By CEO National Master Evan Rabin Dan Lucas, US Chess Senior Director Of Strategic Communications, frequently posts on social media about how chess boards in films are set up incorrectly. Often, the board is sideways, as the lower right hand corner is not a light square. Before starting a game, it is important to double …
By Connor Tyson, Founder of Progress Solutions LLC Over the past few years, I have jumped head first into the world of chess—the game of kings. My journey has been both exciting and humbling. I have incessantly been seeking knowledge to become a well-rounded and proficient player. In setting this long-term goal, I dedicate at …
By National Master Evan Rabin What does it mean to learn chess? A third grader once told me on the first day of a semester “Just so you know, I already know chess.” I asked him “How do you win a chess game?” and he replied “capture your opponent’s king”, which was incorrect. Many beginners …
Here are the leaders of our 2023-2024 Grand Prix after 4 out of our 12 2023-2024 Grand Prix tournaments are behind us: Now is the time to start catching up to the leaders; sign up now for our next tournament at Grace Church School on Sunday, March 3.
By Alycia Steelman, Founder of Ascension Educational Services The looming threat of “college prep” can feel foggy without the proper guidance through the process. Meetings with guidance counselors, teachers, and tutors relate an often shifting timeline of practice tests, interviews, essay writing and recommendations. This process can be both intellectually and emotionally overwhelming for students. …
By CEO National Master Evan Rabin Like I do almost every President’s Day Weekend, I played in the United States Amateur Team East this past weekend. In this tournament and some other recent onces I played, I noticed three common distracting actions that many players (kids and adults) do: …
Three Distractions that Many Tournament Players Do Read More »
By National Master Evan Rabin There are four common types of draw offers: The draw offerer is losing. The position is legitimately equal. The position its unclear and the draw offerer has no idea what is going on. A draw secures a prize. At the 2021 US Open in Cherry Hill, NJ, I played against …
By National Master Evan Rabin Chess notation is a system to document chess games, based on coordinates. I teach beginners board geography before piece movement. This allows a student to say “e4”, rather than “move the fifth pawn from the left side two squares.” A chess board has 64 squares. There are three different types …
By National Master Evan Rabin Several years ago I spoke with a 1700-rated player who just drew 1200- rated player at the US Amateur Team East. She explained to me how solid her opponent played and how she had no winning chances. As I did not believe her that a 1200 could play so solidly, …
By ST Rappaport, Brain Coach at LifePix University Ever wondered what it takes to play a game of chess? Well, you’ve got to come up with a plan. Think about how things might unfold. Visualize the moves. Consider the possibilities. Remember loads of information. It’s a lot. And guess what? Each of these aspects connects …
