1. Piaget and Vygotsky interpreted the teacher role in very different ways. Reflect on your own school experiences. How did your teachers facilitate learning? Did their approaches fit with either of the theories presented here? 

2. Read the following scenarios and discuss which scaffolding approaches the teacher might be using:

Scenario A: The members in the class write in journals each morning. Ella has been struggling with writing and is reluctant to write more than a sentence. Her teacher, noting her fascination with a particular video game, asks if she can write about how to play it so he will understand. The teacher’s interest motivates Ella more than usual and she writes long entries over the course of the week.

Scenario B: At the beginning of the school year, Ali is struggling with tying the shoelaces on his brand-new shoes. His teacher wants to help him achieve this skill independently. She first shows him the entire process and describes each of her actions as she ties the shoe. She pauses at a few points to note key steps. Sensing he is still overwhelmed by the task, she then breaks the task into steps and guides him through the first step. She then helps him with the steps that follow. The next time the children go outside, Ali completes the first step and then again is assisted in completing the next step. Within a few days, he has mastered each successive step and can tie his shoes independently.

Scenario C: Two children are fighting over the same play materials. Their preschool teacher has noticed that one of the children, Kyla, seems to have difficulty verbalizing her feelings and this has led to some ongoing issues. The teacher steps in to facilitate problem solving. He states: “I see that you are both wanting to use the same materials”. He then goes on to ask each of the children to share their perspective of the problem in turn while he listens to them. He then re-states the problem and asks them to brainstorm some possible solutions. 

Scenario D: The school has had several artists-in-residence on site to facilitate learning in the arts. Each class was engaged in a two-week project that involved creating an artistic presentation to share. The grade two class prepared an art exhibit. During the project, the teacher provided various materials and resources, including reference books and pictures showing famous works of art. She demonstrated new artistic techniques they had been shown by the artists, then the children tried them out. She also connected the project with a science unit on insects. The children learned about characteristics of insects and then invented their own fictitious insects. They described the characteristics of these insects and created 3D models of them. She took them to several art galleries, and she prepared an art gallery in the classroom where children could frame and hang their creations for the remainder of the school year. 


3. Read the following scenarios and answer the question that follows.

Scenario E: The children are counting sets of objects to twenty. Some of the children do not understand one-to-one correspondence (the relationship between the actual number and the number of objects). They make mistakes such as counting one object two times, skipping an object as they count, or racing through their counting without paying attention to how many objects they actually have. What are some scaffolding strategies their teacher can use to help the children count this set of objects?

Scenario F: The teacher wants the children to be able to retell a story. Choose three of the scaffolding strategies and describe how the teacher might scaffold the children toward independent completion of this task.

Scenario G: The teacher has read two different versions of a well-known story to the children and would like them to demonstrate their understanding of the stories as well as to compare the two versions. Think about the idea of using implicit and explicit mediators as a form of scaffolding. Describe some of the mediators this teacher could use to help the children learn these concepts. 

Scenario H: As a new teacher, you are setting up your kindergarten classroom. Describe some of the implicit and explicit mediators you might use in your classroom to help the children learn the routines and organization of the class. 

Scenario I: A new student has just moved to the city from another country. The class is learning about their community (characteristics, important places, community helpers, etc.). How could the teacher use bridging as a scaffolding strategy to help this new student?