Chess is considered a “STEM precursor” by many teaching experts, instilling skills such as logic, sequential thinking, and action-consequence sequences in kids playing the world’s most popular board game.
In a natural pairing, the Chess Institute of Canada (CIC) and CodeNinjas South Etobicoke have embarked on a partnership to ensure that youth learning coding can also benefit from everything chess has to offer.
“CodeNinjas South Etobicoke serves a large number of highly motivated, incredibly intelligent kids,” says Sapan Jot, the owner of CodeNinjas South Etobicoke. “Chess is very popular among our students. We’re happy to bring the world’s most popular board game to CodeNinjas to enhance our teaching with chess training and tournaments.”
The partnership will see CodeNinjas South Etobicoke hosting CIC instructors for alternating chess workshops and tournaments. The workshops will develop students’ chess knowledge and aptitude, while the tournaments put their knowledge and passion to the test in a friendly environment where they can challenge each other to further develop their skills.
“The Chess Development Workshop has really sparked my child’s interest in strategy and critical thinking,” said one parent after the first session. “It’s amazing to see her so engaged and excited to improve her skills!”
“Chess builds STEM skills and the kind of mindset that accelerates and improves programming skills,” says CIC Executive Director Matt Shepherd. “It’s also something that can be played offline, so kids who are taking a break from screens can keep cultivating life skills that lead directly to future skills development with family and friends in person over the board.”
A first workshop in September was a big success, covering a variety of topics from opening principles to elementary checkmates. A tournament will follow, establishing a workshop/tournament pattern that alternates monthly until June 2025.
Students who want to register for the workshops and tournaments are invited to do so via the CodeNinjas South Etobicoke website.
