BY DARRELL HALEN Nick Ramalho moved a bishop on a chess board and then pressed a button on a timer. His opponent, equally quiet, studied the board for a minute and shifted one of his knights. He probably regretted the move. Nick then moved the bishop to capture the piece. Nick, 13, eventually won the game, one of many board battles of the ...

BY MATT HERSH Tommy Stift, 10, likes to spend one afternoon every week planning how he’s going to beat his friend Brad Ratay, 9, at chess. “I’m going to take his queen and then attack him with my pawns,” he said quietly as he stared at the board in front of him. The two boys were among 20 students taking part in a ...