Checkmate for students
Journal and Courier, IN
January 26, 2009
Whispers of checkmate and the sliding of pieces could be heard throughout the room as 48 students competed in the regional portion of the Scholastic Chess of Indiana Championships at Lafayette Jefferson High School on Jan. 17.
The quiet intensity was intermittently interrupted by a whisper of checkmate.
Players, who came from as far away as Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, and were as young as kindergarten and as old as seniors in high school, competed.
According to third-grader Kamran Patel from Fort Wayne, the thing he enjoys most about chess is “playing in tournaments, getting good, and getting trophies.”
Players were matched based on their ratings and age. However, this tournament doesn’t change the player’s rating unless they make it to the finals in Anderson.
Even though players were not rated, just playing helps them in other aspects of daily life.
“Chess overall, if kids really study it and play a lot of it, tends to enhance their problem-solving skills,” said site tournament director Jeff Studebaker. “There seems to be a correlation with mathematic ability.”
Here is the full story.
Chess and kids! Perfect.