How Middle and High School Students Use ChessKid

In the top-ranked Madison City School system in Madison, Alabama, ChessKid is the preferred chess resource for curricular and extra-curricular activities and classroom instruction. While you may be accustomed to seeing elementary students use ChessKid, here are ways it is also valuable for middle and high school chess programs.

Why ChessKid? Answer: SAFETY!

Every school system is cautious about the online programs students have access to. ChessKid is the safest online chess platform for kids, and if it is safe enough for elementary students, it is likewise the safest option for middle and high school students as well. School district IT departments will unlock access to ChessKid because of its safety measures and respect for privacy. Why?

Middle School Chess Elective Courses

In all middle schools in Madison City (currently Discovery Middle, Liberty Middle, and Journey Middle to open in Fall 2023) students in grades 6-8 have the option of choosing 9-week elective courses for Introduction to Chess and/or Competition Chess that are taught during the school day. These chess elective course offerings are among many elective course options students have available to register for.

Teachers who teach chess elective courses are not always more skilled at chess than their students, but they don't have to be with the Classroom Lesson Planner, a resource designed to help teachers facilitate and encourage progress.


Report Card features help teachers monitor student progress, and many other activities like fast chess, play versus robots, puzzles, and workouts are available for teachers to assign as homework as well as for students to have fun and explore the world of chess. 

 

 

Chess Team After School - Chess Team Tryouts

Chess teams meet at all three middle schools after-school and are taught by a more knowledgeable chess player or coach. But to figure out who makes the squad, just like any other middle school sports team, students have to try out for chess team. ChessKid is the way coaches and teacher sponsors determine who will make the team. In Madison, tryouts are broken down into three parts:

(1) Puzzles - There are two options our schools utilize for scoring puzzles.

Option 1: Everyone must solve 100 puzzles correctly in one week.

Option 2: Everyone has one week to solve as many puzzles as possible, Students are assigned points in descending order according to who solves the most puzzles. So, if 20 students try out, the top puzzle solver gets 20 pts; second highest gets 19, and the lowest solver gets 1 pt. If you solve no puzzles, you receive a zero.

(2) ChessKid Lesson Level - Points are assigned according to how high your ChessKid lesson level is. It rewards students who started playing chess in elementary school who have been diligently learning more content.

(3) Tryout Tournament - Before Covid, it was common to hold a tryout tournament or allow our coach to conduct a simultaneous chess match with players who wanted to make the team. Doing this allowed us to assess their skill level, and if they knew how to record their moves, play quietly and follow instruction.

When the pandemic hit, we shifted to an online tryout tournament on ChessKid where all applicants played each other in a 5-round tournament. Coaches watch as the games are being played, and a fair play analysis is done at the conclusion of the tournament. Each applicant is assigned points according to how well they did in the online tournament.

Tryout Results Sheet

Here is a tryout results sheet we used at one of our middle schools last year with the names removed. Students with the highest total tryout points earn a spot on the chess team!

Puzzle Points: The student who solved the most puzzles in one week received the most points for that category, and the lowest number solved received lowest point, with those not solving any receiving zero. We had 26 kids try to solve puzzles so 26 points was the highest one could get last year solving the most puzzles.

ChessKid Level Points: Students received points according to their ChessKid lesson levels at a determined date and time. The scale we used was as follows: pawn = 0, Knight = 1, Bishop = 2, Rook = 3, Queen = 4, King 1-10 = 5, King 11-20 = 6, King 21-30 = 7, King 31-40 = 8, King 41-50 = 9, King 51-60 = 10, King 61-70 = 11, King 71-80 = 12, King 81-90 = 13, King 91-100 = 14, Super King 1-10 = 15, Super King 11-20 = 16.

Tournament Points: The actual points achieved in the online tournament were added to the total tryout points. In a five-round tournament, the highest anyone could receive was 5 points.

 

Once you make the team, coaches and teacher sponsors continue to encourage improvement of chess skills by holding contests, assigning online work, and rewarding those who achieve the most during the year.

Discovery Middle School Chess Team practice.

High School Students Use ChessKid Too!

Just like middle school students, high school chess team members are placed in a club so they can practice playing in online tournaments together, solve puzzles, and do lessons. Online chess supplements other over-the-board practice activities. 

 Middle and High School teams hold a practice match after school.

Many of our high school students also volunteer as coaches. They are added to the elementary chess clubs where they teach and coach students and guide activities during after-school practices.

High School student teaching chess

 High School Senior Constance uses ChessKid to coach at an elementary chess team practice.

Upcoming Webinar on How Middle and High School Students Utilize ChessKid

Coach Dakim has scheduled his next ChessKid webinar for April 16th at 3 p.m. Eastern Time. Register using the form below so you can learn how to keep your middle and high school students engaged and playing chess beyond the elementary years.

 

 We hope you can join us!