How To Start A Chess Club, Part 2

 

In my first article, you learned a little bit about me and my chess club.  In this article, I will look at the following topics:

• How do I begin?
• Different ways to meet in a school setting?
• How often should I have chess club?

How do I begin?  

In a school setting, the first thing to do is to get the permission of your principal and advertise the club. When I began our club, I started by involving the members of our JROTC program. I also found kids who weren't involved with other activities and asked them if they wanted to be part of a new chess club.  

You can advertise with posters for the hallways, and by making daily announcements on the intercom, the school website, and the school newspaper.  

 

Different ways to meet in a school setting:  

One particular method that I have used is to set up shop in the cafeteria during lunchtime.

On "Chess Fridays," I set up chess boards at certain cafeteria tables, and the students can play games while they eat lunch. This naturally draws interest from other students who sometimes end up joining because they see my kids really enjoying their chess games.  

Inevitably, this draws students who say: "I bet I can beat you." I have a blitz clock on the table, and I will challenge them to show their skills. This has led to a lot of students joining chess over the years.

I would also suggest, if you are a teacher, asking your principal if he would allow a chess elective or enrichment time. I have done this at my middle school.  

I have a first-period chess enrichment class. This allows students who are in athletics or other programs after school to participate in chess and still do other activities that are important to them.

Some schools in Aldine have chess as a set time during their math classes (mostly in elementary schools). One school in Aldine has chess meet in the library during lunches certain days of the week, and the kids practice then. This is good because the after-school commitment is not burdensome for the adults involved.

How often should I meet?  

I think that this depends upon the goals of your club. If the focus of your club is to provide a social outlet for students, once a week is good. If your students are going to compete in rated tournaments, I would suggest at least twice a week.

In my case, I have about 25 students for my first-period enrichment class every day. This class is designed to target G/T and accelerated learners. I also hold chess club Mondays-Thursday after school for about one hour each day.  

On Mondays, I only allow my advanced players to stay. I have a friend who has retired from teaching who was a coach for 25 years. He volunteers his time once a week to help these students. They focus on lessons designed specifically for the advanced player.  

On Tuesdays-Thursday, all students can stay. I do have some overlap from my morning class, but I also have students who only come in the afternoon that I don't see in the morning.

In my next article, I will talk about how I incorporate ChessKid.com into my lessons.