Giant Reversi: Flip the Discs on the Run

An 8 x 8 board of two-colored discs (face up or face down depending on the team) on which two teams play at the same time: each player leaves their line, flips one disc to their team's color and runs back to tag the next teammate. It is a real-time territory game where students decide on the fly which area to secure.

How to play

1. Lay out 64 discs in a 1 m grid and set a start line for each team 10 m from the board on opposite sides (3 min).
2. Explain the flipping rule: you may only flip a disc that touches (side or diagonal) at least one disc of your color; one disc per trip (2 min).
3. 2-minute games in a continuous relay with 4 lines per team; count each color's discs at the end (6 min).
4. Between games, each team has 1 minute for its captain to point out priority areas, for example corners and edges (2 min).
5. Final game with a new rule: corners, once won, are protected and cannot be flipped (4 min).
6. Analysis: why corners and edges are worth more and how the lines were organized (3 min).

Rules

• Flip discs by hand, bending at the knees to get down.
• Only one player per line per team may be on the board at a time to avoid collisions.
• Do not step on discs or touch another disc while flipping one.
• If two players go for the same disc, the first to arrive keeps it and the other picks another.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: act as captain from a raised or side spot, calling out priorities to the team.
• Visual impairment: play with a guide partner, and one team's discs carry a clip to identify them by touch.
• Back injury: flip discs with a pole instead of bending down.

Learning goals

• Identify high-value territory and prioritize it.
• Make quick decisions while fatigued.
• Coordinate the team's lines around a shared plan.

Equipment for a class of 25

• disc cones: 64
• cones: 8
• pinnies: 28

Teacher tip

Split teams into four short lines to keep waiting time to a minimum. Take a photo of the board at the end of each game to analyze who held what.

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