Solutions to Last Worksheet

Each problem has only the solution shown, so if you had a different answer, check again to see why it's not a forced checkmate in two moves.
#1. 1. Ng5+ Kg8 (or Kh8) 2. Rd8#
#2. 1. Qb8+ Qc8 2. Qxc8#
#3. 1. Rh8+ Bxh8 2. Qxh8#
#4. 1. Qxh7+ Kxf6 2. Qh6#
#5. 1. Rg8+ Kxg8 2. Qg7# (or Qh8#)
#6. 1. Rf8+ Rxf8 2. Ng7#

#7. 1. Nxh7+ Nxh7 2. Ng6#
#8. 1. Qd8+ Bxd8 2. Re8#
#9. 1. Qxg6 Kh8 2. Bxf6# (or 1. ... Bg7 2. Qxg7#)

End of Session Ratings and Progress Charts

Congratulations to Kartik and Lennox who solved all nine problems! Gage missed only one.
The way I rated the test was to start with 100 and add 100 points for each correct solution. Then I pretended you got two draws against someone with that rating. So the higher your rating the higher your score needed to be to gain points.
SEE PREVIOUS POST for upcoming tournaments!
Name     Rate # Chg
Kartik  986 9 =
Hale 897 7 -4
Gage 761 8 +12
Lennox    757 9 +20
Everett   715 4 -20
Bharath   710 3 -24
Thomas L  601 4 -8
Isaac 583 3 -16
Suhaas    568 7 +16
Michael   567 6 +20
Tapio     539 1 -30
Sawyer    427
Aishwarya 411 3 +2
Zachary   371 5 +18
Dennis    345 0 -18
Raiyan    341 3 +2
Anvith    282 0 -16
Thomas H  246 1 -4
Jackson   225 1 =
William C 190 4 +26
Isabel    143
William H 139 1 +8
Rigo      125 0 -2
Amir 100
PROGRESS CHARTS
Here are some progress charts - read from right to left to see your progress.
First New students

Now previous students under 600

Now previous students over 600

Winter Schedule and Ratings

TEAM COMPETITION
Although the next session does not start until Feb 9, there are 3 tournaments between now and then.
In the meantime keep your eye on this blog for news.

Jan 6 at Metcalf we have a team competition. The top 5 will play in the team section,. Others will play in the individual section. Anyone who does not attend Salem Hills or Atheneum cannot play as part of the team.
Jan 20 Metcalf Regular K-3/4-6 or get a partner and play doublebug chess.
Feb 3 Zachary Lane Regular K-3/4-6 or get a partner (mom, grandpa, uncle, friend) and play doubles

LESSON
Today we went over the discovered attack worksheet, learned the Pirc Defense and did a two-move checkmate worksheet. No one solved all 4 problems correctly.

RATINGS

Name	8-Dec
Kartik	996
Hale	863
Everett	752
Gage	740
Lennox	721
Bharath	717
Thomas L	615
Isaac	606
Tapio	580
Suhaas	572
Michael	560
Sawyer	427
Aishwarya	355
Raiyan	353
Zachary	353
Dennis	327
Anvith	306
Thomas H	247
Jackson	207
William C	157
Isabel	143
Rigo	138
William H	126

Tournament Results

Congratulations to Anvith who earned his bronze medal and to Gage who took home the third place trophy! Gage is now tied with Everett at 752. Congratualtions also to Hale who led his Dakota Hills Team to winning the first place team trophy.

Gr Name    W  L D Bef Aft Chg 
 2 Anvith  2  3 0 293 301  +8
 3 Gage    4  1 0 739 752 +13 
 4 Michael 1  4 0 544 503 -41
 6 Hale    3  2 0 892 871 -21
   Total  10 10 0         -41

Tournament Tomorrow!

PUT THESE ON THE CALENDAR!
Dec 2 Metcalf in Burnsville grade level - lots of trophies
Jan 6 Metcalf - Team of 5 needed to participate in the team section
Jan 20 Metcalf (Double bug section will draw a lot of the top-notch players
Feb 3 Zachary Lane in Plymouth Doubles play with your Dad, Aunt, Grandpa or friend
Feb 17 Metcalf StateWide grade level 3+ per team -  let's have a big turnout
Mar 10 Metcalf Middle School Championship 4+ for a team
Apr 14-15 Breck in Golden Valley - the Ultimate Chess Tournament for K-6 in MN

Chess sets

Later this week I will put in an order for chess sets.
Cost will be about $15 includes shipping, weighted pieces, 2 extra queens, carrying case with zipper, sleeve and handle, vinyl roll-up board. e-mail me at gemshein@hotmail.com if you want to order  one specify black, blue, green, or burgundy. Color is for both board and case.

Tournament Results

Six members of the Salem Hills Chess Club participated in a tournament Saturday.
Congratulations to Hale (click for pic) who was presented with a gold medal for having won 50 games in tournament competition and for winning a golden knight for tying for 5th place.

Name     W  L  Bef Aft Chg Merit
Kartik . 2  2 1000 985 -15  71.5
Hale . . 4  1  882 892 +10  61.5
Gage . . 3  2  757 739 -18  70
Suhaas . 2  3  581 563 -18  32.5
Michael. 2  3  554 544 -10   2
Anvith . 3  2  243 293 +50   9.5
Totals .16 13           -1

Lessons and standings

TOURNAMENT TOMORROW
For those interested in competing, there is a tournament coming up this Saturday.
WHO: Anyone can go, though I recommend a rating of 300 or more.
WHEN: Nov 18, 9:00 - 2:00  maybe a little longer if you need to hang around for awards
WHERE: Metcalf Middle School in Burnsville. 35E s. to Diffley w. just past Cedar
WHAT: Play in grades 4-6, 7-9 or Girls. All will play 4 or 5 games - no elimination.
HOW: If already an SCA member, register on-line at schoolchess.org or if new at the door by 8:30am on Saturday.
HOW MUCH: Cost $22-24 plus $5 for lunch or bring your own.
WHY: It's fun! Hope to see some of you there.

Next one is Dec 2 at Metcalf again. Let's try for a big, fun, turnout!
For a complete schedule of tournaments see www.schoolchess.org

We went over the answers to the pins worksheet, had a lesson and worksheet on discovered attacks,
and the advanced group had a lesson on the Scandinavian Defense and the Caro-Kann Defense.

Name	Nov17
Kartik	1000
Hale	882
Gage	757
Everett	752
Lennox	722
Bharath	694
Thomas L	615
Isaac	606
Suhaas	581
Tapio	575
Michael	554
Sawyer	410
Raiyan	374
Zachary	356
Aishwarya	346
Dennis	302
Anvith	243
Thomas H	219
Jackson	208
Isabel	136
Rigo	130
William C	122
William H	120
Amir	100

Nov 10

Tournament Nov 18 at Metcalf M.S. in Burnsville. Sections for K-3 and 4-6. Special all Girls section if you want to take this once-a-year opportunity.

I've got orders for 6 sets so far, can we get it up to ten and get a bigger discount?

Today we went over the hurdles worksheet and learned about pins.
I had planned to go  over the Caro-Kann defense, but we ran out of time - I think the worksheets took too long. Speaking of worksheets, congratulations to Suhaas who had a 14 which was the highest in the class. Tapio, Thomas L, Michael and Gage were not far behind with 12.
For the beginner section, Sawyer, Anvith, and Jackson had 11 points on their worksheet.

Hale	898
Gage	740
Everett	710
Lennox	709
Bharath	675
Isaac	617
Thomas L	584
Suhaas	576
Tapio	575
Michael	522
Sawyer	391
Raiyan	339
Zachary	337
Aishwarya	324
Dennis	290
Anvith	230
Thomas H	196
Jackson	195
Isabel	140
Rigo	123
William C	119
William H	113
Amir	100

Tournament Results (Now with pics)

Congratulations Gage who took home the 4th place trophy, and to Lennox who won the novice trophy for 4th grade - he finished in 7th place!
Name      W L D  Bef Aft Chg Merit
Kartik    3 2 0 1000 960 -40  69
Hale      3 2 0  909 885 -24  57.5
Gage      4 1 0  728 747 +19  67
Lennox    3 2 0  698 710 +12   3
Bharath   2 2 1  644 639  -5  34
Suhaas    2 3 0  535 533  -2  30.5
Aishwarya 2 3 0  256 300 +44   2
Anvith    2 2 1  185 214 +29   6.5
Ratings

Gr	Name	Nov 4
5	Kartik	960
6	Hale	885
3	Gage	747
5	Everett	710
4	Lennox	710
5	Bharath	639
6	Isaac	602
6	Tapio	568
6	Thomas L	567
4	Suhaas	533
4	Michael	504
4	Sawyer	375
5	Raiyan	312
5	Aishwarya	300
3	Zachary	294
3	Dennis	281
2	Anvith	214
4	Thomas H	195
4	Jackson	165
3	Isabel	136
5	Rigo	123
6	William C	114
2	William H	114
3	Amir	100

Tournament tomorrow

Tournament tomorrow - (see previous post for details)

I'm going to put in an order for chess sets soon. With a bulk discount, a discount for a  frequent customer and shared shipping costs I can offer you a set for under $15 depending on the number of orders I get. Available before Christmas.
Click here for a picture. Choose color - black, green, blue, burgundy. Put your name on the board and your initials on the pieces. E-mail me at gemshein@hotmail.com with color and your student's name.

Today we learned about hurdles and skewers and the advanced group took a look at the the Scotch opening and the Goring gambit.

Gr	Name	Nov 3
5	Kartik	1000
6	Hale	909
3	Gage	728
5	Everett	710
4	Lennox	698
5	Bharath	644
6	Isaac	602
6	Tapio	568
6	Thomas L	567
4	Suhaas	535
4	Michael	504
4	Sawyer	375
5	Raiyan	312
3	Zachary	294
3	Dennis	281
5	Aishwarya	256
4	Thomas H	195
2	Anvith	185
4	Jackson	165
3	Isabel	136
5	Rigo	123
6	William C	114
2	William H	114
3	Amir	100

Oct 27 News and Ratings

Today we learned about forks and tried to finish getting everyone to do the 2 rook checkmate in 14 moves or fewer. Advanced players reviewed the Evans Gambit. We all solved problems on a worksheet involving forks.

Next tournament is Nov 4 at Highview Middle School in New Brighton. Play only players in your own grade. If we have 3 in one grade, we have a team. (Students may play up a grade or two to fill out a team. I think a 4th grade team of Lennox,Suhaas,Michael and 5th grade Kartik, Everett, Bharath would do well. Others are welcome, too. In chess everyone plays 5 games and the team is not penalized if a player does not do well. Cost $24, Register at door at 8:30, or members can register on-line at Schoolchess.org with their ID#

Upcoming Tournaments
Nov4 Highview Middle School, New Brighton Grade Level and Team Competition
Nov 18 Metcalf Middle School, Burnsville Special Girls Sections
Dec 2 Metcalf Middle School, Burnsville Grade Level and Team Competition
Jan 6 Metcalf 5-player teams go head to head vs other schools

Gr	Name	Oct 27
5	Kartik	979
6	Hale	909
3	Gage	728
5	Everett	710
4	Lennox	665
5	Bharath	645
6	Isaac	588
6	Thomas L	567
6	Tapio	552
4	Suhaas	503
4	Michael	502
4	Sawyer	355
5	Raiyan	283
3	Zachary	252
3	Dennis	249
5	Aishwarya	239
2	Anvith	185
4	Thomas H	176
4	Jackson	160
5	Rigo	123
2	William H	118
6	William C	114
3	Isabel	110
3	Amir	100

Tournament Results

Six of our players played in a tournament in Burnsville on Saturday.
Highlights: Suhaas (click for photo) received a silver medal for having won 25 games in tournaments. Kartik went into the final round undefeated. Bharath finished in the top half. Gage won 3 of the 4 games he played gaining 28 rating points. As a group, we gained 10 rating points.
Here are the results:

Name .. R1R2R3R4R5Pts Chg Bef Aft Merit
Kartik..W W D W L 3.5 +10 944 954 66
Hale....H W L W L 2.5 -40 929 889 54.5
Gage....H W L W W 3.5 +28 687 715 62
Bharath.L W L W W 3.0 +14 603 617 31.5
Suhaas..L W L W L 2.0  -2 497 495 28.5
Anvith..L W L L L 1.0  +0 153 153 4
Totals--14W 13L 1D    +10

Oct 13 Chess Club

Beginners reviewed the ladder checkmate with 2 rooks and the King and Queen checkmate.

Advanced players learned a variety of the Giuoco Piano called the
  Evans Gambit.
It features rapid development, mobility, open game, preventing your opponent from castling.
I apologize - we did not learn the Danish Gambit last week - we skipped that lesson because there was no school last week.

Name	KRR	KQ	Oct 13
Kartik	PASS	PASS	944
Hale	PASS	PASS	929
Gage	PASS		687
Everett	PASS	PASS	680
Lennox	PASS		652
Bharath	PASS	PASS	603
Isaac	PASS	PASS	588
Thomas L	PASS	PASS	567
Tapio	PASS		552
Michael	PASS		505
Suhaas	PASS	PASS	497
Sawyer	PASS	PASS	328
Raiyan	PASS		273
Dennis	PASS		241
Zachary	PASS	PASS	212
Aishwarya	PASS	PASS	173
Anvith	PASS	PASS	153
Thomas H			152
Jackson			141
William C			114
Rigo	PASS		113
Isabel			110
Amir			100
William H			100

Sep 29

Beginners reviewed KRR vs K (the ladder)
 and KQ vs K (after your opponent moves to the edge, put your queen on the second row)

Advanced players learned about the King's gambit (better and longer video) and how Abby Marshall used it to win the 2009 Denker Tournament
We also went through the ending of one of Akiba Rubinstein's games to see how to push a passed pawn.

Name	KRR	KQ	Sep 29
Kartik	PASS	PASS	941
Hale	PASS	PASS	929
Gage	PASS		687
Everett	PASS	PASS	675
Lennox	PASS		647
Bharath	PASS	PASS	597
Isaac	PASS	PASS	588
Thomas L	PASS	PASS	559
Tapio	PASS		552
Suhaas	PASS	PASS	500
Michael	PASS		498
Dennis	PASS		272
Sawyer	PASS		270
Raiyan	PASS		264
Thomas H			180
Anvith	PASS		165
Zachary			140
Aishwarya			127
Rigo	PASS		126
William C			109
Isabel			105
Jackson			104
Amir			100
William H			100

Sep 22

Beginners learned about checkmate and stalemate and
learned how to checkmate with two rooks and with a king and queen.
Advanced players learned the Giuocco Piano, Fried Liver, Ruy Lopez openings
and the value of putting your rook on the 7th rank in the endgame - then fight
with your king to queen a passed pawn.

Name	Sep-22
Kartik	927
Hale	922
Gage	701
Everett	658
Lennox	623
Isaac	590
Bharath	575
Thomas L	561
Tapio	555
Suhaas	527
Michael	476
Dennis	272
Raiyan	264
Sawyer	244
Thomas H	194
Anvith	121
William C	105
Zachary	101
Rigo	100
Jackson	100
Amir	100
Isabel	100
William H	100

Chess Club Fall 2017

Ready for a new session of chess starting Sep 22nd.
We will have two lessons based on ratings - those over 450 and those 450 and under,

Name	Rating
Kartik	950
Hale	915
Everett	658
Gage	658
Lennox	604
Isaac	603
Thomas L	571
Tapio	534
Suhaas	506
Michael	474
Dennis	235
Sawyer	228
Raiyan	227
Thomas H	199
William C	100
Rigo	100
Jackson	100
Isabel	100
Zachary	100
Anvith	100
Amir	100
William H	100

Results from Nationals

Here are some of the outstanding performances by Minnesota chess players at the Supernationals held in Nashville May 12-14, 2017. There were about 135 kids from Minnesota there. All but a handful finished in the top half of their section.

I list Section and Team Awards followed by:

Grade Name and Place. Keep in mind to get on this list, you had to win 5.5 games out of 7 or more. Maybe you recognize some names. Next year maybe your name or team will be here! National Champions are in blue, runner ups in red.

K12 Championship Wayzata HS – 13^th

  12 Andrew Tang 3^rd

K12 U1900

  9 Logan Ferkinhoff – 1^st

K12-U1200 Burnsville HS - 1^st

K12-U800

  9 Lyla Lichliter 6^th

  7 Ava Piccolino 9^th

  8 Sam Kielas 10^th

K9-U1250 Metcalf 15^th

K8-U750 Metcalf 2^nd

  7 Gus Diedrich 3^rd

  6 William Moe 7^th

K6 Championship Wayzata Central 10th

  6 Samrug Narayanan 15^th

K6U1400

  5 Isaac Traynor 1^st

K6U1000 Seward 9^th

  5 Noah Weiser 1^st

K6Unrated

  5 Matthew Marvin 1^st

  4 Stuart Strack 2^nd

  5 Alma Quiroz 17^th

K5U900

  4 Rowan Falk 4^th

K3U1000

  3 Ethan Benjamin 7^th

  3 Aditi Sinha 19^th