Social Constructivism in the Toddler Environment

Social constructivism is a sociological theory of knowledge that describes how groups construct learning for and with one another, collaboratively creating a small culture of shared artifacts with shared meanings (a shared artifact refers to the creation of an object or shared space collaboratively created). When immersed within a culture of this sort, we are are always learning how to participate in that culture on many levels. In social constructivism an emphasis is placed on the role culture plays in cognitive development. Its origins are largely attributed to Lev Vygotsky and it is a significant influence in the philosophies of Reggio-Emilia which inspire us as educators at Children's Garden Montessori School.  

In a toddler early learning environment there is a culture embedded within the small community that mirrors the larger cultural sphere of Children's Garden and Denver and Colorado and the United States.  When we view ourselves as researcher/educators learning alongside the children we can discover a great deal about how and what children learn within the microcosm of school.

With this in mind the toddler teachers and I decided to explore quantity as an open-ended provocation, inviting toddlers into collaborative work around a shared interaction.

 We purchased several new baby dolls in response to our earlier touchstone observations.

Together the toddlers explored the dolls, navigated conflicts and social expectations (i.e..  Rose steps in to clean the bottles and kindly states,  “These are for the babies mouth.  I am going to wash these so I keep all my friends healthy.  If you want to drink something you can get a cup of water.") and enjoyed the new addition to the classroom.

After reviewing pages of documentation taken during the first introduction of the doll provocation, the toddler teachers and I have decided to join together researching a common question:  How do we define and support social constructivism within a Montessori toddler environment inspired by the philosophies of Reggio-Emilia?
Stay tuned as our questions and observations continue to evolve in the weeks and months ahead.