Students bring chess to life
By Hanna Chu, Staff writer
Article Launched: 06/11/2007 10:41:15 PM PDT

LONG BEACH – “Queen to A-6, Check,” announced sixth-grader Benjamin Quincey over the microphone at Bethany Baptist Elementary School’s playground.

Students holding giant chess pieces shuffled around, trying to figure out who was supposed to move where.

The Chess Club at Bethany finished off its sixth year by playing two historic Bobby Fischer matches on a living chess board on Monday.

Each student was assigned a chess piece to hold while standing on a large chess board mat, and Quincey announced the moves. The students enacted Bobby Fischer’s 1971 Manhattan Blitz game against Walter Shipman and his 1977 game against the MIT Greenblatt computer program.

“Black pawn takes D-6,” Quincey said.

The chess club had 28 members this year, ranging in age from 5 to 13 years old, in a school that has an enrollment of about 230 students.

“It’s a great way for the kids to learn life skills,” said Principal Bill Cook.

Here is the full article.

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