Looking at the top 100 chess players in the world, there is no female player; while for the top 100 players in the US, there are only 1 woman. Women in chess have always been significantly less than men, and here at the New Jersey All Girls Chess Camp, volunteers inspire young future female chess players in hopes of exposing them to the game or helping to retain their interest in it.
The annual event started in 2014 in NJ, and later spread to other states, such as NY and VA. Every year, around 50 girls aged from 5 to 16 participate in this one-day program, learning and playing chess.
After 2 years without camp due to the pandemic, the 2022 camp was held on December 4th at West Windsor, NJ. Due to the space limitation, 38 girls from entire NJ joined this year’s camp.
The students were divided into 3 groups: Group A has a USCF (US Chess Federation) rating; Group B knows how to play and Group C is for the beginners. The Greater Princeton Branch of AYLUS (GPA) member Sarah Yan is the instructor of Group C. The students learned about the name of pieces, the point value, how to set up a chess board, and how pieces move in the first 2 sessions. After the lunch break, the students were taught the 3 ways to get out of check as well as simple checkmate in 1 puzzle. Everyone had lots of fun making new friends and learning how to play the amazing game of chess.
GPA Volunteers: Sarah Yan (12/4, 8 hrs), Nancy Liu (12/4, 8 hrs), and more.
