Cognitive development occurs through social interaction and internalization of socially shared processes. Children first learn skills and concepts through interaction with others, then internalize them to perform independently. For example, a child learns to point through social interactions with caregivers before understanding it as a means of communication. Similarly, a child learns to tie shoes through verbal guidance from an adult before being able to do it alone. Vygotsky's theory of the zone of proximal development also illustrates how children can perform higher-level tasks with assistance from others before mastery alone. Language plays a key role in cognitive development, first appearing between people and then within the individual through private speech that later becomes inner speech.