It’s fun, fun, fun in Teaneck this week as the first horde of eager chess players descended on
ICA’s summer camp. All eyes went wide as the staff taught them to play the ominously named
(but quite safe) Circle of Doom. Then it was back to the ICA building to begin the day’s chess
lessons. This is the ICA approach to chess camp. Lots of fun, laughter, and exercise, but also
lots of learning and growth. Balance in all things.
Mornings at the school focus on physical exercise and chess lessons. On the exercise front,
Ethan S was our Circle of Doom champion. His enthusiasm and dexterity made him an
incredibly difficult target.
We also crowned three “sports champions” roughly based on age and size. This award is
based not only on doing well at Circle of Doom, but also enthusiasm and skill at our late
morning exercise session. Cristiano won the oldest sports group. Rudy won the middle group,
and Elan won the youngest group.
Back in the classroom, each coach identified their “best student” this week based on desire to
learn, participation, improvement, sportsmanship, and behavior. Ethan’s award went to Rudy.
Slava’s award went to Ethan S and Leah. Sophie chose Lucas as her winner, and Yaakov picked
Anya.
In the afternoon everyone played in a tournament. Students were split into two groups. The
older and more advanced students played in a rated tournament designed to replicate the
formality of a larger event. The younger and newer students played in an unrated tournament
designed to help them learn the basics of tournament play such as writing notation; etiquette,
sportsmanship, and behavior, problem solving, use of the chess clock, and more. This week’s
tournament winners were Josh and Cristiano (rated section) and Leonard and Elan (unrated
section).
Our art teacher, Larisa, awarded Maya and Ethan W our Artist awards for constant and
enthusiastic participation in our art program. Our Bughouse tournament winners were the
team of Jacob and Leonard. Michael and Elan were the runners-up. The Best Notation award
was awarded to Cristiano.
All in all, the week was a ton of fun. We’re glad everyone was a part of the fun, and we hope
to see all of you again in the future.
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