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Schools

Scotland School to Offer Chess Classes to Kindergartners

Scotland Elementary School is set to offer before-school chess classes to young students to enrich their learning experience.

is thrilled to offer a voluntary Before-School Chess Enrichment Program to its Kindergarten students.

The program will meet on Wednesday mornings from 7:50 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. for seven weeks. After the initial seven-week program, additional seven-week sessions will be offered as the school year progresses.

The Chess program will be taught by Richard Jackson, a chess champion and chess teacher who specializes in teaching the game to younger children.

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While parents are asked to enroll their children in this program, Scotland School prides itself on not having any child miss a program due to financial need. For this reason scholarships are available based on family needs. There are currently 13 students enrolled in the program.

Chess has long been regarded as a game that can have beneficial effects on learning and development, especially when it is played from a young age. Chess has been shown to develop analytical, synthetic and decision-making skills and to encourage youngsters to call upon higher-order thinking skills, analyze actions and consequences and visualize future possibilities.

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In countries where chess is offered widely in schools, students are more able to recognize complex patterns and consequently excel in math and science. In this technologically driven world, chess helps the synthesis and growth of certain areas in the brain and mind which can benefit children as they grow older.

Scotland Elementary School is pleased to be able to offer this great opportunity to its youngest students and looks forward to them reaping the benefits.

Sally Alexandroff is a member of the Scotland Elementary School PTA.

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