“The way one plays chess always reflects the player’s personality. If something defines his character, then it will also define his way of playing”. The words of Vladimir Kramnik, the Russian chess grandmaster, eloquently sum up the impact of cognitive training. A strategic game like chess not only mirrors the child’s personality but the 'moves' give a peek into the child’s innate character.
Coding – the language of logics
Coding is hailed as the new literacy, the language of Generation X. In coding thoughts are communicated in a structured and logical way. In a ‘programmed’ world that survives on virtual realities, coding will be the new curriculum that equips our children for the digital horizons. Coding is logics transformed into a language, or in a nutshell, it is telling a computer what to do and get it done your way!
De-coding the game
Coding is a step-by-step approach with a logical beginning, progression and end, much like the middle and end games in chess. This sequential process of setting up the scenario is similar to the chess game where the player builds his basic pawn structure. In the middle game the focus is more on strategy and tactics where the player is faced with lot many options and much more uncertainties. Familiarity with the logical assessing and precision of execution in coding can help a lot in responding to the critical transitions from the middle level to the ending in a chess game.
Both Chess and coding works in the uniform structure of creating logic and movement sequences. The spontaneity of determining a particular code or its feasibility and re-working it to create winning variations is something that a chess player can learn and apply in his or her game. This practised awareness helps the player to recognize patterns and assess the moves, very much in the line of coding. Skills like thinking under pressure, concentration, logical reasoning, and precise calculations carves a better player out of coding.
Chess and cognitive thinking
As Anatoly Karpov once remarked, ‘Chess is everything: arts, science and math’. The game can simulate a battlefield in your mind, assessing situations and churning out options and calculating strategies in everyday life. It stimulates thinking, processing and communicating. The game chisels out the child’s creativity, builds confidence, and develops thinking up and problem solving skills in a child. Chess brings in progressive changes in academics and behavioural patterns as well. It enhances and develops other viable skill sets like breaking down complex solutions for better management, learning by doing, observing and recognizing the opponent’s moves, thinking conditionally etc.
Chess works up your child’s creative cells, encouraging them to imagine and explore. It reforms the mindset of your kids, ingraining into their thought process, virtues like persistence, patience, determination, consistency, and focus. The young players not only excels in mind games, but also learn to confront everyday life with better courage and motivation, learn to handle criticism and failures, identify and fix errors, and develop innovative and communication skills.