So when ChessKid surveyed 1,064 U.S. parents of kids ages 5-15 heading into the 2026–27 school year, we expected some version of that list to come back on top. It didn't.
55% of parents say their own child is less resilient than they were at that age, and 46% think schools underprioritize handling frustration and failure. This was the single biggest skill gap parents named, ahead of anything academic.
It's tangled up with focus, too. 28% of parents say their #1 concern is whether their kid can stay focused in class, more than falling behind academically and test anxiety combined. Can a kid sit with something hard like a tough assignment or a tough loss, long enough to work through it? Right now, a lot of parents aren't sure.
We've got the full data, and we want to talk through what to actually do with it, live, with parents and educators.
Strategies for Teaching Kids to Lose Well
📅Tuesday, September 29
🕓 4:30 PM PT / 7:30 PM ET
We'll walk through the survey findings and hear how parents and teachers are seeing the same resilience and focus gaps play out at home and in the classroom. You'll leave with a one-page Resilience Plan featuring three strategies you can start using that same night. Bring your own experience and your questions. This one's a discussion, not a lecture.