Rook, Rattle & Roll: Engaging Minds, Building Futures
Rook, Rattle & Roll is our cornerstone program, designed to bring the transformative power of chess to youth across Chicago at no cost to their families.
Rook, Rattle & Roll establishes vibrant chess clubs in schools and community centers, offering students from lower-income backgrounds a safe, engaging environment to develop their skills.
Participants not only learn the fundamentals of chess but also enhance critical thinking, problem-solving, and social-emotional skills that extend far beyond the chessboard.
From September to May, we introduce chess as an engaging and inclusive tool to:
Enhance students' critical thinking, focus, and strategic decision-making skills.
Provide a safe, supportive environment that promotes social-emotional learning.
Cultivate academic ambition and leadership qualities among participants.
Over the course of the program, our instructors teach chess through the lens of youth development. Focusing on the basics, each student will be able to achieve—at a minimum—the following:
Understand each chess piece, its strengths and weaknesses, and its value.
Analyze chess positions to understand advantages and disadvantages.
Implement basic tactics to gain advantages during a game.
Evaluate the three different stages of a chess game.
Play a game of chess to completion, understanding the different ways that chess games are settled.
Our chess curriculum also includes opportunities for our instructor to lead discussions focused on the following social-emotional development areas (based on CASEL’s social-emotional learning framework):
Identifying one’s emotions, growth mindsets, and developing interests and purpose.
Setting personal and collective goals and identifying and using stress-management techniques.
Recognizing strengths in others.
Recognizing how critical thinking skills are useful both in and out of school.
Practicing teamwork and collaborative problem-solving and developing positive relationships.
INTRODUCING SUSTAINABLE CHESS PROGRAMS TO YOUR SCHOOL
We know that chess teaches important life skills and we want to give that opportunity to thousands of children living in Chicago. Many schools have an interest in chess, but don’t have the money, equipment or expertise to start a sustainable program. Our Rook, Rattle, & Roll (RRR) program assists schools with the necessary tools to start a chess program.
Are you interested in bringing chess to your school? Send us your interest using the form below and we will respond with the official RRR application.