Playing Chess

Clas Olson was having a sale on a 5 game set (chess, checkers, backgammon, five man morris, and dominoes) so I bought it, and the children wanted to learn to play chess. I taught them the basic rules, and they got the hang of it, playing many games over the summer.

I never was a very good chess player, but I remember wanting to play well, because the smart kids played chess. I even joined the chess club in 5th grade. It’s a great game.

Sir Ken Robinson's RSA animation

RSA Animate – in which a skilled illustrator draws images as a presenter presents a topic – has Sir Ken Robinson explain our dominant educational paradigm and why it must change in this 11-minute video.

Every country on earth at the moment is reforming public education. The problem is, they’re trying to meet the future by doing what they did in the past. And on the way they are alienating millions of kids, who don’t see any purpose in going to school.

Sir Ken is a British university professor and an advocate for the arts, known widely for his books on creativity and human flourishing. He’s a deeply human thinker and this is one of the finest videos in the series, well worth watching!