To be like Napoleon… a chess program in our school

Our chess program is more than just playing chess as an extracurricular activity. It is a mandatory class conducted by integrated education teachers who undergo training in the royal game themselves. In our school, chess is one of the tools to support students in developing logical thinking, practicing fair-play principles, shaping cooperation skills, teaching how to deal with defeat in case of loss, building emotional resilience, and practicing concentration.

Although it is a game “as old as the world,” the benefits of practicing it remain relevant. Chess shapes imagination. Each game requires both offensive and defensive actions, forcing the player to think intensively. Planning several moves ahead, anticipating the consequences of decisions, trying to understand how the opponent thinks – all of this allows us to exercise strategic thinking, which we will consciously or unconsciously use in many situations beyond the chessboard.

Every played chess game brings many educational benefits, such as:

1. developing analytical skills,
2. building strategic plans,
3. learning prediction,
4. recognizing own mistakes and drawing constructive conclusions.