I have done a similar activity letting younger students create their own park
the perfect park. The students get to design their own park to make it the best park in the world. They then can make rules for their park about what can and can't be done there (imperative practice.)
You could do the same with your country and have them make some laws/rules.
The SIMian City Game: For adults, I have done a similar bit but had them rediscover America. They were the Pilgrams and had to establish their city. They had all the modern day resources at their disposal and unlimited funds. Then we set up a timeline and they could (a few weeks later) go back and make changes to their town 50 years later. (Practice the past tense: There was ~. Now, there is ~.) You can also have them create laws as above if you have the time.
- Mark