Tool use consists of at least two coupled phases of activities, involving multi-step problem solving. It therefore provides an interesting window on the development of planning in goal-directed behavior. This study investigated 2-year-olds' and 3-year-olds' hand use in picking up and subsequently using a tool for displacing a target-object towards…

Evaluated 9-, 14-, and 19-month olds' strategies as they grasped and used spoons presented with the handle alternately oriented to left or right. Found that younger children reached with their preferred hand, disregarding the item's orientation. Older children anticipated the problem, alternated the hand used, and achieved an efficient radial grip…