The Lindenwood College Chess Team
Lindenwood Lions Chess Team
Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Missouri has started a College Chess Team as part of their Student-Life Sports Program! What does this mean for all you chess players who want to go to college? Scholarships! Lindenwood University is building a World-Class Chess Team and recruiting players from all across the world. Whether you live in Illinois, Wisconsin, New York, California, Texas, Russia, Georgia, Costa Rica, Norway, or somewhere else, you should check out this great University to play chess for.
With personal coaching from Chess Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan and a partnership with the St.Louis Chess Club, the Lindenwood College Chess Team is ready to make their presence felt in the world of college chess this year. With chess scholarships being offered to players of all levels, The Lindenwood College Chess Team has a great college chess team lined up for this year.
Chess Scholarships were offered to international masters from across the world. Chess Masters from India, Georgia, Ecuador, and Belarus have all earned chess scholarships and are earning an education, as well as playing competitive college chess. Lindenwood is one of the fastest growing universities and you can expect them to be a powerhouse of chess for years to come.
Viswanathan Anand is still the Champ!
Congratulations to Viswanathan Anand, the current world champion at Chess! He beat Boris Gelfand to defend his world title but it as not easy. Viswanathan Anand says that this was his toughest world chess title defense of his 5 and still has no plans to retire. Read more about the match here.
Acknowledging our mistakes in Chess & Life
One of the most important things that we can learn from chess is how to acknowledge our mistakes. It has hard to admit we have made a mistake, and often times its painful to look back at it…at least at first. In chess, we keep track of our games with notation and these are often times kept in a chess notebook. Sometimes, a student will rip out or cross out a game they are embarrassed of. …sometimes just stop keeping track of games once they start losing.
This is not correct to do. Losses in chess (especially emotional ones) play just as much of a part if not more than wins in shaping a chess players style of play. This doesn’t just refer to the moves that they choose to make, but often times how they act as chess players and people.
For example, if a chess player losses in 4 moves with 99% of their time left, they can learn to play slower and make sure to take the times to think about their opponents moves right from the beginning of the game. There is no need to hide this game, it is much more productive to make sure to remember it as a reminder to never repeat the same mistakes and be proud of improving as a player.
And obviously, this approach to chess can be related to life.
New Study: Chess Improves Brain Function!
Its a new a study, but old news for most of us: Chess improves brain function. Researchers at the University of Texas have concluded that playing chess broadens the mind. No suprise for those of us that teach chess, but still an interesting read.
Teaching Kids How to Lose
At the end of each session in Chess Classes we have a friendly kids tournament; its the time for the kids to play serious chess and really show their me or their teacher what they have learned. It is a no elimination tournament with no time limits and prizes dont just go to the winners, but to everyone that has shown that they have imporved over the course of the last session of chess club.
When I look for improvement, it isn’t just in their chess games. One of the most important things that kids in our classes are taught is how to have the right attitude in competition…for many kids this means that they need to know how to lose.
Chess is a competition, and in most games there will be a winner and loser. For most kids they correlate winning to good and losing to bad. They leave a lost game or sometimes even a losing position feeling bad, upset, and negative in general. We teach the kids a much more positive approach to losing and not only makes them feel good but is also much more productive.
First of all, whether they won or lost, I want my students to be proud of the games they played. Many kids and even adults shy way from chess so the fact that they are willing to play and make tough decisions on the board that stress their brain is commendable enough. Secondly, a loss is just a chance to improve. Often times when you lose you know your mistakes, and in this case it is importantly to consciously look over them to make sure you don’t repeat them…just like in real life. If you do not know you mistakes, you can always ask your opponent. Chess players will often chat about their games afterwards and talk about different ways the game could have done depending on variations( routes that could have been taken). Over and over I see kids change their attitude to not fear losing and improve their chess skills and general attitude drastically.
All of us have dealt with losing at one point or another, and I never shy my students away from the experience. It is much easier to learn to lose over the chess board than anything else, and I make sure to mention to my students that the same approach can be used in all aspects of their lives, and hope they do. Winning gracefully is a whole another skill for another post!
World Chess Championship: Anand vs. Gelfand
The world chess championships are currently going on in Moscow. World champion Viswanthan Anand is battling with Israeli Chess Star Boris Gelfand. This is an intense battle over the chess board as these are the top two players in the world! If you want to take a look at their game, here is it.
A Russian Online Newspaper writes:
“Playing black for the second time in the match, Anand continued his faith in the Slav defense and yet again did not have much difficulty equalising.
It was a continuation of discussion in the second game of the match wherein Anand had gone for a fifth move surprise and yet again the World champion went for it, emphasising that it was not an opening gamble he had gone for in his first game as…”
Find more of this story here.
Minooka Chess Tournament
Minooka Chess Club and CheckmatesUSA
present the first ever
Minooka Area Chess Tournament
Sunday, April 15, 2012 (1pm to 4:30pm)
Minooka Village Community Room
121 East McEvilly Rd. (Next to Creamery)
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Entry fee: $10 with advance registration, $15 on-site
Sections: Juniors (K-8) and Open (All ages)
Juniors = 4 rounds, Open = G/30, 3 rounds
For more information, please contact [email protected]
Or call Brian Quast at (815) 922-9291
Chess is a Symphony of Pieces
When teaching chess to kids its important that you find a way to explain chess theory in a way that related to them. Many kids enjoy music and even play musical instruments; so with them I try to relate chess to music.
Chess is very much like music, and a good chess game could easily be compared to a beautiful musical composition. Just think of each piece as a musical instrument. In a good musical composition all the instruments are working together create something that people would enjoy listening to. A song with just one or two musical instruments wouldn’t be as interesting and fun as one with many more.
In chess you are also creating a composition. Like a composer with his or her instruments, a good chess players uses all his or her pieces together in combination to achieve a goal. Just like a composer, a chess player’s personality shows a lot in their chess game.
Its no coincident so many musicians are also chess players, and vice versa!
Summer Chess Camps and Classes
Summer Chess Classes
Don’t miss out on a great way to keep your child’s mind in shape this summer by registering them for chess classes! CheckMates USA classes are fun, interesting, and teach your child the skills they need to be successful students and people. Space is Limited! Register now!
Lake Zurich Park District Weekly Chess Classes
4:30 – 5:30 Tuesdays June 5th – July 17th (7 wks) To Register call (847) 438-5146
4:30 – 5:30 Tuesdays July 24th – September 4th (7 wks)
Libertyville Park District Weekly Chess Classes
4:45 – 5:45 Mondays June 11th – July 16th (6 wks) To Register call (847) 367-1502
4:45 – 5:45 Mondays July 23rd - August 20th (6 wks)
Long Grove Park District Weekly Chess Classes
6:00 – 7:00 Tuesdays June 12th – July 10th (5 wks) To Register call (847) 438-4743
6:00 – 7:00 Tuesdays July 17th – August 14th (5 wks)
Long Grove Park District Advanced Weekly Chess Classes
6:00 – 8:00 Thursdays June 14th – July 12th (5 wks) To Register call (847) 438-4743
6:00 – 8:00 Thursdays July 19th – August 16th (5 wks)
Summer Chess Camps
Don’t miss out on a great way to keep your child’s mind in shape this summer by registering them for chess camps! Chess Camps last for 3 hours in which the students have time to learn new chess techniques, practice them with alternative chess games, play a few games of normal chess, and enjoy their times with friends! Each strategy that campers learn will be reinforced with one-of-a-kind online support and practice puzzles that they can do at home.
CheckMates USA classes are fun, interesting, and teach your child the skills they need to be successful students and people. Space is Limited! Register now!
Morton Grove Park District Chess Camps
9 am - Noon Monday-Friday June 5th – June 29h To Register call (847) 965-1200
9 am - Noon Monday-Friday July 16th – July 20th
9 am - Noon Monday-Friday July 30th - August 3rd
9 am - Noon Monday-Friday August 13th – August 17th
Long Grove Park District Chess Camps
9 am – Noon Tuesday – Friday June 13th –June 15th To Register call (847) 438-4743
Noon –3pm Tuesday – Friday June 19th – June 22nd
9 am – Noon Tuesday – Friday July 10th – July 13th
CheckMatesUSA is a nationally recognized leader in chess education. More information can be found at www.CheckMatesUSA.com or by calling (224) 619-6506.
The Pin
The Pin is a very important tool that every chess player should have in his or her repertoire. The word pin literally means that something cannot move. For example, if a poster is pinned to wall, it cannot move. In wrestling, a pin is when your opponent cant move. In chess, a pin is when a piece cannot move.
Creating a pin in chess can be useful, but it does not always win a piece. Above, the King from A1 can move to B2 to protect the Knight. Whenever you know a chess piece cannot move, it is always a good idea to put pressure on it, and attack it with more chess pieces.
The Bishop from H6 can move to G7 to pin the Knight. The King is expected to protect it by moving to B2. The Black player can then win the knight by attacking it with the pawn on B5 by moving it to B4. The white player then does not have to defend the white knight, and cannot move it either because it is pinned. Remember: when a piece is pinned, take advantage of it by putting pressure on the pin.
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