Running head: STRATEGY, DOMAINS, AND THEORISTS

Strategy, Domain, and Theorists

Jeni Tetamore
Rasmussen College

Author Note
This Strategy, Domain, and Theorists is being submitted on November 6, 2016 for
Rhonda Crabbs EC100.EEC1700 Section 03 Foundations of Child Development course.

Running head: STRATEGY, DOMAINS, AND THEORISTS

Strategy, Domain, and Theorists
A nuts and bolts activity is an excellent selection as a strategy for toddlers. When
examining if an activity is effective for any child, we must determine if it fits within all five
areas of child developments:

Physical

Intellectual

Linguistic

Emotional

Social

It can be summarized with the acronym PILES.

Physically, the nuts and bolts activity encourages toddlers to improve their fine motor
skills by having them pick up the nut and bolt, then fit the nut over the bolt and twist it down. If
they should pick one which already has a nut on the bolt, they must unscrew the nut.
Intellectually, toddlers are developing their critical thinking skills when they decide how the nut
should fit over the bolt and what process they must undergo in order to screw or unscrew it.
Linguistic development occurs when the toddlers describe the nuts and bolts to the teachers or
their peers, using words such as yellow or rough. Perhaps they will count the nuts and bolts
aloud as they work with them. Toddlers begin to develop emotionally as they may struggle with
temporary frustration when the nut doesnt simply slip off or it takes more than one try to screw
it on. They must learn to self-regulate and calm themselves to become successful at the game.
Socially, toddlers may gather around the nuts and bolts to work together to put them together or
take them apart.

Running head: STRATEGY, DOMAINS, AND THEORISTS

Psychosocial Stages
Erik Erikson would say that toddlers are in the early childhood age (1 - 3), entering
into the second stage of development (autonomy v. shame), and that their basic virtue is will.
Children during this stage are discovering their independence, that they possess a variety of skills
and abilities, and desire a sense of individuality that was not previously present in their
relationships. Erikson states it is critical that parents [or caregivers] allow their children to
explore the limits of their abilities within an encouraging environment which is tolerant of
failure (McLeod, 2013). Erikson believes that success in this stage will lead to the virtue of
will (McLeod, 2013).
The nuts and bolts activity requires toddlers to make choices. Does the nut fit this way or
that? Does the nut need to come off or go on? Which way should it twist? These are all methods
which support autonomous thinking. Eriksons theory would require a parent or caregiver to
allow the child to try until they succeed or ask for assistance (McLeod, 2013). However, the
more a child is encourage toward increased autonomy, the more their self-confidence is built and
their will to survive is secured.
Cognitive Theory
Piaget would say that toddlers are within two domains depending on their age. They are
leaving the sensorimotor stage (birth 2) and entering into the preoperational stage (2 7 years).
Piaget possessed three basic assumptions about children in general:

Children construct their own knowledge in response to their experiences.

Children learn many things on their own without the intervention of older children or
adults.

Running head: STRATEGY, DOMAINS, AND THEORISTS

Children are intrinsically motivated to learn and do not reward from adults to motivate
learning. (Colorado University)

These assumptions would then state that toddlers playing with nuts and bolts are in a transitional
developmental stage and do not need extraneous input from the adult or older children who may
be around them to motivate them to learn. They will do so naturally without input or rewards.
With toddlers being between the two stages, it is crucial to have activities that stimulate
both stages sensorimotor and preoperational. Colorado University describes the two stages as:
Sensorimotor Knowledge develops through sensory and motor abilities; Preoperational
Knowledge is represented by language, mental imagery, and symbolic thought. Toddlers playing
with nuts and bolts are perfecting their fine motor skills and tactile senses by feeling the ridges,
twisting and untwisting the nuts, and holding the bolts while they do the activities. They are
entering into the preoperational stage by being able to verbally describe the nuts and bolts by
color, how they feel, and by remembering what works to make the nut go onto the bolt.
Sociocultural Theory
Vygotskys theory hinges social interactions and that development depends on
interaction with people and the tools that the culture provides to help form their own view of the
world (Gallagher, 1999). Vygotsky believed children first learn by imitation, then by
remembering instructions, and finally by collaborative learning with peers. Toddlers would be
entering into the ability to remember simple instructions, a first step, second step process.
Vygotsky sociocultural theory also discusses the zone of proximal development (ZPD).
In this case, a toddler working with nuts and bolts might discover that they cannot accomplish
the task alone and seeks help from a peer or a teacher. Vygotsky also described the ZPD as the
difference between the actual development level as determined by individual problem solving

Running head: STRATEGY, DOMAINS, AND THEORISTS

and the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult
guidance or collaboration with more knowledge peers (Gallagher, 1999). When the toddler
seeks assistance, socialization continues with the dominant culture and furthers the toddlers
overall cognitive development beyond the simple skill for which they were seeking help.
Ecological Systems Theory
Bronfenbrenners theory is based on the interactions between factors in the childs
maturing biology, his immediate family/community environment, and the societal landscape
[which] fuels and steers his development (Paquette & Ryan, 2001, p. 1). Within the
microsystem and mesosystem of the child, the connections encompasses the relationships
between the child and their immediate family, school, neighborhood, and/or childcare
environment and the people within their environments parents, siblings, teachers, pastors, etc.
These structures provide the foundation on which a toddler builds his or her understanding.
As the co-founder of Head Start, Bronfenbrenner believes that the quality and context of
a childs environment directly affects their development. In this scenario, the success of the nuts
and bolts activity in the daycare facility would be directly dependent on not only the immediate
environment, but how the toddler chooses to interact with it. The environment includes the room,
the toys and activities, the other children, and the teachers. It is also a two way street, the
relationship in which the child pursues and the relationships others pursue toward the child.
The nuts and bolts activity would allow the child to develop a more in-depth system
toward his or her immediate surroundings in that it provides exploration and tactile experience. It
further develops the toddlers ability toward social connections with opportunities for sharing,
asking for assistance, and problem solving.

Running head: STRATEGY, DOMAINS, AND THEORISTS

Conclusion
Toddlers are curious little people, discovering new ways in which the world applies to
them. They are quickly developing new skills, language, and critical thinking abilities. The nuts
and bolts activity provides an array of opportunities within the various theories to develop
schema and proficiencies while playing. It is an activity which requires little to no direction, but
one which may challenge them as they explore their options. I believe the various theorists
would find it to be a worthwhile activity for this age group.

Running head: STRATEGY, DOMAINS, AND THEORISTS

References
Colorado University. (n.d.). Piaget. Retrieved from
psych.colorado.edu/~colunga/p4684/piaget.pdf
Gallagher, C. (1999, May). Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky. Retrieved from
http://www.muskingum.edu/~psych/psycweb/history/vygotsky.htm
McLeod, S. (2013). Erik Erikson. Retrieved from http://www.simplypsychology.org/ErikErikson.html
Paquette, D., & Ryan, J. (2001, July 21). Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory.
Retrieved from
http://www.muskingum.edu/~psych/psycweb/history/vygotsky.htm