Since many of your middle and high school chess club members may also be members of Scouts BSA, helping them earn the chess merit badge would be a great way to combine two of their favorite activities.
All of the requirements for the chess merit badge (which are described in the chess merit badge pamphlet) are topics you would naturally cover in chess club meetings, so it would be easy to help your club members earn this extra recognition.
You can also leverage additional online resources like the following:
- ChessKid chess merit badge guide: This series of ten articles is designed for scout leaders and parents who want to help scouts achieve the merit badge and enjoy the game of chess. They were written by Jerry Nash, a national chess education consultant who served on the committee which developed the content for the chess merit badge pamphlet.
- St. Louis Chess Club online chess merit badge camp: This free, online camp is held several times a year. The St. Louis Chess Club has been holding chess merit badge workshops since the chess merit badge was introduced in 2011. When the Boy Scouts of America changed their name in 2019 to Scouts BSA and allowed girls to join, the St. Louis Chess club was also the the first to offer a workshop specifically for girls.
- ScoutSmarts chess merit badge guide: This guide was written by an Eagle scout to help more scouts earn the chess merit badge.
If you would like, you could also become an official merit badge counselor for the chess merit badge by contacting your local Scouts BSA Council and completing the steps described in the Guide to Merit Badge Counseling.
Indermaur Chess Foundation 