Culture: Culture has often been seen as being stable and bound to traditions, causing people to hold and express particular views and act in particular ways. However, culture is actually dynamic and shifts over time and contexts. It is not something an individual “has”, but rather is created. 

False uniqueness: False uniqueness is an approach to the study of phenomena and concepts within a culture that emphasizes how concepts are unique. Differences that are found tend to be attributed to this (false) uniqueness of the culture. For example, a researcher identifies a parent-child interactional pattern where the parent holds the child close and face-to-face and talks to the child extensively. This pattern is seen to be unique to the context where the research took place even though it can actually be observed in many Euro-North American families.

False uniformity: False uniformity means studying the culture by emphasizing concepts or phenomena that are typical across cultures using a common standard of measure. When similarities are found between or across cultures, it is attributed either to shared, universal biology or to a common social structure which may not be the case. If this particular pattern of parent-child interactions is identified in one cultural context and assumed to be universal, then this would be an example of false uniformity. 

Biracial or multiracial: Children who are biracial hold two distinct racial identities, while multiracial children have more than two. They may feel pressure to identify more with one of their racial identities (often that which they perceive to be more acceptable or desirable). 
 
Post-race perspective: A post-race perspective advances the idea that biracial or multiracial children should be supported in developing a mixed racial identity which fully acknowledges all of their heritages rather than identifying with only one of their racial identities. 

Racial distinctions: Racial distinctions focus predominantly on physical characteristics that distinguish one race from another. Research on how children develop racial or ethnic distinctions is often grounded in western child development theories which view children as being incapable of understanding such concepts at a young age. In fact, young children are constantly noticing sameness and difference and making comparisons with peers thus it is the ideal time to have conversations about race, discrimination, and fairness.

Social roles: Social roles are roles that children assume and perform according to their own knowledge and life experiences. For example, a child who takes on the role of a cashier in their play will draw on what they know of cashiers based on their experiences of going to the store and observing adults. 

Ascribed roles: Ascribed roles are socially constructed and are carried from one situation to another. They are dynamic and changing. Some examples include gender, ethnic and racial roles.

Identity: Through an individual’s membership in various groups and interactions and relationships with others, they develop identities or “lived experiences of self. People have multiple identities and their identities can shift from one context to the next. In terms of race, ethnicity, and gender, identity is a more accurate term than role because these structures are re-created not just in the child’s play but also in society as a whole.

Gender identity: Kohlberg (1966) argued by 3 or 4 children can identify differences between men and women and attach labels to people, but they still believe that one’s gender can change (for example playing with trucks could be seen to turn a girl into a boy). By 6 or 7 they understand that they are a particular gender and their gender cannot change even if they change their hair or clothing (gender consistency). Gender identity is now understood more broadly as an individual’s own psychological or internal sense of being male, female, or another gender altogether (for example: agender, third-gender, transgender, genderqueer, etc.). Young children form their gender identity at a very young age (by the age of three years). 

Gender expression: Gender expression refers to how a person communicates their gender identity to others through their behaviours, manner of dress, voice, or body language or characteristics (APA, 2018). 

Sex: Sex refers to biological differences, such as chromosomes, hormones, and internal and external sex organs. 

Gender: Gender is seen to be socially constructed and refers to “the socially constructed roles, behaviours, activities, and attributes that a given society consider appropriate for boys and men or girls and women” (APA, 2018). 

Social learning theory: In his famous “Bobo doll” experiment, social learning theorist Albert Bandura found that young children were more likely to imitate the actions and behaviours of peers or adults they admired. In terms of gender roles, children might observe same gender peers or family members to understand the behaviours and attributes associated with that gender, and then would strive to imitate those behaviours. 

Heteronormativity: The concept of heteronormativity assumes that being heterosexual is normal and natural. For example, sets of dolls depicting families typically contain a mother, a father, and several children giving young children the message that all families must have a mommy and daddy.

Feminist post-structuralist theorists: Feminist post-structural theorists see sexual identity as socially constructed and fluid rather than determined by biology (Robinson and Jones Díaz, 2006). Children are actively engaged in constructing and reproducing gender roles as well as using the different types of power available to them. 

Queer theory: Queer theory challenges the idea that gender is biologically determined. Rather, it is an identity that is shifting and dynamic. There are multiple genders and sexualities.

“Queer eye”: Queer eye is a perspective on children’s gender development that does not assume any particular gender is the norm. When teachers view children’s behaviours and their own classroom practice through a queer eye, it helps them understand how children’s gendered behaviours are predominantly heteronormative with the goal of disrupting these ways of thinking and acting.

Gender relations: Gender relations is a concept allowing us to focus on understanding gender beyond specific roles. People can move in and out of diverse situations and gender relations depend on the context of the situation. 

Capability approach: Sen’s (1999) capability approach considers how understanding children’s differences includes the following factors: individual (biological or genetic), environmental (such as exposure to toxin in utero), social (supports, programming, cultural difference), relational (language minority of economic status) and family (differential treatment, etc.).

Early intervention programs: Early intervention programs are premised on a deficit model, assuming that certain children (or groups of children) at risk and need to be fixed. Since these programs draw from western theories to assess children’s capabilities, children who have diverse capabilities are often put in early intervention programs. 

Inclusive early childhood: Inclusive early childhood programs see difference as a way of being. All children have equitable access to the program and are able to fully participate in the activities in the classroom. Their exceptionalities are viewed as just one aspect of difference.

Special rights: Reggio Emilia programs have reconceptualised the positioning of some children are having “special needs” which implies that they are needy and deficient. Rather, these children are perceived as having “special rights”—full of potential and valued for who they are.