THOUGHTS OF A CHESS ADDICT

As more and more schoolchildren get interested in the game of chess, parents are naturally intrigued why their young'uns are taken to the standing pieces on top of black and white squares. Most parents do not know the game and are helpless when answering questions about chess from their kids.Hence they are unable to tell what is required for a child to play the 16 pieces. Many thought that learning the rules of chess will do. It's just plain madness, I tell you. Wonder if you should let your children turn the ignition of your car?? So here's where a good trainer can help, in my humble opinion. A newbie is one who admires how the pieces are shaped and stacked and not how they move. For them, chess trainers have to make them learn the moves of the pieces and get them to enjoy it too. Then its time for them to know how to switch the King and Rook around (castling), check the King, tell the difference between CHECKmate and STALEmate. That took a lot of time in my last student...

If you are reading this for the first time, welcome. I am John Wong, a chess enthusiast for 34 years. I started teaching the game when I was 18 and turned chess trainer since 2003 when I was retrenched. It has been a good 6 years, where I have been receiving students of all ages ( from 6 to 60) and temperaments. During my 34 years of involvement in chess, I was once active in organising chess, having been involved with running chess tournaments, being in several positions in the Singapore Chess Federation during 1987-1998 and a brief return in 2003-4. My involvement in the National Junior Training Team in 1987 taught me valuable lessons when working with talented chess juniors then. As for journalism, I was also active then in the publishing of the Singapore Chess Digest back in 1986-87. I also wrote several articles for the SCF, the last being the obituary of Prof Lim Kok Ann who was a mentor and elder. As for chess, I do think I am widely read, having 400 or more chess books in my li...