ABSTRACT
Our initial goal in Chapter 4 is to consider how different explanations of affordance can be adopted to categorize VCPOs based on their potential influences on creativity, spatial development, and cognition in STEAM subjects. To do this, we examine James Gibson’s (1979) theory of affordance, Jean Piaget’s (1977) concept of empirical and reflective abstractions, and Lev Vygotsky’s exploration of situational and environmental constraints of objects. I also introduce a way to conceive of a VCPO’s affordance and an individual’s potential for creativity mathematically. The next goal in this chapter is to determine whether themed bricks, given their rather high levels of affordance, are a benefit or a hindrance in the home or preschool in developing young children’s knowledge in STEAM.
