👩🔬How to Challenge Your Little Scientists👨🔬
How to push your learner's boundaries in a sustainable, encouraging way.
Good Morning!
Welcome to all of the new readers joining us this week -- one of you was the 1,000th subscriber, which is amazing. We love to see that you all are as excited about encouraging exploration in little scientists as we are.
If I may get sentimental for a moment: we are often told that science is too advanced for young kids, and we disagree (obviously). We’re glad you disagree, too. It gives us energy, and hopefully we can give you a little energy, too.
Speaking of giving energy, today’s topic is about how to challenge your learners while keeping them interested and motivated.
I think we all have experience being given a task that’s so far outside our abilities that it drives us to quit. It might be achievable with some focused practice and a lot of work, but without that guidance, it’s impossible to see a way forward.
The solution is to work within something called The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). It’s not nearly as scary as it sounds, we promise.
The Zone of Proximal Development is, in short: the gap between what a learner can do on their own, and what they can do with a little guidance and help. When instruction is focused on this gap, and not activities that are too easy or too hard, learning and interest accelerate.
In short, the learner feels a sense of achievement and builds confidence. And who doesn’t want that?
So, let’s talk about how to introduce some ZPD concepts into your home learning environment.
The best approach is one that takes into account the type of feedback the learner needs most, when they need it.
Observe what your little scientist is capable of on their own. First and foremost, you need to know what your learner’s abilities are. It’s tempting to want to step in and offer guidance, but it’s best to let your learner try to solve some problems on their own. In fact, it’s necessary. Hopefully, you’re already doing this.
Without this patience, it’s impossible to find the edge of the first zone, the zone of what the learner is capable of. Only when the learner reaches the boundary of their own capabilities do we know precisely what they’re capable of without help at that moment. By observing we can also learn what it is about the experience that’s triggering their frustration.
The other side of this coin is observing when it’s time to help out. When frustration is setting in, it’s time to facilitate progress. And this is the next step.
Interpret how they’re struggling, and how best to help. When the learner is starting to get dispirited, it’s a good time to step in and help them take the next step. Ultimately, ZPD is about facilitating progress, and that can mean removing roadblocks from the learning path.
There’s no one right way to do this. In a 1975 study* that focused on mothers aiding their children, types of feedback were split into three types:
Encouragement, which lacked specific guidance but was meant to motivate the learner
Instruction, in which the learner was told the next step to take
Demonstration, in which the next step is shown to the learner
If you think you know which is best, you might be surprised. Feedback is most effective when varied to suit how the child was progressing. When the child was doing well, general encouragement was best. As the child struggled, feedback became more specific. One size does not fit all, and the best approach is one that takes into account the type of feedback the learner needs most, when they need it.
Celebrate successes. Remember, the goal of ZPD is to help the learner achieve success where they would not be able to alone. When they achieve success, a little encouragement can go a long way. A more motivated student is a student that’s more willing to persist when they get stuck, more able to deal with frustration, and better positioned to receive help.
This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the Zone of Proximal Development. We hope this has been a helpful introduction. If you have questions or comments about how to apply this in your home, or how we use this in our pedagogy here at Kide Science, feel free to reply to this email or leave a comment on Substack. Our team is happy to help.
A couple reminders:
We’re hosting a remote science camp next week, Monday - Friday, from 10-11am ET. The lessons will only require household supplies, and will require minimal attention from parents. The cost is $31 for newsletter subscribers with the code “bornscientist.”
Upside: it’s a good way to get a little peace and quiet, and see how we put our principles into action
Downside: your child might learn *too* much, and accidentally turn themselves into a superhero with an experiment gone wrongWe released a new story theme with an emphasis on kitchen science last week! Mrs Noblegas’s Floury Dilemma uses kitchen science to explore phenomena like solubility, static electricity, and germs, while students make their own sorbet and move an object without touching it (🤯). You can read about how we create our lessons and themes here.
That’s all for this week, and thanks again for subscribing. Don’t be a stranger, and see you next Monday!
Happy Experimenting,
Grafton & The Kide Science Team
*Wood, D., & Middleton, D. (1975). A study of assisted problem-solving. British Journal of Psychology, 66(2), 181−191.
A good, further explainer of which is here