Tirohanga Whānui | Overview
Students carry Lesson 1's scarcity language into an Aotearoa case study. They analyse rua kūmara as a designed storage system, calculate the capacity of a storage pit, and then write a short diary entry that shows how seasonal observation, labour, and tikanga helped communities protect future kai.
Ngā Whāinga Ako | Learning Intentions
- Explain how rua kūmara responded to seasonal food scarcity.
- Use measurement to reason about storage capacity and community need.
- Write from a historically grounded perspective using concrete system details.
Ngā Paearu Angitū | Success Criteria
- Students can link at least two rua kūmara design features to food-security problems.
- Students can calculate storage volume and explain what the estimate helps a community plan.
- Students can write a diary entry that includes one system detail and one scarcity concept.
Do Now: From Empty Shelves to Stored Kai
10 minsWhat it is: A retrieval task that ties Lesson 1's scarcity vocabulary to today's case study.
Run it
- Individual recall (3 min): students write one definition each for scarcity, trade-off, and innovation.
- Bridge prompt (4 min): ask: "If your community has enough kai in autumn but not in winter, what problem are you solving?"
- Set the lens (3 min): introduce rua kūmara as a storage system designed to reduce seasonal scarcity.
Act 1: Read the Rua Kūmara as a System
20 minsWhat it is: Students annotate the storage pit as a designed response to rot, damp, pests, temperature change, and access.
Run it
- Model one feature (4 min): choose one visible feature and ask, "What problem does this solve?"
- Pair annotation (10 min): students complete the Rua Kūmara Analysis, labelling features and matching each to a food-security problem.
- Share and refine (6 min): pairs improve one label after hearing another group's explanation.
Act 2: Calculate Storage Capacity
20 minsWhat it is: A numeracy link where the maths has a clear purpose: estimating how much kai a storage system can protect.
Run it
- Set up the formula (4 min): write length x width x height = volume and model one example.
- Paired calculation (10 min): students complete the Volume Calculation task.
- Meaning check (6 min): students answer: "What does this number let a whānau or hapū do that they could not do without storage?"
Act 3: Write from Inside the System
20 minsWhat it is: A synthesis task where students turn technical analysis into a human, seasonal decision.
Run it
- Choose the season (3 min): students select planting, tending, harvest, or winter storage.
- Oral rehearsal (5 min): pairs say one sentence that includes a practical problem and a response.
- Diary writing (12 min): students complete the Kūmara Grower Diary, including one system detail from Act 1 and one scarcity idea from Lesson 1.
Exit Ticket: Innovation Claim
5 minsWhat it is: A short claim-evidence check that shows whether students understand rua kūmara as adaptation, not just a historical object.
Run it
Students complete: "Rua kūmara were an innovation because ____. The evidence from today is ____." Collect this to check who is ready for Lesson 3's global staple-crop comparison.
🎯 Curriculum Alignment
Verified focus statement: The economy is made up of different sectors: the primary sector involves getting raw materials, such as farming, fishing, and mining...
Students study kūmara cultivation and storage as primary-sector food production, then connect that production to scarcity, seasonal planning, and community decision-making.
📦 Materials & Resources
- Rua Kūmara Analysis
- Rua Kūmara Volume Calculation
- Kūmara Grower Diary
- One teacher-approved rua kūmara image or local reference source for annotation.
📊 Assessment Framework
Formative evidence: annotated system features, capacity explanation, diary detail, and the exit-ticket innovation claim.
- At support level, students identify features and explain one problem each feature solves.
- At expected level, students connect storage design to seasonal scarcity and community planning.
- At extension level, students compare rua kūmara with a modern food-storage or supply-chain system.
🚀 Extension Activities
Ask students to design one improvement to the storage system for a different climate or soil condition. They must explain what trade-off the improvement creates.
🔗 Unit Progression
Lesson 1 introduced scarcity and trade-offs. Lesson 2 shows an Aotearoa response to seasonal scarcity. Lesson 3 scales the inquiry outward by comparing rice as a global staple crop and asking what happens when supply chains carry the food-security burden.
📋 Teacher Planning Snapshot
Prep: choose a reference image or diagram; print the three handouts; prepare one worked volume example.
Grouping: pairs for analysis and calculation, individual diary writing, whole-class exit claim.
Scaffold support: provide a partially labelled diagram and simpler dimensions for volume calculations.
ESOL / ELL: pre-teach storage, ventilation, capacity, harvest, and scarcity with a sketch beside each term.
Mātauranga Māori lens: keep claims local and careful. Teach rua kūmara as a sophisticated storage and planning system; invite localised examples only where you have teacher-verified or mana whenua-supported material.