One of the core educational values attributed to the game of chess has to be improved concentration. Lack of concentration during a game of chess can result in loss of a chess piece or even loss of the game. Bobby Fischer, who became the youngest international chess master at the age of fifteen, lists concentration, along with memory and imagination, as the requirements to becoming a great chess player. The game of chess is never completely predictable. It is not a game of chance. Critical thinking skills come into play. Problem solving rates highly on the list of skills needed in a game of chess. Children... Read More

The current Chess World Champion (the highest honour a chess player can achieve), Magnus Carlsen said “One of the things that first motivated me to take up chess as a child was the desire to beat my elder sister” in an interview with The Telegraph. We all know that competition can get heated, whether its board games with our family, playground games with our friends in primary school, or promotions at work during our career progression. Competition can be healthy for our minds as it can provide challenge and problem solving opportunities. However, when does healthy competition turn unhealthy? Healthy... Read More

Every good parent wants what is best for their children. Regardless of our exact hopes and dreams for our children, we all wish that they’ll grow up to be happy individuals, living in security, surrounded by a strong support system of friends and family. But these simple wishes don’t always come easy, with parents working hard to ensure that their children have the best shot at success later in life. To prepare our children for the real world, a bit of tough love can be necessary. Being lenient and fun – sadly – isn’t always the answer. To truly be... Read More

“Playing” is (without a doubt) a notion that we associate with children. However, the benefits of continuing to “play” as an adult or elderly person are recognised far and wide. Whilst we may stop playing with toy cars or baby dolls as we get older, many adults still enjoy playing games: video games, board games, card games… you name it! Chess, in particular, is an excellent game to play as an adult, but it does have a bit of an undeserved negative reputation. Lots of people think of chess as overly competitive, too difficult or downright boring. At the end... Read More

Fetes are such a wonderful part of school communities and such an exciting part of the year. At Chess Mates we try to participate as much as we can in the lives and communities of our schools and we deeply care about doing what we can for the people we interact with every day. Not only this, but it offers us the opportunity to build networks and close contacts, creating our very own Chess Mates community that we can support and provide for throughout the rest of the year. We care so deeply about Chess Mates message, and breaking the... Read More

This week our amazing Sunshine Coast teacher, Amanda Marshall, posted about the unsung heroes that we interact with every day at Chess Mates. “Shout out to all the parents who struggled to get up this morning, but did it anyway, whether to keep your family safe, or to put a roof over your head and food in your bellies. Whether to get your kids to school, or make sure they feel loved and nurtured at home. You’re legends……. keep on keeping on! You’re awesome and heroes here at Chess Mates. And it is because of you we can teach your... Read More

This week the Sunshine Coast team, Leah and Amanda, launched their Facebook page. Now in over 8 schools and growing, Leah and Amanda are also branching out into other communities to aid in social-emotional development and reducing social isolation. Leah has years of experience in special education and is passionate about working with kids of all ages, and Amanda is a qualified social worker with a mission to foster risk-taking. Both believe in forward-thinking developed through play rather than generic instructions, encouraging individuality and confidence! More than ever, they wish to foster emotional resilience and cooperation to create a more... Read More

Over the past few months, we’ve been trying to become NDIS compliant and now we have been approved as a registered provider in Queensland! Chess Mates began with the idea of bringing the educational tool of chess to as many people as possible to help everyone think more strategically, become emotionally resilient and to help them create change and the NDIS is an exciting beginning to a new chapter. We are currently under the Innovative Community Participation umbrella and as such are aiming to help diminish social isolation and improve communication skills which aligns greatly with Chess Mates’ mission of changing outdated views of... Read More

Chess is such a great educational tool for your little one to start out with, and we know they’ll love it! Held at Fusion in Buderim! But we want the mums and dads to be sure too, so that’s why we’re running a free session on the Sunshine Coast. To teach your child how to play chess, the CHESS MATES way. You’re invited to come and try chess and see the results yourself. To sign up, e-mail info@chessmates.com.au

It’s a day late, on the opposite side of the globe and in another hemisphere, but happy Children and Pets Day! Just because it’s a US date of minor renown doesn’t mean it can’t be celebrated by us too. By way of celebration, let’s watch some cats failing to be acceptable photographic subjects. Our only suggestion here is a lot of blue-tac, but anyway, back to the kids. The Benefits According to the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, having a pet can help develop such kid’s skills such as: Responsibility Empathy A caring attitude Communication Children with pets are shown... Read More

We’ve found that chess has often been associated with the person who spends too much time indoors, can’t talk to people, and isn’t all that active. At Chess Mates we think this isn’t true, plenty of our students are great chess players but also active, healthy kids who have made friends from playing the game. Whilst chess may not have you jumping around building muscles here are some of the health benefits it offers. 1. Dendrites In simple terms these are brain cells that help speed up processing power and communication within the brain. 2. Both sides of the brain... Read More

We recently had our term four chess competition. It was great to see our female students out there breaking down perceptions that chess is a game for boys, in fact most of the competitors were girls and they all did fantastic. Congratulations to Ivy for winning our junior division, Max for winning our middle division and Keenan winning our Senior Division. It was a great day and the participants had a lot of fun, it was nice to see some of the kids chatting over their chess games and making new friends.

Don’t forget to sign up for our upcoming holiday programs! We’ll be having a program on the 30th of March at Bulimba Library and a program on the 7th of April at Sunnybank State High School. If you’d like more information check out the sign up form below or email us on info@chessmates.com.au   Sign up here.