Kid Chess News  

October 29, 2024 

A weekly roundup of happenings in the Kid Chess community

This weekly web publication is designed for the adults in our community who have children enrolled in our classes, camps, and tournaments. It is designed to keep you informed about what your kids are doing in our programs and to teach you a little bit about the chess world. Let us know what content is important to you by writing to dan.lucas@kidchess.com.

Upcoming

Kid Chess Events

Located at Chess.Zone | 2500 Old Alabama Road, Suite 11 | Roswell, GA 30076

Register online here or call to register: 770-575-5802. 

No on-site registration. Please register in advance.

• • Sunday, November 3rd – Kid Chess Tournament
    • AM Regular Chess Tournament – Kindergarten – 2nd Grade Open
    • PM Regular Chess Tournament – 3rd – 5th Grade Open
  • Saturday, November 9th – Kid Chess Girls Tournament
    • AM Regular Chess Tournament – Kindergarten – 8th Grade Girls
  • Saturday, November 16th – Kid Chess Tournament
    • • Special Times, 9:00am – 12:45pm
    • AM Regular Chess Tournament – 6th – 8th Grade Open
  • Friday, November 29th – Kid Chess Black Friday Black Light Bonanza
    • AM Blacklight Regular Chess Tournament – Kindergarten – 5th Grade Open
    • PM Blacklight Bughouse Chess Tournament – Kindergarten – 5th Grade Open (the photo shows an example from one of our Blacklight events!)

Please click here for even more events.

Kid Chess Clubs

You may have heard from your child that the first couple of weeks in class they were playing “Bughouse” (and note our Black Light Bughouse event coming up on November 29!) What is this, you may ask? Bughouse is a wildly popular chess variant that is a form of partner chess. Unlike regular chess, in which playing quietly is a necessary part of the game, talking is encouraged and even a strategic necessity in Bughouse. Even top players enjoy it–in the photo from the recent U.S. Championship closing ceremony, some of the best players in the country are winding down with bughouse. (photo by Crystal Fuller, courtesy of the Saint Louis Chess Club)

From Wikipedia: “Bughouse is a popular chess variant played on two chessboards by four players in teams of two.  Normal chess rules apply, except that captured pieces on one board are passed on to the teammate on the other board, who then has the option of putting these pieces on their board. The game is usually played at a fast time control. Together with the passing and dropping of pieces, this can make the game look chaotic to the casual onlooker.”

And yes, your child is still learning chess while playing Bughouse! The pieces move the same way as in regular chess. Most importantly, Bughouse is all about attacking the opponent’s king as fast as possible, a key learning principle for young players.

Chess World News

The U.S. Chess Championship and U.S. Women’s Chess Championship were played October 11-24! Here are the basics:

• Dates: October 11-24, 2024
• Champions: GM Fabiano Caruana, U.S. Champion; IM Carissa Yip, U.S. Women’s Champion. (photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club)
• Fun Facts: This is Caruana’s 4th championship and third in a row. Yip successfully defended her championship and won her first eight games in a row.
• Location: Saint Louis Chess Club, St. Louis, Missouri
• How to Watch Recaps: The Saint Louis Chess Club YouTube Channel provided live round-by-round commentary and analysis that will help you understand what is happening on the boards.

Why are there separate Men’s and Women’s championships? 

While this appears to be the case, it isn’t true. There is an Open Championship and a Women’s Championship. The Open Championship is open to any player that meets the qualification criteria, however, currently no woman even appears on the Top-100 U.S. players list (top seed GM Irina Krush is rated 2458; the 100th-ranked U.S. player is rated 2487), making it difficult for our top female players to qualify for the Open event. Why do you think this is? Let us know by writing to dan.lucas@kidchess.com.

If after following the action your child decides that they want to try their hand as a tournament player, we have a full slate of events at our Chess Zone facility in Roswell. 

Kid Chess App

Has your child mentioned the Kid Chess App? This app, currently only available as a web version (although there is a way to make it function as a traditional phone app; see below **), is a perfect way for students to get better by practicing what they have learned in their Kid Chess program while having fun. Our coaches regularly encourage students to use the app outside of class. Please encourage your young player to work through the app, where they can earn points, badges, and see how they rank on the Leaderboard. We’ll share more about the app in upcoming issues of Kid Chess News!

** Turn Kid Chess App into a Traditional Phone App

There is a method for an Android phone and one for an iPhone. (Eventually, the app will be on the Google/Apple app stores.)

Android

Simply click on the download button:

iPhone

An iPhone requires a few steps:

1. From the app screen in Safari, click on the box with the upward arrow.

2. Click on “Add to Home Screen”:

3. Click on “Add”:

If you have any issues, please contact info@kidchess.com.