As an educator, I have found chess to be an invaluable teaching tool. It is a fairly simple game to teach
( I have students play just with pawns and add the other pieces ). Most students readily recognize the
game. It is played all over the world and for thousands of years. It has a body of literature and highly
visible support groups and enthusiasts. ( In fact, it is possible to obtain free chess sets! ) There are
always volunteers ready to come down and play simuls or give lessons to the students. Various school
districts and universities have established chess programs ( like Reno's "Push Pawns Not Drugs" ).
Countless studies have proven its educational value in areas from reading to mathematics! I have seen children
who wouldn't sit still for two seconds puzzle minutes over a series of exchanges.
For several years, I hosted a very successful chess club. PCS also hosted one of the largest scholastic
tournaments in the state! So I cannot say enough about incorporating chess in the class curriculum!
Popular chess schools and "universities" charge oodles of money to teach the game! Why not use
LEGO® bricks as a tool to that end!
I mix LEGO® bricks and chess together by allowing students the time to be creative and design the chess
board. ( LEGO® lends itself to this..while jade chess pieces might be nifty, it's hard to work
with quantities of jade in the classroom! ) This involves a discussion of how the board is situated ( 64 squares, 32 lighter and
32 darker with a lighter square located at the bottom right ). It is also a good time to allow students to
"physicalize" the pieces...for example, students who previously may have not wholly understood
what a bishop was grasp the character of the piece clearly after building it! Building chess
out of LEGO® bricks is also a good team building activity! Challenge your students to build the "best" chess
set...
To be honest, playing chess on a LEGO® board does not work in most cases. It is a dynamic game
and the studs interfere with moves. If the pieces are too ornate, they tend to fall apart during play.
It is possible to build a non sticking set with flats and keep the pieces simple.
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