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Dr. Maria Vazquez: Checkmate, checkmate. Why chess might be the right move for you. Stay tuned.
Announcer: Welcome to Mondays with Maria, presented by Addition Financial Credit Union. Here's OCPS Superintendent, Dr. Maria Vazquez.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: Hi everyone. Jamie Holmes is here with me for a friendly chess competition.
Jamie Holmes: Friendly. Chess can literally be a game changer when it comes to academic success.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: Absolutely. Chess teaches problem solving, creative and strategic thinking, abstract reasoning, and pattern recognition skills. The list goes on and on.
Jamie Holmes: I'm not bored. Earlier this month, hundreds of students competed at a very high level in the district's annual tournament. Take a look.
Nancy Golden: We're her to play chess, right? Yes. It’s the OCPS district chess tournament. We have 72 schools from across the district and over 650 kids participating in grades K through 12. Let start.
Xavier: It's really fun. It's a fun game to play and it kind of like helps you with like social, social skills in a way. Like helps you like, make friends and play together.
James Perlmutter: Really teaches them to think ahead, to strategize, not just roll a dye and move a piece. It's really thinking about what you're doing, planning ahead. A lot of mental exercise is going on with chess.
Antonio: It does help you if you're problem solving. It's very, very fun talking to people, especially your opponent who you've probably never seen before. Also seeing people you've met at the previous one. That's also very cool.
Christopher Conniff: They love being here because they see people that they saw last year and, and make those connections. I definitely have a sense of pride when I see kids come in at, in, in my, in sixth grade, join chess club, don't know anything about chess. We sit, we practice and maybe at the end of the year or the next year, the following year, they're placing, they're getting trophies in this competition.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: So I really want to encourage our students and their families to think about getting involved in extracurricular activities. It's not too late for this year or even next year. To be thinking about what you want to get involved in, whether it's chess, chess club, or debate or some sporting activities. It is vital for students to participate and get involved in extracurricular activities.
Jamie Holmes: Of course, sports and performing arts, that's of course very popular and summer times are a great time to really plug into this.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: We know that a student that is involved in extracurricular activities is more likely to do well in their classes, be in school more often, and overall get a better well-rounded education.
Jamie Holmes: Alright, well, you ready? Round two?
Dr. Maria Vazquez: Yes. Don't be a sore loser this time.
Jamie Holmes: Okay. Well, let's see. There. There used to be like an even number of pieces here. Not so much anymore.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: Thank you all for watching. I'll see you next week On Mondays with Maria
Announcer: Mondays with Maria's presented by Addition Financial Credit Union. Count us in for every step of your financial journey. Learn more at additionfi.com. For more OCPS news and information, visit theslice.ocps.net. I'm your announcer Deivarsi Demezier, a senior at Apopka High School. Thanks for watching and have a great week.