Last year KidsHubs News featured a story on the SOM (Sports Outreach Ministries) Chess Academies run by Robert Katende in Uganda and Kenya. He along with some of his team of talented chess students, were featured in a Disney movie called “Queen of Katwe”.
Robert and his team of dedicated young students run ministry programs serving vulnerable individuals in nineteen of Uganda’s poorest communities; four in the Mukuru slums in Kenya and in thirteen Kenyan schools. Robert said “we use Chess as a vehicle to restore hope and transform lives.”Using Chess as a platform for relationship building, they serve the communities in other ways such as feeding, training, education and public health. At the centre of each of these activities is evangelism and discipleship. Robert states, “Chess helps to create a friendly environment and enables us to teach life skills by integrating chess concepts into lifestyle. So as individuals learn to play chess, they are empowered to even play the big chess board of life. The Academy’s motto is Transforming lives through Chess One Move at Time.”
Now some of these Chess lessons have been written down to share. Newly created by 13 ‘Pioneer’ leaders from Robert’s Chess Academy, they are hopeful people will download the lessons and try them out with their own groups. Global Children’s Forum (GCF) partner said “we’ve uploaded them on the KidsHubs website and are keen for people to use the lessons and give their feedback.”
Click here for 10 Beginner Lessons and 8 Intermediate Lessons
There’s also a video demonstration of The Rook Beginner Lesson 4.