Of all the self-regulation Melissa modeled, perhaps the most important scaffold was calling attention to the opportunity for Lucy to join Tricia.
To actively engage in learning opportunities, children must attend to and recognize that
a situation offers the potential for interesting interactions and
things to do. Adults can help children develop this regulatory skill in a variety of
ways, beginning with very young children. When adults hold infants or toddlers
on their laps and point to objects or letters in a book while
using their voices to indicate excitement, they help children focus their attention on images that are most important for learning. By getting the ball rolling, Melissa not only helped Lucy actively participate, but allowed Tricia to talk
about her science activity and demonstrate to others how
to replicate her experiment.