Intro to Lev Vygotsky's Theory of the Zone of Proximinal Development and Jerome Bruner's Scaffolding Theory

     Hey there readers. Happy labour day to you all! I hope you enjoyed a fun relaxed day today. Today also happen's to be my mom's birthday, so part of our day was spent facetiming with her as we live too far away to get to share it in person with her. I gotta do a shout-out to her today. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM!
     Ok, so now I will get down to business here. You may wonder why I am choosing to talk about two different learning theories today. The answer is that it is kind of inposdible to not takl about one without the other. Zone of proximal development (ZPD for short) and scaffolding go hand in hand. I think once you are finished reading this simplified example of these both you will understand how one needs the other when putting them in action.
     So what exactly is Lev Vygotsky's theory of the zone of proximinal development? Basicilly imagine a line drawn in the sand. On one side is what a person is capable of doing and on the other side of the line is your goal, but it also signifies what you cannot do yet on your own. The line in the sand is that zone of proximinal development. It is everything you need to work on to reach your goal on the other side. It is everything you need help with from a more knowledgable person. So let's use a child who is interested in learning to ride a trike. The child has figured out how to get onto the trike on his own, but he does not yet have the strength/ability yet to pedal the trike for it to move. He needs help to figure out how to get that trike to move.
     This is where the theory of scaffolding comes into play. Scaffolding is all of the activities  parent and/or teacher will use to help the child learn to ride the trike. There will be added activities to strengthen those gross motor skills, strengthen those leg muscles, and also explain how a trike moves. As the child gains more abilities on the trike the parent and/or teacher eases back on how much help is needed until thw child finally has crossed that zone of proximinal development.
    I find this to be one of the most effective teaching tools for a child to learn concepts and pass their personal goals fast. The key is to watch the child for cues as to what they are interested in and struggling with. Following yoir child's lead is what will make learning for them a little less scary than pushing what us adults think they need to learn/do. There will still be tough moments, but not over pushing is the best way. Finding that magic spot can be tricky, but so worthwhile once you see your child finally cross his bridge and figured it out.