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Have a Banana

To demonstrate the importance of sharing

by The Revd Catherine Williams and the Revd Canon Paul Williams

Suitable for Whole School (Pri)

Aims

To demonstrate the importance of sharing.

Preparation and materials

  • You will need two bananas.

Assembly

  1. Explain that you are very hungry because you missed out on breakfast/break/lunch (whichever is appropriate to the time of day). Say you hope that, while you are talking, no one minds if you have a snack.

  2. Produce a banana from your pocket or bag and say how much you like bananas and how healthy and delicious they are, etc. Begin to peel it.

  3. Part way through peeling it, stop and say that perhaps you are being a little selfish, and maybe someone would like to share your banana with you. Ask for a volunteer who really likes bananas.

    Choose an older child who is emotionally robust(!) and say you will 'go halves' with him or her.

    Continue to peel the banana, and then give the skin to the child while you begin to eat the fruit, saying: Half for you and half for me.

  4. Look disappointed that the child isn't eating the banana-peel, and say something like, I thought you liked bananas - what's the problem? Hopefully the child will say something along the lines that s/he can't eat the skin, and so hasn't really had half, etc.

  5. Make the point that sometimes we think we are sharing and being generous, when really we are keeping the best for ourselves and giving away rubbish. Can the children think of any examples, such as sharing sweets but only giving away the ones we don't like? Christians believe that everything we have really belongs to God, and we need to be responsible with it and not greedy. In the Bible we are called to be generous and ready to share (1 Timothy 6.18). You might expand this to talk about the need for us to share the world's resources appropriately so that no one goes hungry.

  6. Finish by apologizing to the volunteer and giving him/her the second banana.

Time for reflection

'You've got to share,' the little girl said
as she grabbed her brother's ice cream.
What she meant was, 'I want it
and if I don't get it I'll scream!'

'Share my sweets,' the generous boy said
to his mates one day.
But when they looked there were only two.
'I don't like them anyway,'
the boy was heard to say.

The whole of the planet is for everyone,
for everyone to share.
So why do some countries have so much,
and others have nothing - is it fair?

(Gordon Lamont)

Dear God,
We're sorry for the times we've been selfish.
Teach us to be generous to others.
Help us to share.
Amen.

Song/music

'When I needed a neighbour' (Come and Praise, 65)

Publication date: December 2003   (Vol.5 No.12)    Published by SPCK, London, UK.
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