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FIDE accredited academy that trains young students’ chess and an affiliate of the Zimbabwe Chess Federation
Young Chess Masters
About Us
Young Chess Masters (YCM) is FIDE accredited academy that trains young students’ chess and an affiliate of the Zimbabwe Chess Federation. Our target group is from four years, early childhood development (ECD) to twenty years Advanced Level (‘A’ Level). YCM is motivated by the sense of catching children young and equipping them with skills and knowledge on planning, strategic thinking, concentration, calculation techniques, taking responsibility for actions and developing chess talent while having serious fun. We in addition, train chess focusing on the girl child to be more active towards the sport that the world over is dominated by males.
As an academy we understand people learn differently. As such through our methodologies we also establish each player’s learning style and personality. This allows us to understand each player. In addition, aids us to train them with a deeper understanding of who we are dealing with and how to apply our methodologies to enable effective training.
Vision
To enable young Zimbabwe chess enthusiasts and players to develop a lifelong love for chess, reach their playing potential in all spheres and use chess to enrich numerous areas of their lives including education and social.
” With chess, skills keep being sharpened and developed.”
Aim
- Nurture talent and develop professional chess in Zimbabwe.
- Assist young chess lovers to play chess to the best of their aptitude.
- Create an opportunity for those with talent to compete in local, regional and international tournaments.
- Catch them young and support young players to attain titles.
- Have numerous girls in Zimbabwe play chess.
- Create enabling environments for children to have serious fun while playing chess.
Benefits of Chess
- Aids in strategizing.
- Presents the skill of planning.
- Assists in concentration, focus and determination.
- Improves calculation techniques.
- Edifies children to always think critically before acting.
- Teaches players to take responsibility for actions.
- Maths and problem-solving skills.
- Boosts self-esteem.
- A positive way to socialise.
- An alternative competitive activity to other physical sporting games.
- Teaches players that if they fail, they need to reset pieces and try again (same with life).
Academy Structure
All youngsters between the ages four (ECD B2) and twenty (‘A’ Level) willing to play chess can join the academy. We have three tier classes, beginners/development, intermediate and advanced.
Beginner’s/Development :
These are the chess first timers or have not been playing for long. Our expectation would these will be the youngest. The ages however differ but being below 10. Following our structured training we expect them to be moved into the intermediate class after completing the beginner’s syllabus.
Intermediate :
This class has players who will have completed the beginners’ course. As the name implies, they are in between with regards to mastering chess ropes in general. They compete numerous locally tournament and will be ready to participate at regional tournaments, and they do trained accordingly .
Advanced :
The highest level of the 3 tier classes. Players in this class participate in any tournament that is locally, national, regional and international. These tournaments include those organised by other countries, the African Youth Chess Championships, the African School’s Chess Championships etc. All our titled players are in this class.
Schedule
Training day
Saturday
Time
10:00 to 12:30
Venue
Standard Chartered Sports Club
Features
Academy group training
For students from age 4 to 20yrs
Personalized professional training
For students from age 4 to 20yrs
Coaching camp
For students from age 4yrs to adults
Chess in Institutions
For students from age 4yrs to adults
(Schools , Colleges, Companies & Churches)
Designing of chess awards
Chess trophies ,
Chess shields & Certificates