OKEMAH, Okla. — A 4-year-old was allegedly forced by his teacher to write with his right hand, even though he’s left-handed.
The child was sent home with a letter about how left-handedness is often associated with evil and the devil.
Zayde is only 4 years old.
It’s his first year at Oakes Elementary in Okemah, but his mom kept him home Monday after a dispute with his teacher over being left-handed.
Zayde, like most kids in Pre-K, is learning how to read and write. And like his mom, Alisha, Zayde is a lefty.
“From picking things up to throwing things, to batting, to writing, to just coloring you’d do at home with him, he’s always, always used his left hand,” Alisha Sands said.
That was until last week at homework time.
Alisha asked him why he was writing with his right hand, not his left.
“I just asked ‘Is there anything his teachers ever asked about his hands?’ And he raises this one and says this one’s bad,” Sands said.
Alisha sent the teacher a note and got a strong response.
It was an article calling left-handedness “unlucky,” “evil,” and “sinister.”
It even says “for example, the devil is often portrayed as left-handed.”
Picture of letter sent home with 4-year-old Zayde. Courtesy: Alisha
Alisha couldn’t believe it.
“It breaks my heart for him because someone actually believes that, believes my child is evil because he’s left handed, it’s crazy,” Sands said.
She went to the superintendent with the article.
“There was no suspension of any kind. There was basically nothing done to this teacher,” Sands says, “She told them she thought I needed literature on it.”
Zayde will likely transfer to another class just two months into the school year.
“I don’t feel like the school did what they were supposed to for him,” Sands said.
NewsChannel 4 called the school and were told the superintendent was out Monday, so they transferred us to the principal at Oakes Elementary.
She said she’s aware of the situation and the district is investigating. She hung up before we could ask any questions.
Sands is going to file a formal complaint with the Oklahoma Board of Education.
What a stinkin POS…No ID on the school employee? …this is NOT a “Teacher.”
This person should be fired…in other times put out of its misery…
Are we back in the dark ages? I’ve heard of this happening long ago, but I can’t believe a teacher did this in this century.
And if this is a public school, why is she forcing her religious beliefs on this poor kid? She damaging his self-esteem with her ridiculous association with the devil, and she’s suppressing his creativity by forcing him to use his right hand.
This crazy woman has no business teaching kids anything.
I’m certainly NOT of a litigious nature, but if that were my kid, I’d seriously consider suing the school, just as a way of getting that nut out of her job.
Maybe this story pisses me off because I’m a lefty.
I hear ya Jolly Roger. I’m a lefty too as well and it is odd how a teacher can try something like that in this century. I was in early elementary school during the mid-50s and a teacher then wouldn’t allow me to use my left hand when learning how to print. My mother became involved and that settled that.
There are however some things I do better with my right hand strangely enough. I iron clothes with my right hand and in my high school soft ball team I could not bat left-handed at all so I batted right handed, it was more comfortable to do so. I was always the last batter up. At first I thought it because I wasn’t good at softball until I finally realized that after I hit that ball at the end of the bat right-handed there was a guarantee of a grand slam. I guess to a certain extent I am ambidextrous. At lot of lefties are but I did once know a lady I used to work with that was an ambidextrous right-handed person.
My dad was a lefty….growing up in the 30’s they made him write with his right hand…he died ambidextrous 🙂
feel bad for the kid
Need to teach more people to write left handed.
I’m left handed and am of the opinion that this “teacher” is delusional, but that’s probably why she got the job in the first place. Just like “police officers”, the psychos in charge want only their definition of “prime candidates” to fill such jobs.
I’m ambidextrous, probably from being hospitalized as a child so often and having iv’s in my right hand. I can write with my left hand nearly flawlessly, and when playing baseball, bat lefty and catch lefty. Guess I’m pure evil. Haha.
This “teacher” needs to be put on a secluded island along with that other crazy beotch calling for fema camps for all men. This world has gone bat sheet crazy!
AMEN Deb, good comment!
My son is a lefty. Any “teacher” would have pulled this crap on him I would have reacted the same as this mother. Except the “teacher” would have seen what a evil devil was capable of after I got done with her/him. She does need to sue, not the school for it will only hurt the taxpayers. She needs to sue this pos “teacher” personally.
“It breaks my heart for him” wawawa, it breaks my heart that you put him in the position to be abused.
I’ve had enough of this! I think we are missing the point. What is a 4 year old doing in school anyway? and if it is a public school why is this mother complaining when she turned him over to the institution? She will probably let them put him on Ritalin for being a boy and get him all vaccinated too. Those schools are the places where we get the likes of the man-hater feminist of earlier this week. I think we need to be talking about how mothers have seared their natural instincts and shipped their “kids” (baby goats) off for somebody else to raise. Any wonder why the american family is falling apart. Don’t come crying about how I can’t afford to stay home and raise my children, Mothers go home, and Fathers, provide for your families!
I agree. The mother is complicit in the abuse of her child by putting her kid in the damn re-braining facility in the first place…akin to putting your kid in front of a mental steam-roller to flatten their individuality, creativity, compassion and any true understanding of love.
As for the ‘teacher’ force her to write with her goat hooves.
-flek