ASSEB HS Community Science key terms

A daily eating pattern that supplies energy and all essential nutrients in the amounts the body needs, drawn from a variety of foods in the right proportions, while limiting foods high in sugar, salt and unhealthy fats.

A nutrient needed by the body in large amounts to supply energy or build tissue - carbohydrate, protein and fat. Each gram provides a different amount of energy and each has distinct roles in growth and health.

A vitamin or mineral needed in very small amounts for normal body functions such as growth, immunity and vision. Deficiencies, for example iron-deficiency anaemia or vitamin A deficiency, cause serious health problems.

The deliberate addition of one or more essential nutrients to a commonly eaten food, such as iodised salt or vitamin A-enriched cooking oil, to prevent or correct nutrient deficiencies in a population at low cost.

A condition resulting from inadequate intake or poor absorption of protein and energy, ranging from stunting and wasting in children to severe forms such as marasmus and kwashiorkor; it is common where diets are monotonous and infections frequent.

A skill or behaviour most children can perform within a certain age range, such as sitting without support or saying first words. Milestones help caregivers and health workers notice delay early and seek support.

The emotional bond a young child forms with a primary caregiver, which shapes the child's sense of security and later relationships. Consistent, responsive caregiving supports secure attachment; neglect or harshness can produce insecure patterns.

Characteristic patterns of warmth and control that caregivers use in raising children, commonly described as authoritative, authoritarian, permissive and uninvolved. Style influences children's confidence, self-regulation and social behaviour.

The life stage between childhood and adulthood, roughly ages ten to nineteen, marked by rapid physical growth, puberty, identity formation and peer influence; a period of high nutritional need and vulnerability to risk behaviour.

The basic hair-like unit from which yarns and fabrics are made. Fibres may be natural (cotton, wool, silk) or manufactured (polyester, viscose), and their properties determine how a fabric looks, feels and performs.

A continuous strand of twisted fibres or filaments prepared for knitting, weaving or other fabric construction. The amount of twist and the fibre used affect the strength, texture and warmth of the finished cloth.

The interlacing of two sets of yarns, warp and weft, at right angles on a loom to make fabric. Variations in the interlacing pattern produce plain, twill and satin weaves with different appearance and durability.

Any treatment applied to fabric after it is made to improve performance or appearance, such as mercerising, flame-proofing, water repellency or easy-care resin. Finishes can change handle, durability and care requirements.

The process of identifying, planning, using and evaluating a family's resources - time, money, energy, skills and space - to reach goals and meet needs with the least waste and stress.

A written plan that sets expected income and planned expenditure over a period and records actual spending against it. A family budget helps control expenditure, avoid debt and direct money toward agreed goals.

A step-by-step approach to choosing between alternatives: identify the problem, list options and their consequences, gather information, select, act and later evaluate the outcome. Family decisions are usually shared and shaped by values.

The study of fitting tasks, tools and furniture to the body's size and movement so that work is efficient and comfortable. In the home it guides counter heights, chair design and work-surface layout to reduce strain.

The path linking the sink, cooking hob and food storage in a kitchen. Keeping the three sides short and unobstructed reduces walking time and fatigue during meal preparation; a common guideline is a total of roughly four to eight metres.

Facilities and practices that safely manage human excreta and wastewater, such as latrines, sewers and treatment systems, to prevent contamination of water, food, soil and hands and so reduce faecal-oral disease transmission.

Water that is safe to drink and to use for cooking and personal hygiene because it is free from harmful levels of pathogens, chemicals and physical contaminants; it must be protected at source, treated and stored safely.

Measures that reduce or eliminate insects and other organisms that transmit disease, such as draining stagnant water against mosquitoes, screening houses, using insecticide-treated nets and disposing of refuse safely.

The systematic handling of household and community rubbish through reduction, reuse, recycling, collection, composting and safe disposal, so that waste does not pollute air, water or soil or attract disease vectors.

Cleaning hands with soap and running water, or with an alcohol-based sanitiser when water is unavailable, at critical times such as before eating, before preparing food and after using the toilet.

Out-of-school education that brings research-based knowledge and practical skills to rural families and communities through field workers, demonstrations and group methods, so that people can solve their own problems and improve livelihoods.

A family of field methods in which community members map, rank and analyse their own conditions and needs using simple visual tools, so that outsiders learn from local people and plans reflect local priorities.

The process by which a new practice, such as a new crop variety or an improved stove, spreads through a community over time. Adoption is faster when the innovation is simple, trialable, visible and clearly better than what it replaces.

The active involvement of community members in identifying needs, planning, implementing and evaluating activities that affect them. It builds local ownership, mobilises local resources and makes programmes more likely to be sustained.

Monitoring is the routine tracking of activities and outputs while a programme runs; evaluation judges whether it achieved its objectives and why. Together they guide corrections and show whether resources were well used.

The sequence by which a sender encodes a message, chooses a channel, transmits it to a receiver who decodes and interprets it, and responds with feedback, all within a setting that can distort the meaning.

The receiver's response to a message, verbal or non-verbal, that tells the sender whether the message was understood and accepted. Feedback makes communication two-way and allows adjustments when meaning is unclear.

Messages conveyed without words - tone of voice, facial expression, gestures, posture, eye contact, dress and use of space - which often reveal feelings and attitudes more reliably than the words spoken.

Anything that distorts or blocks the exchange of meaning, such as noise, jargon, poor literacy, differing values, mistrust or information overload. Identifying barriers helps the sender choose clearer channels and messages.

The process of spotting an opportunity, organising resources, taking calculated risks and creating a venture that produces goods or services for profit; in small communities it is a key route to self-employment and income.

A written document describing a venture's product, market, operations, costs, expected income and financing needs. It tests whether the idea is viable and is used to guide action and support loan applications.

The collection and analysis of information about customers, competitors, prices and demand before or while starting a business, so that the product, price and selling location match what buyers actually want.

The level of sales at which total revenue equals total costs, so the business makes neither profit nor loss. Sales above this point generate profit; knowing it helps set prices and realistic targets.

Processing, packaging, branding or otherwise improving a product or service so that it sells at a higher price or reaches a better market, for example turning raw mangoes into dried slices or jam to raise income.