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Kevin-09: The Meat Pie Mystery

An A2 English reading worksheet about Kevin the Koala visiting a bakery and learning some funny Australian rhyming slang.

Title

Reading Text

Episode 9: The Meat Pie Mystery Swimming makes Kevin very hungry. He leaves the beach and walks to a small bakery. It smells delicious inside. He walks to the counter. "I would like a meat pie, please," Kevin says. The baker is a kind lady. "Sure thing, mate," she says. "Would you like some dead horse with that?" Kevin’s eyes open wide. He is shocked. "Dead horse? No, thank you! I am a koala. I only eat leaves... and sometimes pies!" The baker laughs loudly. "No, no, little guy! Dead horse is just a funny word for tomato sauce!" Kevin smiles and feels a bit silly. "Oh! Yes, please. May I have some tomato sauce, then?" Kevin sits on a bench outside. He eats his hot meat pie with tomato sauce. It is much better than eucalyptus leaves! 🐨 Aussie Talk The baker asks if Kevin wants "dead horse." This is an example of Australian Rhyming Slang. "Dead horse" rhymes with "red sauce" in some accents. Australians put tomato sauce on their meat pies, which are a classic, savory pastry snack loved across the country. 📝 Grammar Spotlight Look at the phrases "I would like a meat pie" and "Would you like some...?" This is how we order food or offer things politely in English. It is much more polite than saying "I want." Kevin also uses "May I have..." which is another excellent, polite way to ask for something.

Seo_intro

An A2 English reading worksheet about Kevin the Koala visiting a bakery and learning some funny Australian rhyming slang.

Activities

Vocabulary

Items:

Label: bakery
Answer: def1
Label: delicious
Answer: def2
Label: counter
Answer: def3
Label: shocked
Answer: def4
Label: silly
Answer: def5

Definitions:

Text: A place where bread, cakes, and pies are made or sold.
Text: Having a very pleasant taste or smell.
Text: A long, flat surface in a shop where customers are served.
Text: Surprised and upset by something unexpected.
Text: Showing a lack of good sense; foolish or a little bit embarrassing.

Fill In The Blanks:

Before: Every morning, we buy fresh bread from the local
After: .
Answer: bakery
Before: This chocolate cake is absolutely
After: !
Answer: delicious
Before: Please put your items on the
After: so you can pay for them.
Answer: counter
Before: I was very
After: when I heard the loud, unexpected noise.
Answer: shocked
Before: I felt a bit
After: when I realized I was wearing two different socks.
Answer: silly

Comprehension

Questions:

Text: Kevin goes to a bakery because he wants to sleep.
Answer: false
Text: The baker offers to give Kevin a real horse to eat.
Answer: false
Text: "Dead horse" is a funny way to say tomato sauce.
Answer: true
Text: Kevin decides he does not want any tomato sauce on his pie.
Answer: false
Text: Kevin thinks the meat pie is better than eucalyptus leaves.
Answer: true

Scrambled:

Text: smells / inside / delicious / It
Answer: It smells delicious inside
Text: pie / would / a / like / meat / I
Answer: I would like a meat pie
Text: eyes / wide / Kevin's / open
Answer: Kevin's eyes open wide
Text: feels / a / silly / bit / Kevin
Answer: Kevin feels a bit silly
Text: better / leaves / is / much / than / It
Answer: It is much better than leaves

Written Expression

Questions:

Text: What is a famous or traditional food from your country? How do you describe it?
Text: Write a short dialogue politey ordering food at a cafe. Use 'I would like' and 'May I have'.

Examples:

A famous food in my country is paella. It is a delicious rice dish with seafood and vegetables.

Customer: Hello! I would like a coffee, please. May I have some milk with it?
Waiter: Yes, of course. Here you are.

Critical Thinking

Title: Think and Discuss

Instructions:

Why do you think Australians use rhyming slang like 'dead horse' for 'tomato sauce'?
Have you ever misunderstood a word or phrase in another language (or your own language) and felt silly like Kevin?