ABSTRACT
The chapter introduces Vygotsky’s idea of child development as a sequence of stages, each being determined by the social situation of development—a specific relationship between a child of a particular age and this child’s social surroundings—and producing a unique set of neo-formations or developmental accomplishments. Next, the concept of leading activity is introduced, which was proposed by post-Vygotskians to describe the mechanism that makes possible a child’s transition from the current stage to the next one. The rest of the chapter describes developmental accomplishments and leading activities of infants and toddlers, focusing on interactions between children and adults that allow the former to acquire specific “tools of the mind” and start building higher mental functions. Earlier insights of Vygotsky and his students into the process of development in the early years are illustrated with the findings from more recent research, such as the existence of “serve and return” turn-taking in child–adult communication.
