Japanese Food Orders

Overview

Students learn and practise a polite Japanese dialogue for ordering food, including requesting items, quantities and courteous responses. The lesson builds on familiar greetings and classroom interaction language and culminates in a café role-play.

Learning intentions

• WALT use practical Japanese phrases for ordering food.
• WALT request items and quantities using appropriate counters and polite expressions.
• WALT participate in a short, culturally appropriate ordering dialogue.
• WALT create and perform a familiar communicative text for a real-life context.

Success criteria

• I can order three different items in Japanese.
• I can use quantities such as ひとつ (hitotsu) — one, ふたつ (futatsu) — two and みっつ (mittsu) — three appropriately.
• I can use polite phrases including ください (kudasai) — please, おねがいします (onegaishimasu) — please and ありがとうございます (arigatou gozaimasu) — thank you.
• I can respond appropriately as a customer or café staff member.

Curriculum links

• Understanding and responding to target-language texts through translation of modelled phrases.
• Interacting with others in familiar contexts using gesture, actions and culturally appropriate language.
• Exchanging information and opinions in a familiar context using appropriate language.
• Creating a spoken text for a familiar communicative purpose and audience.

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Hook and retrieval. Display the opening food-ordering image and question: “What would you need to say to order this politely in Japan?” Students think-pair-share, then recall known greetings such as こんにちは (konnichiwa) — hello and ありがとうございます (arigatou gozaimasu) — thank you. Teacher briefly explains that politeness and listening carefully are important when ordering.

2. 5–15 min · Modelled language. Use the phrase-and-dialogue slides to introduce and pronounce the following phrases. Teacher models each phrase naturally, students listen first, then repeat with accurate rhythm and intonation:

• これをください (kore o kudasai)。— This one, please.
• いくつですか (ikutsu desu ka)。— How many?
• ひとつ (hitotsu)／ふたつ (futatsu)／みっつ (mittsu) — One / two / three (general item quantities).
• おねがいします (onegaishimasu)。— Please.
• ありがとうございます (arigatou gozaimasu)。— Thank you.
• どうぞ (douzo)。— Here you are.

Model the dialogue: Customer: こんにちは (konnichiwa)。これをください (kore o kudasai)。— Hello. This one, please. Staff: いくつですか (ikutsu desu ka)。— How many? Customer: ふたつ (futatsu)、おねがいします (onegaishimasu)。— Two, please. Staff: どうぞ (douzo)。— Here you are. Customer: ありがとうございます (arigatou gozaimasu)。— Thank you. Students identify which phrases request, ask about quantity and close the exchange.

3. 15–25 min · Supported practice. Distribute the dyslexia-friendly Japanese ordering practice sheet. Students match Japanese phrases to meanings, order the dialogue lines and complete short prompts using a visual menu. Teacher checks pronunciation through whole-class repetition, then pairs practise the model dialogue with role cards. Display the pronunciation and practice instructions and remind students to point to the item while saying これをください (kore o kudasai) — This one, please.

4. 25–38 min · Quantity and listening game. Use the café menu and quantity challenge. In pairs, one student is the customer and one is the staff member. The teacher calls or displays an order, such as “two sandwiches”, and pairs silently prepare the correct Japanese response. Selected pairs perform it; the class listens for the item, quantity and polite closing. Swap roles after each round. Circulate and give immediate feedback on pronunciation, volume and turn-taking.

5. 38–52 min · Café role-play. Arrange students in groups of three: customer, staff member and language coach. Give each group the visual menu from the menu and role-play section. Customers must order three different items, including at least one quantity greater than one. Staff ask いくつですか (ikutsu desu ka) — How many? and respond with どうぞ (douzo) — Here you are. The coach uses the checklist to record whether the customer used a request, three items, quantities and a polite closing. Rotate roles so every student speaks in at least two roles.

6. 52–60 min · Performance and reflection. Invite two or three groups to perform. Use the final success-criteria and reflection slides to revisit the WALT. Students complete a quick oral self-check: “I can order three items”, “I can ask or answer about quantity” and “I can use polite language.” Collect the worksheet or ask students to write one Japanese phrase they can now use and its English meaning.

Resources

• the Japanese café ordering slide deck
• the dyslexia-friendly Japanese ordering practice sheet
• Projector or interactive whiteboard
• Visual food menu with pictures, Japanese labels and prices
• Customer, staff and language-coach role cards
• Quantity cards showing one, two and three
• Mini whiteboards or exercise books
• Highlighters and pencils
• Optional Japanese food images or classroom café props

Assessment

• Listen during repetition and pair practice for intelligible pronunciation of ください (kudasai) — please, いくつですか (ikutsu desu ka) — How many? and ありがとうございます (arigatou gozaimasu) — Thank you.
• Use the role-play checklist to assess whether each student requests three items, communicates quantities and uses an appropriate polite exchange.
• Use the final phrase-and-meaning response to identify students needing further translation or vocabulary support.

Differentiation

• Provide sentence starters, romanisation alongside hiragana where needed, picture-supported menus and colour-coded dialogue turns. Use a clear sans-serif font, generous spacing and minimal text on the worksheet for dyslexic learners.
• Allow students to rehearse with a partner, point to menu images, use cue cards and listen to a teacher-recorded model before performing.
• Pair students strategically and assign the language-coach role first to students who need a lower-pressure speaking entry point. Accept supported reading during the first role-play.
• Extend confident learners by requiring three different items with varied quantities, a change to the order, or a customer question about dietary requirements.

Extension

• Role-play a more complex café scenario in which the customer states a dietary requirement, such as “I cannot eat fish” or “No nuts, please”, using teacher-provided Japanese language support.
• Add a misunderstanding: the staff member repeats the order incorrectly, and the customer politely corrects it.
• Create and perform a short original café dialogue, maintaining appropriate greetings, turn-taking and polite expressions.