This growth is in line with a trend that began almost a decade ago. Since 1990, youth and scholastic memberships have grown from about 5000 members to almost 43000 members. More and more, parents and kids are turning to chess as a fun and rewarding extracurricular activity. Chess is uniquely different from other sports and hobbies that kids can choose to participate in outside of the classroom.
Players learn to boost their planning and logic skills.
It is a sport that not only builds confidence but often enhances a child's thinking and decision-making skills, as well. Studies show that a student who takes up chess generally shows a marked improvement in academic performance. Parents may choose chess over other options because very few children come home with bruises or broken bones after an evening at the chess club, and an hour of chess practice each night is much quieter than, say, drum practice. All jocularity aside, chess has become a very popular option to kids across the nation. Children seem to have a capacity to quickly grasp chess.