Outreach Master Classes
Thanks to sponsorship by PwC, Skerries Chess Club are offering Chess Master Classes to seven schools in the Skerries area, free of charge.
The schools are being offered a series of one-hour lessons at two-week intervals, while the school allocates one hour per week in between each lesson. If the school agrees, this will enable us to run a tournament with the help of a supervisor within the school. The Master Classes will be given by coaches John Loughran (FIDÉ Instructor) and Paul Ryan (Lead School Instructor). Our aim is to develop chess among young people in Skerries and show them the richness and complexity of a game that is interactive, social and educational. The proposal and proposed schedule has been sent to schools for their approval. For larger schools it includes an introductory visit with a lesson or a simul, where a strong player will play lots of students simultaneously.
The supervising teacher is asked to be present during all lessons. They will be advised on how to arrange the tournament games on the weeks the coach is not attending. Basically, this means allowing students to play each other under supervision, with pairings dictated by the coach. The teacher need not have any chess knowledge but should record results and send them to the coach.
On alternate weeks the coach will deliver a lesson or Master Class, then run a round of the tournament, going around and coaching where possible. Mixed ability teaching methods and group work will be used.
Preparation
In preparation the school should ask a teacher or teaching assistant to act as supervisor for the seven-week course. They should select students to receive the tuition. Ideally, the students chosen should be interested in chess, having played a little at least. They may be from different year groups and have different abilities. This is preferable to a whole class group taking the lessons, although we realize that in some cases it might have to be a class group. Students should be available and allowed to attend all sessions. Up to 20 students is ideal but more could be accommodated with good supervision by the teacher.
The supervisor should prepare a list of students’ full names and ages or month of birth, with some indication of their relative chess strength if known, then email this list to the coach at least two weeks before the introductory visit. This will enable the coach to set up the tournament and pair students for round 1. Name badges would be a nice touch if easy to arrange.
The school should ensure that there is at least one full set and board for every two students. These should be set up before the coach arrives for coach led sessions. Otherwise, coaching time is lost, and it can be difficult to fit in coaching and a tournament game in the same session. If the school can provide a projector which the coach can connect their laptop to, this would be of great benefit. Depending on the school’s policy, arrange for Garda vetting for the coach(es). The coaches are already Garda vetted, up to date, by Skerries Chess Club.
What the Master Classes entail
On alternate weeks the coach will deliver a lesson or Master Class, then run a round of the tournament, going around and coaching where possible. Mixed ability teaching methods and group work will be used.
During coaching sessions, the rules of chess will be explained including the finer points such as when castling is allowed, en passant, checkmate, stalemate. We will explore opening strategy, middlegame tactics, endgame technique as well as good sporting behaviour. We will introduce students to free learning resources available on chesskid.com and skerrieschess.com.
Pairings for the tournament will be posted on our website on the Learn page, with students’ names and chess ratings only displayed. Other coaching resources are provided there too. Optional homework may be given in the form of tactical problems and suggested study. Any student wishing to continue their chess development can attend Skerries Chess Club for a week as a free trial.
