Presents Lev Vygotsky's early childhood learning theories and demonstrates them in classrooms. Focuses on the centrality of social context to development in Vygotsky's thought and argues that it is misleading to evaluate children only on what they accomplish independently. Illustrates four basic concepts from Vygotsky's work: children construct knowledge, learning can lead to development, development cannot be separated from its social context, and language plays a central role in mental development.