Ms. Gonzalez teaches at Mott Hall, which serves exceptionally gifted students.

But a child who attends Mott Hall is required to take at least one semester of chess.

Mott Hall will almost certainly attract the private financing it needs to bring its chess curriculum back to full strength.

Mott Hall has the largest number of children reading at or above grade level of any middle school in New York City.

But Mott Hall, in Harlem, is timeworn and frightfully small.

Mott Hall searches its neighboring schools for children who don't just test well but are persistent and aggressive learners.

After a decade of sending children to Mott Hall, the teachers have learned what to look for.

Still, graduates went on to strong high schools like Beacon, Mott Hall and the Museum School.

After six rounds of play, Mott Hall had tied with a middle school from Kentucky for first place.

And the faculty at Mott Hall seem to recognize that.