Glossary

2D (two-dimensional) shapesflat shapes that have width and height but not depth, e.g. common regular shapes such as rectangle, oval, triangle and hexagon.
3D (three-dimensional) shapessolid shapes that have width, height and depth, e.g. common regular shapes such as sphere, pyramid and cube
ableismdiscrimination against disabled people in favour of non-disabled people
adult-ledwhere adults plan and provide opportunities for children to be introduced to or further develop skills and knowledge
agencyability to act and make decisions that influence events and affect one’s world   
anti-racismrecognising the existence of racism in its many forms and taking appropriate action to remove it
asylum seekera refugee engaged in the legal process to seek a right to remain
attunedsensitive, positive and responsive to children’s cues regarding their emotions, interests, and communications
autonomybeing in control of, or an active agent in, one’s life
biasleaning towards a way of thinking about people which influences engagement with them, based on assumptions or previous interactions with other people who have shared characteristics which may include, race, religion, sexuality or socio-economic status
capacity (in mathematics)how much a container can hold (linked to volume or the amount of space things take up)
cardinalityquantity (a number of things) or “how many-ness” 
child-initiated  where a child determines the activity – what they will use, what they will do, who is involved
child-ledwhere the child takes the lead and the adult responds
childrenall babies, toddlers and young children from birth to the end of the EYFS, up to 71 months
co-constructionworking with others to develop concepts, skills and knowledge
cognitiverelating to the ability to think, have, gain and use knowledge through memory and reasoning
comparison (number in mathematics)the relative size of numbers including finding which is larger or smaller
comparison (measure in mathematics)  comparing one object to another on the basis of one attribute (e.g. length, weight or capacity) is direct comparison; using a third object as the “measurer” is indirect comparison
composition (number in mathematics)how a number is made up; includes all of the number combinations that make up a given number
concepta general idea formed in the mind about a thing or group of things, derived from specific instances or occurrences.
continuous provisionenvironment and resources provided for children to explore freely, which support learning with or without an adult and enable children to revisit and build on their learning
creative thinkingusing imagination to generate new ideas
critical thinkinganalysing or synthesising information from which to make decisions or judgements, build theories or to reflect and evaluate
cultural capitalwhat children bring with them, and develop from their experiences and opportunities
culturethe ideas, customs, traditions and interests of groups of people
curriculuma plan for children’s development and learning experiences, both formal and informal
digital literacyskills associated with finding, identifying, evaluating and using information, understanding the purposes of the technology being used and having the skills to create content
discriminationunfair or less favourable treatment because of race, gender, age, sexual orientation, disability, religion/belief or other characteristics
dispositionsenduring habits of mind and action 
ethnicitybeing from a particular group of people or those who identify with each other due to shared language, nationality, culture or religion
everyday activitiesthe structures and routines of the day, e.g. mealtimes, nap times, story time
faithstrong beliefs which might be linked to religious doctrine or tradition
flexible thinkingthe ability to quickly change the direction of thinking, finding new ways to approach a situation or solve a problem
free flowwhere children have the choice to move freely between areas and environments, indoors and outdoors, during their play.
funds of knowledgeknowledge that is linked to cultural practice within families and communities
gendera social construction describing attributes of masculinity and femininity
graphics (mathematics)the visual marks and representations (graphics) young children choose to use to explore mathematical meanings and communicate their thinking, including mark-making and standard symbols
holisticrecognising all aspects of children’s development and learning, including physical, personal, social, emotional, spiritual and cognitive
heuristic playexploratory play with everyday items, often arranged for mobile babies and toddlers to freely explore groups of objects
homophobianegative attitudes and behaviours towards those who are lesbian, gay and bisexual
identitysense of self influenced by many factors such as social, cultural and political context, family background, gender, and faith
internet-connected toysphysical toys that are connected to the internet and respond based on interactions.
intersectionalitythe way in which various identity markers are layered or overlap within one person, which can increase the impact or the degree to which discrimination is experienced 
intrinsic motivationmotivation that is driven by inherent satisfaction; the behaviour itself is its own reward
knowledgefacts, information, understanding about things
LGBTQIA+  a collective term representing people who identify as: lesbian; gay (generally refers to gay men but can also be an umbrella term for gay men and women); bisexual (the attraction to multiple genders, often including one’s own gender); transgender (when a person’s gender does not line up with their assigned sex at birth); queer (catch-all term for anyone in the community, to be more inclusive to people who do not fit into the other categories; the “q” might include “questioning” people who are exploring their sexual or gender identities and may not want to commit to a certain label); intersex (someone born with biological sex characteristics that are not traditionally associated with male or female bodies); aromantic  (someone who experiences little to no romantic attraction)/asexual (someone who experiences little or no sexual attraction)/agender (someone who identifies with no particular gender); plus (inclusive of all other identities)
loose partsItems with no specific direction that can be used by themselves or with other materials in multiple ways
low technologytechnologies that are non-mechanical, not advanced or “high technology” such as digital technology
masteryembedded competence and confidence within an area of learning which can be recalled and transferred to different contexts
minoritisedthe process by which certain groups have less power or representation compared to members of other groups in society 
motor functionsrelating to muscle movement
neurological functionsrelating to the function of nerves and the nervous system
numeralsthe symbols which represent numbers e.g. 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7…
objective (for learning)short, specific statements about the intended learning
open-ended having no specific direction or purpose, and no pre-determined use, process or outcome, to be interpreted and directed by the children
ordinalitythe position and order of the counting numbers, including the relative place of any number in the number sequence as being next to, before, after, near to, in between, etc any other number
orientationthe way round an object or image is turned or facing
palmar gripusing a fist grip to pick up objects
parentsused here to include all carers of children in the EYFS
pedagogythe understanding of how children learn and develop and the practices through which adults can enhance that process, rooted in values and beliefs about what we want for children and supported by knowledge, theory and experience
planned activitiesexperiences planned specifically to further develop skills and knowledge or introduce new ideas
practitionerall early years professionals who work directly with children in EYFS settings
prejudicepreconceived idea about a person or group that is not factual or based on experience; it can be positive or negative
problem solvingsomething you do not immediately know the answer to, so have to decide a way to find a solution
professional lovea concept explored by Dr Jools Page to describe the feelings of love, intimacy and care which practitioners experience in their reciprocal relationships with children
progressmoving forward
properties (shape in mathematics)qualities, features or characteristics of a shape
racea social construct based on skin colour and facial features which has no inherent biological basis but affects social categories and relationships
racismprejudice and discrimination from an individual, community or institution against a particular racial or ethnic group
refugeea person who has fled their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster and sought safety in another country
repeating patterna repeating pattern is where the order of some items (or sounds, actions, ideas, etc.) is continually duplicated; the “unit of repeat” is the section that is repeated to generate the pattern
resiliencecapacity to cope with, adapt to, and recover from setbacks or adversity
schemapattern of repeated play and behaviours that helps children organise information
sensory functionsrelated to the physical senses e.g. touch, smell, taste, hearing and sight, vestibular sense
settingall types of provision delivering the EYFS including childminders, private, voluntary and independent providers, nursery, infant and primary schools
self-regulationability to regulate emotions, thoughts and behaviour to enable positive action toward a goal
serve and returninteractions where the child “serves” by initiating contact, and the adult “returns” by responding appropriately with eye contact, gestures or words
sexual orientationthe sexual attraction that a person feels towards another person, e.g. being heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual or asexual
skillsabilities
spatial awarenessinterpretation of how things, including own body, relates to one another and the spatial environment
stereotypesgeneralisations which label people and make assumptions about them
strategiclong term/overall approach towards aims based on evidence
subitising – conceptualinstantly recognising the total based on the parts
subitising – perceptualimmediate recognition of how many without needing to count, involving very small numbers and assisted by familiar arrangements such as dice patterns
sustained shared thinkingwhen two or more people “work together” in an intellectual way to solve a problem, clarify a concept, evaluate an activity, extend a narrative, etc.; both must contribute to the thinking and it must develop and extend understanding
symmetryshapes and patterns which flip over a line or axis, in a mirror fashion
systemic racismform of racism that pervades institutions and organisations
working theoriesthe ways children think about, inquire into and make meaning about their worlds as they attempt to make connections between prior and new experiences and understandings