Hāngī Fractions & Sharing
Te Tohatoha Kai • Fair Sharing Through Fractions
🍠 What is a Hāngī?
A hāngī is a traditional Māori method of cooking food in an earth oven. Hot stones are placed in a pit, food is wrapped in leaves and placed on the stones, then covered with earth to steam for several hours.
Manaakitanga: Hāngī is about sharing food with your whānau and community. Everyone gets a fair share — just like in fractions!
🥘 Kai from the Hāngī
A hāngī often includes:
Rīwai
(Potato)
Kūmara
(Sweet potato)
Kāroti
(Carrot)
Heihei
(Chicken)
Poaka
(Pork)
Aniana
(Onion)
📝 Problem 1: Sharing Kūmara
Nana has cooked 12 kūmara in the hāngī. She wants to share them equally among 4 whānau (families).
a) How many kūmara does each whānau get?
b) Write this as a fraction: Each whānau gets ____ out of 12 kūmara.
c) Draw 12 kūmara and circle groups to show how you shared them:
📝 Problem 2: Chicken Portions
The hāngī has 8 pieces of chicken. There are 16 people to feed.
a) What fraction of a piece does each person get?
b) If 4 people are vegetarian and don't eat chicken, how much chicken can each of the remaining people have?
👁️ Seeing Fractions
Here's a tray of 8 rewena (Māori bread). We're sharing it among 4 people.
Each person gets 2 pieces = 2/8 = 1/4 of the tray
Person 1:
Person 2:
Person 3:
Person 4:
📝 Problem 3: Hāngī for the Hui
The marae is hosting a hui with 60 guests. The hāngī team has prepared:
- 30 kūmara
- 45 rīwai (potatoes)
- 20 pieces of chicken
a) What fraction of a kūmara does each guest get?
b) How many potatoes does each guest get? Write as a fraction.
c) The chicken must be shared among guests who eat meat. If 1/3 of guests are vegetarian, how many people will share the chicken?
⭐ Challenge: Plan Your Own Hāngī
You are planning a hāngī for 24 people. You want everyone to get:
- 1 whole kūmara each
- 1½ potatoes each
- 1/3 of a chicken each
How much of each food do you need to prepare?
Kūmara: ________ | Potatoes: ________ | Chickens: ________
📚 Kupu Māori — Vocabulary
To share, distribute
Fraction
Family
Food
Equal, same
Hospitality, care
👩🏫 Teacher Notes
Curriculum: NZC Level 2-3 Number — Fractions
Key Ideas: Fractions as fair sharing, equivalent fractions, fractions of sets
Answers:
- Problem 1a: 3 kūmara each, 1b: 3/12 or 1/4
- Problem 2a: 1/2 piece each, 2b: 8÷12 = 2/3 piece each
- Problem 3a: 30/60 = 1/2, 3b: 45/60 = 3/4, 3c: 40 people (60 × 2/3)
- Challenge: 24 kūmara, 36 potatoes, 8 chickens