Did you know that August 13, 2023, is National Left Handers Day? Lefties across the globe celebrate the annual event, which was launched in 1992 by the UK-based Left-Handers Club to increase awareness about the left-handed lifestyle.
Here are some interesting facts about left-handedness:
- On average, 12% of the world is left-handed, 87% right-handed, and 1% ambidextrous. However, the percentage of lefties worldwide is slowly growing as being left-handed becomes more socially accepted.
- The brain is cross-wired, meaning that the right side controls the left side of the body and vice versa. The right-hand side of the brain is thought to coordinate the left side of the body and control tasks to do with the arts and creativity.
- 5 of the last 9 Presidents were left-handed. Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, George H. W. Bush, Ronald Reagan and Gerald Ford were some of our left-handed presidents. Ronald Reagan was born a leftie, but teachers converted him to a righty when he was young.
- Many sports stars are left-handed like tennis champ Rafael Nadal, golf legend Phil Mickelson and boxing star Oscar de la Hoya.
Check out this neat TED Ed lesson on why some people are left-handed:
No matter what hand you use to draw and write, we would love to have you and your families come create in the Art Studio and Tinkering Tank at Explore & More this summer!
