A New York public school study shows chessplaying students gain in reading comprehension skills at a greater rate than non-chessplaying peers. Many parents and teachers have used chess as a tool for teaching critical thinking skills by emphasizing that learning how to solve a problem is more important than the solution. Through chess, students learn how to analyze a situation by focusing on the important factors and discarding the distractions. They learn to devise creative solutions and to put their plans into action. Chess helps to encourage patience, sharp memory, the ability to concentrate, problem-solving skills, and the understanding that certain behaviors carry certain consequences.
Chess works well with developing minds because it is self-motivating.
It is fun to play. I sincerely believe that chess play improves intelligence and academic performance. A common error for beginners is to focus too much on opening theory. Whereas, many strong players give equal study time to chess openings, middle game planning, and endings. The beginning player should focus on learning tactics after learning the rules of chess.