NM Dan Heisman -  Great!  Chess is good for them (and you!).  Thanks for contacting me!  My first thought is to tell you to take him (or "her" - lots of girls play chess!) to a chess tournament - that is where most kids meet and play! Other things to consider are 1) taking a chess lesson or two from me to evaluate how they are doing and to help them learn the commonly misunderstood rules: draws, promotion, en passant, etc. and 2) joining a chess club, [see also FAQ Page 2].  If he is willing to do some "chess work" to get better, then I would love to give him ongoing private lessons. I am proud to have many outstanding young students and am always glad to have more, even though right now I am very popular!

Parent - What are the main ways chess is beneficial to students?

NM Dan Heisman - Many studies have all shown that chess improves grades and standardized test scores.  And chess helps in other ways, like socialization skills, dealing with successes and failures, etc. (Two books on the subject are my A Parent's Guide to Chess and GM Maurice Ashley's Chess for Success).  Like music and sports, chess has direct rewards.  My son, who was by no means one of the top players in the country for his age, was offered a full chess scholarship, worth over $100,000, to the University of Texas, Dallas campus (he turned it down to go to Carnegie Mellon...)! Locally, I met with Haverford College's Admissions Department and they expressed serious interest in attracting more chess players.

Parent - I thought that tournaments are for advanced players.  He is not that advanced.

NM Dan Heisman - If I substitute the word "festival" for "tournament", most parents find that much more attractive! Come and join the fun! So long as your child is well-behaved, can play quietly, and knows how to move the pieces (can castle correctly, doesn't make many illegal moves, knows he can get a 2nd Queen when promoting a pawn), then he is advanced enough!  Tournaments are the number one place where students who like to play chess meet other students with the same interest. You don’t have to be good; you just have to enjoy chess and mature enough to follow tournament rules, and be able to sit quietly and play by yourself.  

When I was growing up I didn't know about tournaments - I found out about them almost by accident; I would have loved to have played in them much sooner than I did.  My son started in 2nd grade, loved his first one, and played in scholastic tournament until he graduated high school.  One of my major goals as the SE PA Scholastic Chess Coordinator is to make sure everyone knows about this wonderful opportunity. It is the single biggest misconception of parents that their child has to be a "good" player to play in tournaments.  It is like saying that their child has to be "good" at baseball to play in Little League!  One common complaint I hear from students who are are looking for other players is "I am not good enough to play in tournaments" - yet everyone has to start somewhere and most of the other potential players are just like the ones who say they are not good enough - only a small percentage of students who play in tournaments are "really good."

National Master Jerry Meyers, who runs a large scholastic chess program in Pittsburgh, writes, "If your child can play a full game without help and carry out simple checkmates, they can play in a tournament.  I firmly believe chess is good for kids.  It focuses them, helps with their problem-solving and critical thinking skills, and even helps teach some lessons about being better winners and more gracious losers.  If your child has never tried a tournament before, why not discuss it with them.  Chess will give them a chance to exercise their brain, and our tournament will provide a positive  atmosphere.  Our message to your kids will be "Win or lose, if you do your best, You are a Winner!"

Parent - But if he loses, won’t he be eliminated and discouraged?

NM Dan Heisman - Chess tournaments do not eliminate players.  This is another common misconception.  Tournaments use the swiss system, where you always play someone who is doing as well as you are.  So if your son loses his first two games, he is paired against someone who lost their first two games. After a round or two your son will usually find his level of competition.  (A full explanation of tournaments can be found at the US Chess Federations' web site)  Losing is common when you first start playing chess.  There is a lot one can learn from losses.  I want all my students to try their best and we are all happy for them when they win (which they should always try to do!), but at most only one player can win each game.  Because tournaments are swiss system, you can play and miss (take a "bye") as many rounds as you wish so long as you tell the Tournament Director as soon as possible what rounds you won't be there - and remind him whenever you leave and come back.

Parent - Does our son have to commit to play in lots of these tournaments?

NM Dan Heisman - Whatever time you can take to help your student enjoy this educational activity is great!  You can play in one a year or one almost every week, depending upon your schedule. Chess is no different than many spectator events like kid's sports, except that at a championship scholastic tournament (most are not championship) we keep the parents out of the tournament room (they affect the play too much), like they did in the great, true-life, scholastic chess movie Searching for Bobby Fischer!  It is a good idea that if you are encouraging your child to work on something that is good for them, then you should also encourage them to participate with other students who have the same interest.

Parent - Sometimes our time is limited. What would you recommend?

NM Dan Heisman - There are enough chess tournaments that if you miss one, there are plenty more!  I often either carpool the students who live close by back and forth, or work with the parents to take turns with transportation.  Local scholastic tournaments usually start in the morning (registration ending about 9:30 AM) and have four or five rounds, which last until mid/late afternoon.  Of course, for young children, tournaments are not loco parentis (no one has parental responsibility), and you or someone you designate would have to stay with them.  For older students, it might not take much of your time at all! I also recommend that you don't play just at championship events - that is kind of like starting at the top. I suggest starting with some Silver Knight events (for a club, check out PA Scholastic Chess Coordinator Steve McLaughlin and the Montgomery County Youth Chess Club), as described below, which has four sections for scholastic players of all ages and strengths.

Parent - Suppose we decide to enter a tournament, what next?

NM Dan Heisman - First thing is to read Enhancing Your Tournament Experience, especially the part on registration! For example, once you sign up with the US Chess Federation you must always used the same name for each registration: if your USCF card says your son is Jacob A. Smith, you would not sign him up as "Jake Smith". And you should bring your own equipment, since tournaments do not supply anything but scoresheets. When registering by mail, at the very least include an e-mail or phone number so that the TD can contact you to get the correct information if you forget something. If you are not sure what to do, please contact the tournament director and ask. Then just show up on time for announcements.

Parent - How often are these tournaments and what kind of tournaments are there?

NM Dan Heisman - Most tournaments are Open: both adults and students participate.  Scholastic tournaments are less frequent and are restricted to grades K-12.  Sometimes they are held in conjunction with open sections.   If you restrict yourself to only scholastic tournaments, then there are only about a dozen each year in the Philadelphia area.  On the other hand, if your child is willing to play in open tournaments, there is one almost every week in the Delaware Valley! You can register for the tournament and join the USCF at the site before the tournament starts.  Pre-registration before the day of the event is not required except at large championship events.

The upcoming tournaments are listed on my tournaments and event page.  Silver Knight tournaments at are held all around the area. Masterman HS keeps their scholastic schedule at this link. One important note about tournaments: the name of the tournament does not restrict entry!  For example, the Greater Philadelphia Scholastic Chess Championship is open to anyone grades K-12 from anywhere in the world - you do not have to be from Greater Philadelphia area - that is just the name of where it is held; Some tournaments do have prizes (or titles) for those from a certain area, but if they say "open", anyone can come and win!

All schools and students should not only consider the local Greater Philadelphia Scholastic Chess Championship in the fall, but also plan to attend the PA Scholastic Chess Championship in the late winter (the past few years in Carlisle). Usually over 500 students K-12 play! Yet most are from Pittsburgh (which is further away!) because they know this tournament is for everyone and plan on it every year. In 2003 Trimmer Elementary of York brought more students to the state elementary championship than all the Philadelphia suburbs combined, and some of those students had only been playing chess for three weeks! See if you can get your school's chess program to get active and participate, too! Check out all PA Chess Federation events here.

Parent - What about these "team" tournaments?

NM Dan Heisman - There is only one regular tournament in the Philadelphia area each year which requires that you play in a team format (in this case four players) - it is the mid-winter Eastern PA Team Championship, sometimes held at Philadelphia Community College. All other events which advertise "team" trophies are actually individually-paired events where the player does not need to be on a team to enter - in fact, most of the players are NOT part of teams. Of course, having many players from your club or school is fun, but it is not required at any of these events. For more information on team events, see Guide to Team Chess Tournaments.

Parent - How do I find out about any of these tournaments?

NM Dan Heisman - The USCF provides Tournament Life Announcements (TLA’s) at the back of their magazine, Chess Life.  The USCF’s tournament website, contains all the TLA’s printed in Chess Life, as well as weekly, updated ratings. Look under "State Listings" and "Pennsylvania or "Grand Prix"  Other ways to find tournaments are: go to my website's Tournament Page, which has smaller local scholastic events not listed at the USCF site, call me at 610-649-0750, or e-mail me to join my Philadelphia Area Scholastic Chess e-mail list (but mention which list it is because I have several!).  You can also contact your local scholastic coordinator.

Parent - What about competition? Isn’t a tournament a lot of pressure on a youngster?

NM Dan Heisman - For the most part, tournaments are friendly competition. Hopefully all the parents of my students will tell you that I primarily measure how my students are doing by how hard they are trying, not whether they win or lose.  For beginning students, if they take their time on each move then the game is a success no matter what the result (and, consistently: I think playing too fast even if they win is not to be encouraged).  Winning is just icing on the cake (although some of my students are pretty competitive) which will come more and more with time if you practice the things that are good for you. The competitive pressure should certainly be no greater than in kids sports.  I just hope all my students try their best, learn something, and have some fun doing it.  If they win, I think that’s great! - and although many do not start out with becoming a champion as a goal, nevertheless many of my students are champions!

Continue to FAQ Page 2: Clubs, Ratings, etc.

FAQ Page 3: Lessons, Books, and Software

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