he's more comfortable with left.. if he's ok using right for eating, let him. However please dont force if he's not comfortable.

 

Not a huge deal either way. But in our traditional way, eating is right handed even if writing/playing is left handed. Depends on how much families follow tradition, not a huge deal otherwise.
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Digressing - Apart from this - overall regarding which traditions DH/DW follow:
If DIL is a bit submissive, then usually the Inlaws traditions takes precedence in the families (things are done following DH household traditions - usual Indian way).
If DIL is independent and non-submissive, I guess some negotiations/trade-offs , meeting midway happens...

 

To me, changing the dominant hand rankles.

However, if it is about not offending sensibilities... My daughter is right-handed. She used to find it difficult to hold the food with the fork in her left hand; she would keep transferring the fork to her right hand before putting it in her mouth. Gently (and not-so-gently) coaxing her to never move the fork from her left hand has finally yielded results...

Sadly, I have noticed for decades now my leftie friends and relatives in India being constantly, I mean constantly, "corrected" by every one from close relatives to vegetable vendors... If that is the sort of setting, you might as well compromise by coaxing her to eat with her right hand... (Also for handing over and taking things from others)

Or you can remain firm and consistently ask people to leave your child alone. If you do this consistently, by the time she is 5, she should be able to fend for herself and ask people to back off on her own...

 

Dear op,

I have more than 4 left handed friends(from school days & college days).Except one all others eat with thier right hand.Even though i eat and share food with that left hand eater friend,not many like to do so.That friend used to tell me that she tried many times to change ,but found it so difficult that she gave up.I had seen her make conscious effort to eat with her right hand using the spoon when we have someone extra join us for lunch.

The other friend who used the right hand told me its not a big deal to learn to eat with the right hand as the strain of perfection & speed expected in our writing skill is not necessary here.So like @ guesshoo told its upto you to decide for the child until she comes of age to decide going with the flow or not.But as a parent be prepared to accept her both ways.Its after all her life to choose her battles she wanted to wag.

 

It should be OK , they always recommend that all of us try to use both hands not just the dominant hand, it helps us utilize both sides of the brain better, your kid may learn to use both hands unlike most of us. If she finds it very difficult with age, you can stop insisting on it

 

I have been accused of the same thing, @hope2b. However, from my experience, I am none the worse for it and my daughter, all the better! Now, even my most vehement detractors have no ground to argue with me about.

I think the point is that how we were brought up was vastly, vaaaastly different from what is now expected in the part of the world we live in now. If I brought up my child the way my MIL brought her lot up, my child would be a silly brat with self-esteem issues.

So, do continue your research; I am sure you can evaluate differing view points and sort them out. My favourite quip used to be, "It's a different world from the one you know. I'll handle it my way."

 

Pls let ur kid do what she is comfortable with n dont allow others to 'correct' her. Tell them she is left handed. I'm a left hander n I do everything from eating to writing to surgeries with my left hand predominantly. My parents never tried forcing me to change cos the paediatrician advised them against it n I think it's no big deal.. Iv hardly ever met ppl who object to it except probably some old lady in a religious place glaring at me for eating with my left hand.. I glared bac cos I couldn't understand what was so out of the the world.. Only much later did I realise what the stare meant.. For me atleast being left handed has made me unique n I don't at all feel bad or try to change.. It's a different thing thing that most surgical instruments r made for right handed ppl n I sometimes struggle with them.. All the same, I always have an audience while doing surgery cos everything looks different to the others gigglingsmiley..
Pls dont make her feel being left handed is something that needs to be ' corrected' . Let her grow up to be confident n happy to be left handed..