Bruner believed that when children learn new concepts, they required assistance from teachers and other adults in the form of active support. Initially learners will be reliant on support but as they become more proficient and acquire the skills and knowledge needed, they are less reliant and the support can be reduced and eventually removed altogether. Using appropriate support and scaffolds can work well as a key facet of ‘adaptive teaching’. Scaffolds can often be created live, or become embedded within planning, rather than feeling like an ‘add-on’.
In this staff meeting starter, staff are encouraged to discuss the scaffolds they use, how effective they are and when best to fade or remove scaffolding altogether.
Linked resources
Premium subscribers can access a training module about scaffolding where we share a range of scaffolding tools and techniques as well as including specific examples for ways they can be used with pupils in a primary school setting.
We also have a training module focused on adaptive teaching. It explores range of strategies teaching staff can use to adapt their teaching to ensure pupils understand and learn the concepts being taught and we explain how to anticipate and break down barriers to learning.
Both training modules can be found in the ‘teaching strategies’ section on the training module page.
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