Development of hemisphere specialization for spatial skills in children from six to twelve years of age

208 children, male and female, aged 6 to 12 years, grouped in 6-month steps, were tested for three spatial skills: two basic abilities, recognition of two lines of differing slope and of one line of differing slope in a frame and with no frame, and one more complex skill, route-finding by means of maps. The results support the hypotheses of neuropsychological development according to which the hemisphere strategies used in the course of cognitive development for the handling of spatial tasks differ by sex and may change before and after the age of ten.