A DIFFERENT SORT OF TEACHER

I think you could safely say that I am a chess teacher like no other. A chess teacher with a passionate interest in children as individuals and in all aspects of education and childhood studies.

In recent years chess has become almost a secondary interest for me. I have had a lifelong interest in child psychology and when, in the mid 1990s, I started working with younger children on an individual basis that interest diversified into a study of children's cognitive development. You can find out more about how this relates to chess on my Articles page.

Since 2002 I've been teaching chess at Hampton Court House. Spending two or three days a week at the school enabled me to get to know children as people, not just as chess players. At this point, inspired also by several children at Richmond Junior Chess Club, I became interested in the whole concept of neurodiversity. This incorporates various differences (and I would very specifically consider them differences rather than disorders or disabilities) based on how the brain is wired. These differences may affect learning, behaviour or communication skills, motor skills and sensory input, and would include, amongst others, dyslexia, ADHD and Asperger Syndrome. It soon became clear that there were children at school who found it helpful to have a sympathetic teacher around when they had a problem, and, truth to tell, spending time with them also helped me come to terms with my own childhood. So I arranged to spend five days a week at school and asked if there was anything else I could do while I was there. As a result of this, I found myself helping to develop and deliver a course in reasoning and logic for children between Y3 and Y6.

At present I have a particular interest in working with shy and nervous children, with children with Asperger Syndrome and with children who, while not meriting a diagonsis, display autistic traits. And this interest is something very personal for me. From a combination of childhood memories, online testing and extensive research, I have no doubt that the boy I was some fifty years ago would today be given a diagnosis on the autistic spectrum. But ultimately, children need understanding rather than labelling, and that is something I hope I can provide for every child I teach.