Unit 390 School Bridge Program

Bridge is a challenging game, even for adults, requiring strategy and the memorization of complex rules. Stereotypically viewed as a leisurely pastime for seniors, bridge is catching on at a growing number of schools. Evidence of its academic benefits is still largely anecdotal, but many educators see teaching bridge as a way to both reinforce math and problem-solving abilities and establish and build social skills.

Myron Achtman, Unit 390 director for Youth Education, has spearheaded the “Bridge in Schools” program and it is thanks to his tireless efforts that the project got off the ground. In the fall of 2017, Myron initiated a “pilot” school bridge program at St. Jude School, in which he conducted 16 bridge lessons over lunch periods. Since then, the program has grown to include five schools in the 2018-2019 offering.

The program relies on a large contingent of volunteers from amongst the Unit 390 membership. Besides the instructor who leads the lesson, at least one mentor supervises at every table in each class.

On Friday, April 12, 2019, Calgary Unit 390 celebrated the successful conclusion of the 2018-2019 school bridge program by hosting a wind-up tournament which saw more than 60 students gather to compete.

The wind-up tournament for the 2019-2020 school bridge program was double that size, with over 120 students attending. It was held on Wednesday, March 11, 2020 at St. Phillip School.

Click on any of the links below to read more about various school bridge programs in Alberta:

    Click HERE to read a CTV news article about the 2020 wind-up tournament.

    Click HERE to read an article about the 2018-2019 Calgary program.

    Click HERE to read an article about the 2018 program at Holy Spirit Academy in High River.

    Click HERE to read a CBC article about the 2019 Calgary Wind-Up Tournament.

    Click HERE to view a short video about the Edmonton School Bridge program.