A

• Abacus — An abacus is a tool that usually features beads or balls on bars, which can slide across to “count” an item or value. 
• Acute angle — These are angles that measure between 0 and 90 degrees on a protractor, often creating very “slim-looking” angles like you’d see in an acute isosceles triangle. This term covers concepts that your learners will encounter in geometry. 
• Addend — This term defines any number that’s being added with others. 
• Algebra — Algebra is a specific area of maths study that swaps known values with variables, usually shown by an alphabetical letter. Your student might start maths lessons around algebra topics in KS2 and beyond. 

B

• Bar graph — Graphs like these represent values in a data set using “bars,” making them easy to visualise. Kids often find that they are the easiest to use to reference a specific data point or set on the x-axis and y-axis of a graph. 
• BEDMAS — A handy alternative to PEMDAS, this acronym stands for Brackets, Exponents, Division, Multiplication, Addition, and Subtraction.

C

• Capacity — This term defines what volume of substance something can hold in itself, and is often referenced in geometry or higher-level math. 
• Centimetre — A centimetre is a metric unit of measurement.
• Circumference — This term defines the total distance around a circle. 
• Common factors — Students often encounter common factors early on, identifying factors that divide cleanly into two separate numbers. 
• Constant — Constants can be found in algebra and higher-level maths, and define unchanging numbers or values. 
• Congruent — This term defines shapes that have the same shape and size. 

D

• Decimal — This is a mathematical mark that looks like a point (or dot), indicating a partial number or value.
• Denominator — This is the value or number that’s located at the bottom of a fraction, directly underneath the division bar. 
• Difference — This is a special term given to the final answer of a subtraction problem. 
• Digit(s) — Digits are numbers that fall on or between 0-9 in the number line. For example: The number 52 includes two digits, five (5) and two (2).  
• Divisor — This is a number that slices a number into equal parts, and is used in division functions. It sits outside of the bracket when the student is doing long division. 
• Dividend — This is the number that is being divided into equal parts during a division operation. It is located inside the division bracket. 

E 

• End Point — An end point is the exact location where a line ends. It is indicated by a dot. 
• Equilateral — This term defines a shape in which all sides are equal in length. 
• Even number — An even number is a number that can be divided by two. 

F 

• Factor — A factor of a number is a number that can divide the given number evenly. For example: Factors of 4 include 2, 4, and 1. (1 x 4, 2 x 2) 
• Factoring — This is an operation that occurs when a student is breaking numbers down into their most basic components. 

G 

• Geometry — This is an area of study in maths that focuses on shapes, angles, lines, and logical application of each. 
• Greatest common factor (GCF) — The greatest common factor is the largest number that is common to a factorial set that can divide into both cleanly. 

H 

• Hypotenuse — The hypotenuse is the longest side on a right-angled triangle. 

I 

• Improper fraction — This term defines a fraction that is “top heavy” (meaning that the top number is larger than the denominator, or bottom number) or that is equal to its denominator. An example of an improper fraction in action would be 250/3. 
• Inequality — Inequalities are housed in equations that show values that are less than or greater than each other. They may also be noted as equal or unequal to each other. 
• Integers — This term defines whole numbers that are either negative or positive. It also includes the value of zero (0) in its definition. 

K 

• Kilometre — A kilometre is equal to 1000 metres in length.

L 

• Like terms — Terms that are like share the same variable, as well as any associated powers or exponent notations. 
• Logic — This is a term that’s used synonymously with critical thinking or reasoning.