Smart Moves

Why kids should get excited about chess

By Brad Langer

Like many people, I played chess as a kid. I learned how the pieces move and played fairly often, mostly with my dad, just for something fun to do when I had free time. Chess, like life, seems so simple at first, but as you keep playing you notice all the layers and complications. We can also make things more complicated than they need to be, too. There also isn’t one right way to play or one correct way to live your life. I didn’t know it then, but chess would be a big part of my life, and I would learn a lot from the game.

It didn’t take long for me to start beating my dad, so we started looking for stronger competition. My dad saw a notice in the newspaper about a local tournament and signed me up for it. I was the only kid there and I lost all of my games, but it was still fun. We signed up for more tournaments and I was hooked. It was fun, I enjoyed the competition, and hey, I got to be pretty good at it.

Now that I am older and have kids of my own, I realized that this silly board game taught me a lot. I stopped playing for about 20 years, but picked it back up a few years ago just before the pandemic started. When things shut down, I had a lot of time to dive back into playing chess. I currently coach the chess club at my children’s school and it’s interesting to see how this new generation is learning many of the same lessons I learned. I would like to share with you some of the many important lessons that children (and adults) can learn from this great game.

First, since this is a game between two players, the game ends with a winner and loser, or it can be a draw (tie). Unfortunately, no one can win every game, so it’s important to learn how to accept losing. This isn’t easy for grown-ups, either, so practicing how to get over disappointment and learn from it is something that will help our kids in the future when they strike out in baseball, drop a pass in football, get a low grade on a math test, when they apply for colleges, or face challenges at the job, among countless other situations that life will throw at them. One of my mantras that I tell my students is, “It doesn’t matter if you fail at something, what matters is how you react to it.” This means that mistakes are going to happen, and that’s OK, but we want to try to learn from our mistakes. This is a big lesson that chess can help teach us about life.

The flip side of dealing with losing is, of course, winning. It’s just as important to learn how to win graciously. No one likes to lose, and it’s even harder if the other person rubs it in or makes the other person feel worse. I have had countless students who start cheering when they capture their opponent’s piece, but I remind them how they felt when the same thing happened to them a few minutes earlier. This is a good way to teach empathy, because the kids can put themselves in the position of their opponent or remember how they felt when they lost the previous game.

When I tell people that I play chess, the first question is almost always, How many moves ahead can you see? I usually just respond with oh, I don’t know. I say this not to be coy, but because it depends on a lot of factors. There are dozens and dozens of possible moves at every moment of a chess game, but we can reduce this number by using logic and understanding consequences. This is another great lesson that children can learn from playing. While I could trade my queen for a pawn (this is usually a bad idea, since the queen is more valuable), I need to understand that this won’t help me win the game. If a child can begin to understand what will happen after a move, they are becoming more aware as rational little people. My daughter could put her dirty dish under her bed, but it would be much more helpful if she put it in the dishwasher.

Along those lines, chess teaches us that our actions have consequences, both positive and negative. If we move a piece, then maybe it gets captured or maybe we can take our opponent’s piece. One aspect of chess that I enjoy is that everything is out in the open—that is, all the pieces are on the board and our opponent sees the same things we do. This is different from card games or other board games where some information is hidden. The position on the chess board helps kids learn to make the best decision possible based on the information available, but also be willing to adjust their views later, based on how things change over the course of the game. This helps kids learn how to make logical decisions and also not be locked into one view or choice depending on the situation. A bad move now might be a good move later in the game, just like having ice cream for breakfast probably isn’t a healthy choice, but having it after a balanced dinner can be a nice treat.

Chess has taught me all of these life lessons and more. It is easy to get caught up in winning and losing and the competition, but sometimes I have to remind myself and my students that it is just a game. So, pull your chess set out of the closet and show your child how to play. You both might practice some valuable life skills. But at the very least, you will have some good bonding time without looking at a screen.

If you’re interested in learning more, go to Santa Fe Chess on Facebook for local events and classes. Check with your local school for their chess clubs, and you can also email me at bdlanger@gmail.com.

Brad Langer is a local parent of two and runs the chess club at Turquoise Trail Charter School.