This critical thinking activity is inspired based on the story reported in the New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/07/arts/art-basel-banana-eaten.html. Students will take different roles to present their perspectives. Here are the procedures
1 Stick a banana on the classroom board.
2 Ask students to look at the banana, brainstorm and write down 1 or 2 words on the board (Students’ answers: slip, fail, power, curve, healthy)
3 Tell them that a banana could cost up to $120,000, referring to the story in the New York Times.
4 Assign roles to individual/group of students with guiding questions:
the artist: Where did the idea come from?
the buyer: What did you decide to buy this
the visitor: What comes to your mind when you saw this. Is it art or produce?
the ‘hungry’ visitor: Why did you decide to destroy it?
Students then role-play, presenting their opinions, thoughts and feelings.
This is my board presentation:
