Game Schooling - Chess

Do I really need to say more? You all know what chess is, right? But I always forget how much I enjoy playing, and the educational benefits are considerable. Chess is a game of strategy, requiring a whole lot of both planning and flexibility. There are entire conferences and considerable research studies devoted to the benefits of playing chess. From The Susan Polgar Foundation: Excel Through Chess:

Countless researchers and studies have shown over the years that chess does indeed strengthen a child's mental clarity, fortitude, stability, and overall health. Many schools are now finding chess as an inexpensive but essential way of helping kids grow mentally. In this technologically driven world, chess helps aid in the synthesis and growth of certain areas in the brain and mind where many children can benefit as they grow older from the game.

In 1986 a program called Chess-In-The-Schools was introduced in New York City to promote chess as a tool for developing essential skills for school children. The program is still going strong today. In 1992 New Jersey passed a bill requiring all students in New Jersey schools to be taught to play chess in the 2nd grade!  And just this April a senator in California introduced a bill to designated October as "California Chess Month," recognizing both the educational value and popularity of the game.

For an interesting history of chess, beginning with its origins in India around 600AD, check out the United States Chess Federation website. Fortunately for all of us, chess is available in a multitude of forms today - from high-end, hand-carved display games to mobile apps, and resources for everything from basic game rules to complex strategies can be found all over the internet. So, go dig out the old dusty box in your game closet, and start playing chess!!