The Joys & Benefits of Chess for Kids

When choosing an extracurricular activity for children, many parents look for programs that their child will not only enjoy, but which will hopefully uncover an innate talent or passion.  There’s a litany of activities for kids to choose from these days—music, robotics, art, karate, dance—all utilizing parts of the brain that aren’t necessarily exercised during regular school hours. The best after-school curriculums complement what children are already learning in school.

Many people consider chess to be an excellent course of study to promote essential life skills. Chess is a systematic learning process—just like learning a language or mathematics—but it also cultivates social aptitude, solidifies friendships, and fosters creativity, memory, and problem-solving skills. Most importantly, though, it is a lot of fun.

“The first intention I ever have is that my students fall in love with the game,” says Saudin Robovic, owner of NYChessKids in Manhattan, one of the largest youth chess programs in the New York City area that offers after-school chess classes in Manhattan and Queens, holiday and summer camps, and private lessons. “Once I accomplish that, then I know I can ask them to study more.”

Robovic’s philosophy is that the optimal way to learn is to love what you’re doing—and that can’t be forced.  If a child has passion for a particular activity, if he is emotionally involved, he will have an innate desire to learn and improve.

Chess may be one of the best ways to strengthen social skills in children—kids that study the same activity connect on new levels. “There’s a strong mind connection” between players, according to Robovic, and he has seen friendships made in his program grow into long relationships between students.  “Chess is a beautiful game, very challenging, very interesting.  By studying it, you definitely improve yourself—emotionally, intellectually—you become a better person.”