Te wā kai (Lunchtime)
Scenario
It’s lunchtime at school. The children are asking about the contents of each other’s lunch boxes – and swapping food accordingly.
Te Awarangi surprises (and frightens) two children when he reveals what he has for lunch. So scared are his friends that they run off dropping their food, which he promptly adds to his lunch box, alongside a large orange crayfish! Unfazed, he continues to eat his (and their) lunch!
Language Focus
You will meet the question starter ‘He aha...’ (What). You will also encounter the preposition/locative ‘ kei roto’ (inside).
You will learn how to:
- ask about two choices of food (using ‘rānei’ meaning ‘or’)
- politely request something to be passed (using ‘koa’ which literally means ‘gladly’)
- use the singular possessive pronoun ‘taku’ (my)
- tell someone to wait (using ‘Taihoa’).
More difficult is the word ‘māu’ (for you). This is sometimes written as ‘māhau’.
Transcript and Translation
| Speaker | Māori | English |
| Rōpū tamariki (off-screen) | Te wā kai | Lunchtime |
| Piripi | He aha kei roto i tō pouaka kai? | What’s in your lunch box? |
| Mere | He huarākau. He ārani māu? He āporo rānei? | Some fruit. Do you want an orange? Or an apple? |
| Piripi | Homai koa te āporo. He aha māhau? He hanawiti? | Give me an apple please. What do you want? A sandwich? |
| Mere | Āe... anei te āporo. | Yes... here’s the apple. |
| Piripi | Anei te hanawiti.Te Awarangi, he aha kei roto i tō pouaka kai? | Here’s the sandwich. Te Awarangi, what’s in your lunch box? |
| Te Awarangi | He kaimoana. | Seafood. |
| Piripi and Mere | He kaimoana?!! Mmmmmmm... | Seafood?!! Mmmmmmm... |
| Te Awarangi | Āe, he kaimoana! Taihoa... | Yes, seafood! Wait... |
| Te Awarangi | Anei taku kai – he kōura!! | Here’s my food – a crayfish!! |
| Piripi and Mere | Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!!! | Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!!! |
