Members of the Curley After-School Program (CASP) Chess Club visited the Manning School last Friday. Below is a short travelogue by Curley parent, CASP board member and resident chess coach Dominic Burdick, accompanied by some great photos taken by Curley parent Celia Kirwan.

The CASP Chess Club had its first outing on Friday 1st June when it visited The Manning School to play a team from the Manning Before and After School Program (MBASP). The MBASP team had children from 1st to 5th grade while CASP covers 1st to 6th grades. The tournament was intended to be all fun and it sure was. Our kids have been preparing for this for several weeks now spending time developing good sporting practices, reviewing openings and strategies and of course the all important techniques to checkmate.

We set off in great weather travelling from the Curley in a small flotilla of cars with chaperones Dominic Burdick, Kalamu Kieta, BJ Ray along with the CASP program director Torri Canada. The kids were excited and suitably noisy as we wound though the slow Friday afternoon traffic finally arriving at The Manning where the children were greeted with a wonderful play area. Of course that had to be explored with more shrieks and hollering. Match time came at 5 p.m. and we all went inside to play. The cafeteria had been laid out splendidly with 12 sets setup on long tables. The grown-ups had to quickly work out the procedure as it was a first for them. We would try to match up kids by grade, they would play without clocks, and we would see how it worked out.

L to R - Manning chess tutor Christine Young, MBASP Program Director Vavisa Brown, CASP chess tutor and Curley parent Dominic Burdick, CASP Program Director Torri Canada, and Manning Principal Ethan D’Ablemont-Burnes

After a brief introduction to the proceedings the children set about finding suitable competitors and introduced themselves. Then the games started and an intense hush descended over the cafeteria as 24 players actively figured out what their next move was. You could have heard a pin drop if it was not for the grownups and their whispered discussions. It was amazing. Then suddenly there was a call of “check”, followed shortly by another, and then another. Some matches were fun to watch as the game see-sawed from one side dominating to another. No game was certain. Some games also meandered as it can be hard to figure out how to checkmate when you do not have the all powerful queen to hand. All played so well and with such a wonderful decorum. Break time finally came and pizza and drinks were offered to everyone attending. Some of the kids went back outside to the play area; others wanted to have another chess game.

For those of you interested in any score – none was taken. The spirit behind this trip was to have fun and that was what happened. Of course both sides had their wins and losses, but happily there were no tears. Some were eager to talk about their games afterwards and one or two learnt never to give up.

Thanks to The Real Deal, Bertucci’s, Checkmate cafe, A & N pizza for donating well enjoyed food. Also, thanks to MBASP program director Vavisa Brown, chess tutor Christine Young, and Principal Ethan D’Ablemont-Burnes for being such great hosts.

— Dominic Burdick