ROCKINGHAM — Students at L.J. Bell Elementary have spent the past several months learning all the moves — on a chess board.
Robert Colf, the school’s detention teacher, said he started playing chess around the age of 5 and taught his own children when they were around the same age.
“We play chess all the time at the house,” he said. “Robert (one of his sons) brought a chess board in when he was in second grade and beat all of his teachers.”
Colf said his other son, Sterling, did the same thing in the first grade.
That’s when Colf said he and second-grade teacher Jodi Harding started the conversation about forming a chess club at the school.
“She saw how articulate Robert and Sterling both were when they were playing chess,” Colf said. “It’s not a tablet, it gets the kids engaged with other kids, it builds camaraderie, it builds relationships, and it helps the child to think.
“When you make a mistake on a chess board, when you make the wrong move, there’s consequences,” he continued. “So, in life, there’s consequences when you make the wrong move or make the wrong decision. And I wanted to instill in the kids that chess is a lot like life: you have to look for a good move or look for a good …opportunity and then look for a better one.
“If you see a good move, look for a better one, because there’s always something better.”
Colf and Harding took the idea to principal Meredith Norwood, who gave it the go-ahead.
The first meeting was Oct. 3, 2024 and Colf said there was a lot of interest throughout the school.
The club started with about 20 students and doubled in size after Christmas, Colf said, adding that there are currently more than 20 on a waiting list. However, there isn’t enough staff to help coordinate a club with 60 kids.
Colf said the club is open to students in grades 2-5.
“We thought second grade would be old enough and mature enough to be able to learn the game of chess,” said Colf.
Colf said he hopes the idea for a chess club spreads throughout the school district.
In addition to the chess boards the students use in the cafeteria, there is now a larger board outside.
One afternoon, Colf said he commented to Harding “that we should get a large board for all the kids to be able to play during recess, not just the Chess Club members.”
Colf said he went to Lowe’s, which donated some of the materials and gave a discount for the rest, which he paid for.
Other sponsors of the club include the Food Lion stores in Rockingham and Hamlet, Dunkin Donuts and Richmond County Commissioner Jame Gathings.
“I was a kid once and it didn’t turn out good for me,” Gathings said, “...so I like to help any kids to keep them on the right track …anything that helps kids stay out of trouble, that’s all I want to see.”
Gathings, who learned to play chess in prison, echoed Colf’s statement about the game being like life.
“Every move you make, it could be either good or it could be bad,” Gathings said, “so you have to strategize and think about what moves you make and make sure you’re making the right ones in life.”
