Studies of the mental processes of chess grandmasters have revealed clues to how people become experts in other fields as well.

By Philip E. Ross, August 2006

31 of Chess for Change’s children were chosen to represent WP (Western Province) Schools at the tournament in Wynberg during the school holiday.  These children are all given WP Tracksuits and play for WP Schools team. 

I went to our sponsor, RGA, to ask them to help us with these children and they were absolutely amazing!  RGA said that they will pay for the children to play in this tournament from the 6th – 9th of July and pay for their tracksuits and meals.  I will have a few with me from the 3rd – 11th of July for a chess camp.

19 of Sullivan’s children got colours. 
6 of Stephen Rd’s children got colours.
2 of Plantation Primary’s children got colours.
4 of Simon van der Stel’s children got colours.”

Lenté, South Africa

Maurice Ashley, 2009

Chess for Change’s Mission 

The mission of Chess for Change is to promote and support chess as an educational tool that will excite young learners about the joys of academic excellence, stimulate critical thinking, and enhance their emotional development.  Integral to this is utilizing chess as the centerpiece in bringing together children from the various social and economic sectors of society, with the aim of promoting better understanding, respect and appreciation among the various sectors of society.  The ultimate goals of our efforts are:

(1) to help the schools develop more graduates who are thinking, caring, and productive members of society, and

(2) to establish the teaching of chess as a recognized profession, alongside the teaching of any other academic skill.

While our major emphasis will be on serving disadvantaged children, we also recognize that chess is beneficial for all children, regardless of financial, racial, social or religious considerations.  We further believe that there is a great social good to be achieved by having children from different components of society intermixing for chess activities, whether for instruction, tournament play, or general recreation.  Chess for Change will therefore support chess initiatives for children from all socio-economic areas, although the majority of our efforts will be toward those with the fewest resources.

Chess for Change’s Programs

Since 2007, Chess for Change teachers have taught classes to children in South Africa and the Caribbean. Headed by our Field Manager, Lenté Mare, an outstanding and tirelessly dedicated chess teacher, we carry out our mission of helping children through a multi-pronged approach detailed below.

1. Chess for Change identifies, trains, and supports chess players who will become teachers bringing the benefits of chess into the schools, community centers and homes of the children.  We conduct extensive seminars to train these chess players in teaching skills and then provide instructional materials and manuals to assist in their classroom instruction.  A vital part of the long-term success of our initiative is to make teaching chess a full profession, as much as teaching maths, science, music, art, language, or any other skill.

2. Chess for Change identifies and provides support for schools wishing to have chess programs. 

3. Chess for Change organizes tournaments on a regular basis for the young learners to have an opportunity to put their skills to the test, challenge other children, meet new friends, and compete for prizes.

4. Chess for Change provides chess sets for the schools to utilize in the classrooms, and also for the children to take home so they can practice and play casual games with their friends. 

David has taught chess in New York City for the past sixteen years.  Following a year of working as an instructor for the American Chess Foundation, he took on the task of teaching chess to children at a large elementary school in the southwest Bronx, Community Elementary School 70.  In his third year, his students won first place team trophies at both the New York City and the New York State Chess Championships, a feat they duplicated every year for the next four years.  Competing frequently, his students won over two hundred trophies a year, and were consistently among the top five teams in the nation, winning three first place trophies at the national level, and placing second four times.  His teams from the Bronx were featured on CBS Sunday Morning and CNN nationally, and in many local television and print news stories, as well as several international publications. 

The A&E telvision movie, The Knights of the South Bronx, starring Ted Danson, was about David’s work with the children in this school.  After winning a double championship at the National Elementary Scholastic Chess Tournament in 2000, David and his team were invited to the White House.

David is the author of three books for Random House, ­The Chess Kids Book of Tactics,  The Chess Kids Book of the King and Pawn Endgame, and The Chess Kids Book of Checkmate.  He also wrote six e-books (two in collaboration with Grandmaster Miron Sher) for the Official US Chess Federation Software, Think Like a King, and produced three videos of chess instruction, two featuring Bruce Pandolfini, Opening Principles and Understanding Chess, and a third, Chess for Children, showing the moves and rules, in which he appears as teacher.

David MacEnulty with Chess for Change students.

David Addressing a group of Chess for Change students

GM Maurice Ashley playing chess in South Africa.

Maurice dicusses the benefits of chess with school children at Sullivan Primary.

Maurice, blindfolded, challenges a Chess for Change student to a game.

In March 2009, GM Maurice Ashley traveled  to Cape Town, South Africa to teach with the Chess for Change program. In excerpts from a letter to blogger Daaim Shabazz at The Chess Drum, Maurice recalls his experience…

“I was in Cape Town under the auspices of a charity organization called Chess for Change. Created by a White South African named David Berman, the non-profit looks to bring the many benefits of chess to the children of South Africa. David not only talks the talk, but he walks to walk. It’s great to have truly sincere people who love chess and who put their time, energy and personal resources to see that all kids have opportunities to develop and excel. Chess for Change has been around for 3 years and is serving about 4,000 young people, a number that will be sure to grow exponentially in the next few years.

What I really like is that the organization is not wasting its time trying to make GMs. They are about giving kids hope and opportunity to develop themselves as people and critical thinkers first. If these young people then take the skills they learn from chess and go into business, education, sports, whatever, it doesn’t matter. Of course, a few will become strong chess players, but it’s the bigger number that Chess for Change is and should be focused on.”

Read the entire letter and blog post here.

Friends, I have spent many hours investigating chess and it’s educational benefits. There are a surprising number of studies that all point to the conclusion above. I personally was helped immensely by chess so I can only agree with it all. Indeed if it weren’t for chess I believe I would not have gone to business school in the US and perhaps may not be “here” today with the inner piece and contentment I feel.

Chess should surely be part of any curriculum for Grades K through 2 to enhance the education of children. Age five is the best time to start teaching to kids but even a three year-old can pick it up with a bit of patience. Indeed, top New York schools like Horace Mann and Dalton have it as part of their curriculum.”

David Berman, Founder, New York, NY

David Berman (right) playing chess with a friend circa 1976.

David (back right) with his high school chess team circa 1976.

 

David playing chess on the beach in Cape Town with Chess for Change volunteer Elan Rabinowitz.