5. December 2009 by admin.

Hello,

This winter I am offering a special for the private lessons packages. There is a 15% discount and it is available for a limited time. For Orange County and Los Angeles County residents. Makes a great Christmas gift.
Please visit Educational Chess for contact information.

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29. November 2009 by admin.

Sometimes I walk into schools to introduce my chess program to school officials. I know  that I have a very good program. I have worked hard to create it, maintain it, and am constantly improving it. I am also aware of the other chess organizations out there and what they have to offer, so I am confident about the quality of my chess program.  Some copy my ideas and my lesson plans. I guess I should feel flattered by that- imitation is a form of flattery, they say. And although it is a bit challenging to deal with that, I do have lots of new ideas that I implement into the Educational Chess program- so a little competition pushes me to become even more creative and improve my program regularly.

Many schools now offer a chess program to their students. Some are O.K.- taught by experienced chess teachers with solid chess tournament experience,  some are taught by big organizations who hire college students (with mediocre results) , and some are taught by parents, teachers or individuals with very little knowledge of chess who mostly baby-sit their students (with poor results).

So, I am confident that I have a really good program. However, it is not so easy to translate that to the school administrations-many of the schools now have a chess program, so competition is much more intense for new schools.

And I am amazed how some schools officials seem to not understand the difference in quality of programs- most don’t know chess.  I was told by one school official a while ago that they like their chess organization because “they are friendly”. One other told me that their students have some acting in their chess class. Then, I hear  there are song and dances, too.
And I thought that was fine, but when I asked them about what their students learned, they all shrugged their shoulders. When I told them that a song and a dance is great, but learning and improving at chess should be the main goal, they had no answer.  I even offered to teach some of the school officials for free- but they had no interest in that.
So, I am noticing that there are chess programs out there with a song and a dance- and not much substance.

Here is my advice to those in charge- you need to be able to figure out the better chess programs from the mediocre ones. How can you do that? First, get involved- learn chess, and go beyond the basics. That is pretty much what most of the organizations out there offer- except they pepper it with a song and a dance. My students say many of their former chess teachers repeat the same lessons over and over again, and it only covers the basics. Really, we can do much better than that. And you owe it to your students to make sure that they keep learning and that they stay mentally stimulated.

Here are some factors school officials should consider when choosing a good chess program:

-instructor teaching experience and tournament experience (at least 2 years for teaching and about 4 years of serious rated tournament play)

- instructor knowledge (the higher the chess rating, the better. My recommendation- 1,800 and above.)

- a detailed program . Ask for details, learn what those terms mean.

-what level is the program for? Most are just basic, with no inclination to help students reach their potential.  However, a lot of kids now ask to learn more.

-how involved is the teacher in making sure all students learn? In other words, does the teacher really care about the children’s progress?

-is there new material offered on a regular basis?

And you need to verify this information. A song and a dance are nice, but a good chess education is mind power and a recipe for success. So, school officials- learn chess, learn how to choose a good chess program. Get out there, get involved today!

So, figure it out- do you want quality chess education? Then, you have to do your part and ensure that your school’s children benefit from a quality chess program.  In my opinion- you owe that to your students.

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29. September 2009 by admin.

Hello, chess enthusiasts

I have created a chess crossword puzzle- a fun way to learn about chess in an interactive way. It is about basics, a bit of middle-game terminology, and about pawn structures. I hope you enjoy it, and if you have any suggestions about other featurs that you would like to see on the Educational Chess site, please let me know- I will do my best to make it happen.  Here is the link to the interactive chess crossword puzzle: http://www.educationalchess.com/crossword_puzzle/crossword_puzzle.html

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8. September 2009 by admin.

Hello, everyone!

 As usual, I have had a busy schedule. But while I keep adding more pages and content, I spoke with some parents regarding good sportsmanship in chess. It has always been a very important topic to me, and to be honest, now it seems to be more of a lost tradition.  And this is why I wrote an article about chess sportsmanship- based on my personal experiences and philosophy, which you can view here.
Enjoy and drop me a note if you have any questions or comments.

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13. August 2009 by admin.

Hello, chess enthusiasts!

Finally, a new chance to blog and let you know about my newest additions. One is the online chess lessons- which are now offered at Educational Chess. For more information, please check the online chess lessons page: http://www.educationalchess.com/online_chess_lessons.html . Prices are very reasonable, and you can do the lessons from the comfort of your home. Contact Educational Chess for information or to sign up at: http://www.educationalchess.com/contact.htm

The other addition is the chess store, which has chess art available on t shirts, cups, mugs, hats, calendars that you can purchase. The chess art is my creation, and I am planning on adding more designs, as soon as I have some extra time- I love art. Here is the chess store link: http://www.educationalchess.com/chess_store.html 

Also, I re-organized the pages and added more, and improved the navigation.  Keeping the site organized is a challenge, but it is fun to add more content- there is a lot I have to share with you.  And more chess information is coming up- and I hope that will help you improve your chess strategy.

So, you can probably guess that there will be more additions in the near future. Have fun learning chess, playing chess, doing some art, browsing. And while you are there, don’t forget to sign up for the Educational Chess Newsletter so you can find out about the new updates and promotions that will be offered.

Take care for now,

Diana-EducationalChess.com

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1. July 2009 by admin.

Hello, everyone!

It has been a while, I have had a very hectic schedule lately. I have been juggling different projects, and that is a challenge sometimes.
So, good news! I finally had a chance to create the chess rules page- little Flash animations- so those of you who are new to chess can use and learn from. I hope they help you learn the basics of chess, so hopefully we can skip to the more exciting and challenging parts of learning chess.  And I hope that soon most of you will undersand that checkmate does not mean that the King is captured, and hope that most will now understand that strange rule with a French name- the En Passant rule.

So, please visit the Chess Rules page and also read everything carefully. And if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
And when you are done with the chess rules, don’t forget to also check out the Chess Notation page, just in case you haven’t noticed it before. And, if you want to practice your chess notation, feel free to download a chess scoresheet I have created in the Fun Center 

And of course, you can play a game or two of chess in the Learning Center and look for other fun chess activities you can enjoy at Educational Chess.
If you have any suggestions, please drop me a note.
Happy learning!

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8. May 2009 by admin.

Hello, everyone!

Here is the logo for the Da Vinci Chess and Art camp by Educational Chess. It encompasses all the elements we are going to explore.

Sign up early for the camp and you will be entered in a drawing to receive a gift certificate: http://www.educationalchess.com/chess_summer_camp.html

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7. May 2009 by admin.

Hello, chess enthusiasts!

 This summer is going to be a fun one. I have waited a long time for this  and I finally united my two passions and included my favorite artists of all times- and created the Da Vinci Chess and Art Camp. The marriage of my two passions is now complete at last!http://www.educationalchess.com/chess_summer_camp.html
Yes, it appears that  Da Vinci- known for his famous art and inventions had in interest in chess, too.  And that is no surprise to me. Chess is both an art and a science. And Da Vinci was both an artist and a scientist. So, now you know why he is my favorite artist, too!
So, it is going to be a great an innovative camp, and we will have lots of fun and learn at the same time. I divided the camp into two age groups: 6-12 and 13-18. The camps are a week long each (five days), and they are half-day. Morning or afternoons. The first part part of the each camp day is going to be about chess and the second is about art and innovative ideas a la Da Vinci.  Creativity and innovative thinking are what makes this camp fun and unique!

For detailed information and registration, please visit the Educational Chess camp page http://www.educationalchess.com/chess_summer_camp.html

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1. May 2009 by admin.

Hello, chess creatives!

I found a cool little gadget- one that allows you to create your own masterpiece.
It is on the Educational Chess fun page. http://www.educationalchess.com/fun.html
Go ahead- experiment and create your own art work!
And while you are at it, go to the home page and sign up for the newsletter.  
Also, stay tuned for the upcoming Educational Chess Summer camp 2009 information - an incredibly fun,  stimulating and innovative chess and art camp!

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27. April 2009 by admin.

Hello! I have been busy for a while now preparing for summer courses and the summer camp. But I finally got a chance to feature our young chess players and artists’ work.  So here is the first batch: http://www.educationalchess.com/chess_art/image_slideshow.html

I will eventually add more, as time allows it, including some of my own.  If you would like to be part of the chess art show, don’t be shy, send a copy of your best piece in! Just make sure you follow the guidelines. Enjoy the chess art show!

One of my quick pieces- watercolor and pastel

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