My students love basketball more than any other sport we play. They have become avid students of the game, and even during recess, they play by the official rules. They demand fair play from each other because they want the game to be as fun as possible. This demand for fair play is one of the reasons Government Basketball is so dynamic. Each team uses different scoring rules that reflect the government's style. Students will realize they need to adjust their tactics based on the strengths of the government they are playing, identify the other team's strengths, and plan their defense accordingly.

It is one thing to explain how governments differ from one another; it is another to play a game that demonstrates different styles of government by using different scoring systems. This game is open-ended and does not emphasize one government system over another. Each has its strengths, weaknesses, and strategies for playing against them. This game is excellent to repeat for several weeks because the tenets of the game can be applied to almost any team sport you can think of, such as soccer, hockey, kickball, etc. Once you play the game, you can also introduce and incorporate different economic systems. If a team can successfully perform the objective of that economic system, they get a point boost at the end of the game.

Your students will love this versatile game, and you will love it because it can be played multiple times. This means you can save time in the coming weeks because it will require less explanation the second and third time around. This will help cement the differences between government systems for your students as they apply the same concept weekly. However, changing the sport each week will keep the game fresh.