While working on a jig-saw puzzle, 5 years old Najma says to herself, "Where is the blue piece? No, not this one, darker one that would go here and make this shoe". This kind of talk is referred to by Vygotsky as

Vygotsky called this type of self-directed talk 'private speech'. He believed private speech plays an important role in cognitive development as children use it to guide their thinking and behavior, especially when working on challenging tasks. This differs from Piaget's concept of 'egocentric speech' which he viewed as a sign of cognitive immaturity. Vygotsky saw private speech as a tool for self-regulation that eventually becomes internalized as inner speech. Scaffolding refers to the support provided by a more knowledgeable other.