2 Children Become HISD Chess Superstars
By Lyndsay Levingston
November 19, 2007

HOUSTON — Hundreds of students participated in the award-winning HISD T.H. Rogers School Chess Program, KPRC Local 2, Your Education Station, reported Monday.

“Well, I had lessons last year and then I got really good and I can play in tournaments,” first-grader Emily Goll-Pryles said.

“There’s all sorts of things in chess that they learn which include developing, planning, and sequencing,” chess club sponsor Martha Jenkinson said. “We have a fun environment here so a lot of kids are interested in playing.”

“We want to provide an opportunity to these kids to explore chess,” Jenkinson said. “We want them to practice the skills they use in the tournament.”
All of that practice has paid off for siblings Evan and Ellen Xiang, who are competing in a World Youth Chess Championship in Turkey.
They chatted with KPRC Local 2 before their Nov. 15 departure.

“I’m sort of nervous, but it’s exciting to see a new place,” fifth-grader Ellen Xiang said.

Ellen learned the game of chess in kindergarten and started playing in tournaments by the second grade. Little sister, Evan, said Ellen influenced her to learn the game.

“It’s a great game. It teaches you your patience,” third-grader Evan Xiang said.

The Xiang sisters will compete for two weeks against hundreds of other children from around the world.

“If I get a bad score, I’ll feel bad because I represent the whole America,” Evan Xiang said.

Here is the full story.

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