Hill Country Librarians Conference 2009

1. Chess @ Your Library
Neil Krasnoff
Betty Copeland

2. Objectives
• Motivate Participants to start chess
clubs in their schools
• Participants will gain knowledge and
confidence in their abilities to run a
chess club
• Participants will learn a
recommended sequence for teaching
chess

3. Why Chess?
"In classrooms where Chess has taken hold, educators are
reporting astounding results. After learning how to play chess ,
kids who once showed little interest in getting a good education
are not only turning their grades and lives around, they are
excelling. Chess:
• sharpens problem-solving skills
• enhances imagination and creativity
• promotes independence and a sense of responsibility
• hones memory
• heightens self-esteem
• reinforces the concept of deferred gratification
• and much more!
-Maurice Ashley in Chess for Success

4. The Ease of Starting a Chess Club
• Chess equipment is very inexpensive
• Many students and staff will already
understand the basic rules of chess.
• Chess is a timeless game that will attract an
audience with minimal publicity
• In summary, the benefits of chess are many
and the costs and challenges are few

5. History of Hays CISD Chess Program
2005-Program Established at Lehman HS
2006- First tournament/fundraiser event attracts 60+ students
from area including representatives from 80% of Hays CISD
schools
2007-First official Hays CISD Chess Championship attracts 90+
students from all but one Hays CISD campus
2008-Second Hays CISD chess tournament attracts 100
students from 100% of Hays CISD Schools. Lehman HS wins
Region VI chess title
Today: The Hays CISD chess program involves over 300
students on each campus

6. Case Study: Dahlstrom Middle School
At Dahlstrom --- Chess is
King!
(
photo by Christy Hodson)

7. "How does a middle school librarian who knows
very little about the mysterious game of chess
become the chief cheerleader of a group of
gung-ho chess warriors?"

8. NEW RELATIONSHIPS / MENTORING

9. Dahlstrom Chess by the Numbers
• 135 originally recruited
• 80 average at weekly meetings (lower
numbers after changing meeting date, also
due to sports, and losing students who are no
longer interested)
• Majority is male, roughly 80%.
• We have 60% 6th grade; 25% 7th grade; and
15% 8th grade.
We are also meeting our low-socio/ low-economic
students' needs by providing late-bus services for
after-school activities.

10. INNOVATIVE TEACHING GRANT!
We applied for -- and received --a grant of $2000 to apply to
our chess program, allowing us to hire a noted chess master to
teach advanced strategies to students who sign up for
workshops, and to provide for additional activities to support
our chess program.
We have parents who bring their elementary children to
participate in our chess club -- additional middle school
mentoring of younger students.
We have "resource" students participating -- again additional
mentoring student-to-student --

11. How many middle school kids can we squeeze in??

12. Thank you HCISD for your support of our Chess Nuts!

13. Chess is definitely cool at Dahlstrom!

14. Getting Started
1. Purchase Chess Sets-Buy only solid pieces. Don't bother
with the $3.00 hollow sets at the Grocery Store or Pharmacy
2. Purchase a couple of clocks
o www.uscfsales.com (United States Chess Federation)
o www.americanchessstore.com (Austin based company)
Then:
1. Decide meeting times
2. Recruit parents and community members

15. Essential Information
United States Chess Federation
http://main.uschess.org/content/view/7574/131/
Chess Corner
http://www.chesscorner.com/tutorial/learn.htm

16. Excellent Resources
Susan Polgar Institute of Chess Excellence (SPICE) at Texas
Tech) http://texastechchess.blogspot.com/
Ashley, Maurice. Chess for Success: Using an Old Game to
Build New Strengths in Children and Teens. New York City:
Broadway, 2005.
Root, Alexey W.. Children and Chess: A Guide for Educators.
Westport: Teacher Ideas Press, An Imprint Of Libraries
Unlimited, 2006.
Root, Alexey W.. Read, Write, Checkmate: Enrich Literacy
with Chess Activities. Westport: Teacher Ideas Press, An
Imprint Of Libraries Unlimited, 2009.

17. Chess Trivia Questions #1
When did the Queen become the
most powerful piece on the board?
Why?

18. Chess Trivia #1
Answer: Probably originated in the
15th Century, but the current strong
Queen rule spread with the rise of
powerful female rulers such as
Catherine the Great in Russia and
Victoria of England.

19. Chess Trivia #2
Which civilization invented the
game that eventually became
known as Chess?

20. Chess Trivia Continued #2
Answer: India was credited with the original
game called caturanga, but the Arabs
improved, popularized and spread the game
along with Islam before the 10th Century. The
Persians were also very influential in the early
period. Chess evolved into its modern form in
Europe and it's current rules were mostly
established by 1850.

21. Chess Trivia #3
In chess, there are two ways of
"wasting time." What are they?

22. Chess Trivia #3
1. The most obvious "time wasting" occurs when
playing with a clock and one waits a long time
before making a move.
2. The 2nd way of wasting time is by making
moves that are ill-conceived and being forced to
move the same piece out of trouble. Most
common amateur mistake is taking the queen
out early and then the opponent forces it to
move back several times.