10 Years with Coach David!

A short story about Dave: we do a mid-year training for our coaches to talk about how the year is going and share ideas and best practices.  In January 2015, another coach said they were having trouble getting a student excited about chess, and Dave answered in such an enthusiastic, empathetic, and thorough way that his answer essentially became our default way to answer that question.

Dave said that there are so many reasons to love chess.  Some children like the puzzle elements.  Some like the competitiveness of the game.  Some like the social element, and how it’s a great way to spend some time with a friend.  Every child is different, but there are so many ways into chess that there should be a way in for every child.  You just need to meet the child where they are and find the right angle for them.

Over the last ten years, Dave has worked with thousands and thousands of students.  Some classes have been close enough to him in Anne Arundel County that he rode his bike to the schools, while others were in Howard County or Baltimore, and still others he taught online to students from all over the country.

Dave is dedicated to growing chess.  In addition to his work with us, he’s helped Maryland Chess and US Chess run tournaments like State and Nationals.

What have parents said about classes and camps with Dave over the years?

• My son loved this camp, and has even said it was his favorite camp week he's ever attended. (camp at Glenelg Country School)
• The games were fun and I learned so much! (online class)
• My son had a great time! (camp at Glenelg Country School)
• The class was fun with learning games and puzzles. I liked how we focused on openings. It might help me find an opening that's comfortable for my style. (online class)
• It was the best camp, he got a t-shirt and a chess set. He came home happy and wanting to play constantly. (camp at Glenelg Country School)
• He’s great. Ryan loves his classes. Thank you Coach Dave! (online class)
• My son loves attending. Thanks for offering this at CES! (club at Central ES)
• Everyone participated and Coach Dave is a really nice teacher. (online class)
• (My son)loves learning and playing, he's made friends across the grades and he's improved his playing abilities as well. (club at Atholton ES)
• My son loves (Coach Dave) - he is his favorite! (online class)
• ...my son loved everything! He looked forward to class every Monday, and always came home ready to teach me something new! I love the confidence it gave him in playing chess, and he’s already ready to start another session! (club at Atholton ES)
• Thank you, Coach Dave. I learned about a chess game played by a world champion. (online class)
• …my daughter loves it. (club at Pointers Run ES)
• Coach David was awesome, he taught me another endgame! (online class)
• Nothing went wrong. Everything went right. I learned how to force a Bishop and Knight Checkmate. Thank you, Coach Dave! (online class)
• We love the classes and appreciated the efforts (Coach David) put in for our children. (club at Crofton Meadows ES)
• My child says she enjoyed learning and play new chess variants. (And I could overhear she was having fun with the instructor and other students) (online class)
• (My son) loved learning about all the different gambits, and he enjoyed playing in the tournaments each day. (online class)