The Sunday Mail
Caroline Ngonyamo
CHESS intelligence is a television game show which is shown on ZBC-ZTV every Monday at 1530.
This show is a children’s programme, presented by children. The participants are also schoolchildren. Children learn some skills from it. They are then asked some questions while judges give points. The judges are schoolchildren. In the end, those with high marks will be given prizes.
Episode one is tomorrow and the presenters are Matifadzaishe Mhungu (Grade 7), Malvin Chikosha (Grade 6) and Sihle Mhishi (Grade 5) while the judges are Caroline Ngonyamo (Grade 6), Siqhobile Tanyanyiwa (Grade 7) and Tanyaradzwa Mutinhima (Grade 7).
The participants are drawn from ECD (A) to Grade 2. They all learn at Umvukwes Primary School, Mazowe District (Mvurwi town).
What is chess?
Chess is a game played on a 64-square chequered board. It is played by two people known as black and white.
ECD leaners are taught the names of pieces and the Grade 2 learners are taught how to move pieces. Later on they were asked questions on what they learnt.
Benefits of chess
Chess improves the intelligence quotient (IQ), concentration, promotes team work and flexibility. As plans change in chess, this teaches the mind to be flexible.
Names of pieces
ECDs were also taught that there are six main pieces on a chess board, these are: rook, knight, bishop, king, queen and pawn.
Movement of pieces
The knight moves in an L shape, with the bishop moving in a diagonal line. A white bishop that is in white squares moves in a white diagonal line and if it is in a dark square it moves in a black diagonal line. A queen moves like all the pieces except the knight. A rook moves from bottom to top and left to right.
A pawn moves one step forward and when it is capturing another piece its moves in a diagonal manner. The last piece is called the king. This piece moves one step at a time. This step can be left, right, bottom, top and also diagonal.
Caroline Ngonyamo is a Grade 6 (Blue) pupil at Umvukwes Primary School.
