JUNIOR CHESS ACADEMY

OUR AIM

We opened a chess school for girls and boys under 18. We will learn and play chess at The Salvation Army cafe (behind Minden place) on Thursdays 4-5 pm. There is no entry fee. Experienced chess players from Jersey Chess Club will teach the children. We would ask that you think about your commitment twice before you make your final decision, as numbers are limited to 30 students. We offer an international coaching programme, a lot of competitions and fun.

The case is exceptionally strong for using chess to develop our children’s minds and help them cope with the growing complexities and demands of a globalizing world. More and more schools around the world are recognizing the value of chess, with instruction now becoming part of standard curriculums. It’s of course just a game. Yet it has fascinated and challenged some of the greatest minds of the last century, sparking enough books about how to play to fill an entire library.

THE BENEFITS

Chess is an especially effective teaching tool. It can equally challenge the minds of girls and boys, gifted and average, athletic and non-athletic, rich and poor. It can teach children the importance of planning and the consequences of decisions. It can further teach how to concentrate, how to win and lose gracefully, how to think logically and efficiently, and how to make tough and abstract decisions.

At more advanced levels it can teach flexible planning since playing well requires a coherent plan yet not one that is rigidly followed regardless of the opponent’s response. Chess can also build confidence and self-esteem without overinflating egos, as some losses are inevitable, even for world champions. We can say with full confidence that chess has been proven to enhance creativity, problem solving, memory, concentration, intellectual maturity, self-esteem, and many other abilities that a parent or teacher would desire.