By 
As the month of April nears its completion I can’t help but think back to a year ago. This time last year was around the same time I brought out Chester (the family chessboard) and introduced the game of chess to LaPharaoh. It has been an amazing journey thus far and I know that we’re just getting started.
Hannah and I are always searching for new ways to inspire and challenge LaPharaoh (and all of the boys for that matter). We see great value in STEM related activities (Science Technology Engineering and Math) and we’re always on the lookout for opportunities to raise the bar and level up.
The latest addition to our educational armory is a nifty little brain game called “Solitaire Chess”. Solitaire Chess is advertised as a brain fitness and strategic skill building game.
Solitaire Chess is meant for single players, but a little helping hand (or mind in this case) goes a long way. The game is comprised of a small booklet of 80 challenges at four (4) progressive levels of play (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Expert)
10 chess pieces are included in the game: 2 pawns, 2 knights, 2 bishops, 2 rooks, a queen and a king. Depending on the difficulty level, a combination of the aforementioned pieces are arranged on their respective squares on a 4X4 checkered board.
The premise of the game is to capture all the pieces on the board. However there is a catch. Each piece can only move in the manner to which it is accustomed to moving in the traditional game of chess. Oh, and there’s another catch, each move MUST result in the capturing of a piece.
So you set the board up, capture and eliminate a piece with every move, and when one piece remains you win the game and move on to the next challenge! Simple enough right?
Solitaire Chess is said to strengthen memory, sharpen focus, speed up thinking and reduce stress. Sounds good although I think it may actually be more stressing when your 7 year old son is clearly better than you are lol.
Solitaire Chess was a good investment and well worth the Amazon purchase. The game’s manufacturer Thinkfun has some other interesting games as well that we plan on checking out in the future.
Currently LaPharaoh is breezing through the game and has completed 55 of 80 challenges. When he finishes all 80 challenges he will be rewarded with the first bitcoins ($100 worth) that he will have full autonomy over so he’s all excited about that.
We absolutely love Bitcoin and we believe (for good reason) that it will be a masterful tool for liberation to a great deal of people the world over. If you are unfamiliar with Bitcoin or not exactly sure what it is Our Trippy Tribe has published two blogs (here and here) that may be of help.
Until next time
Be Well!
What do you think?