Chess Camp & Chess Tournament
GSSYA 2022 Summer Chess Camp & GSSYA 2022 Chess Tournament
GSSYA 2022 Summer Chess Camp & GSSYA 2022 Chess Tournament
(August 01-18, 2022 & August 19, 2022)
(August 01-18, 2022 & August 19, 2022)
Over the course of the past three weeks, I along with two other wonderful tutors hosted a chesscamp in order to help those in the GSSYA community learn about the beauty of chess andchess in general. The result was a highly successful camp capped off by an in-persontournament on the final day filled with many memories that will be cherished for a long time. Inall, this year’s chess camp was one of high success.
The motive for creating the camp itself derived from me wanting to utilize my knowledge andgive back to the community in some form, which is when I considered making the camp topicabout chess. Chess is a highly beneficial extracurricular which can benefit kids and adults alikethrough logical thinking, planning ahead, and pattern telling recognition. With these variousbenefits in mind, the hope was that more kids would get to know more about chess and becomeinterested in it.
The classes for the camp were designed to try to benefit the student as much as possible. Toachieve this, the student’s students’ level and understanding of chess had to be measured,done through a skill assessment on the first day. Afterwards, the students’ areas forimprovement and needs were taken into consideration. Customized teaching materials wereused to best teach them, including fun example analysis, real interactive puzzles, and breakoutrooms to work on a more individual basis. This style of teaching was elected over simply readingteaching slides, which can create highly boring monotonous classes, which are not suitable foryoung kids.
When creating the camp, considerations to test if the teaching materials were useful for thestudents were kept in mind. Hence, at the end of each week, online practice through the form ofan online simul (simultaneous exhibition) or online arena was conducted. These practicesconsisted of students playing against tutors or against each other in full games combined withanalysis on the games done by the tutors afterwards. This was multifunctional as it allowed thetutors to understand the progression in skill level of the students and allowed the students to getan extensive breakdown of their mistakes through the analysis done by the tutors. These help tobring together a fun learning experience packed with many lessons that were beneficial not onlyto improve chess skill, but also for the in-person chess tournament on the final day.The in-person (OTB) chess tournament was hosted with many considerations and steps,including:
A) Picking a convenient, safe and appropriate venue for chess event.B) Applying for a permit to be granted access to the venue;C) Making attractive promotional posters and sharing them as early as possible;D) Distributing volunteer jobs based on the volunteers’ chess experience and background.
All volunteers met regularly during the whole preparation process to keep everyone informed andupdated. Out of everything discussed in these meetings, the MOST important point was toalways be helpful and supportive when someone needs back-up. “We are always here for you”!E) Communicating between the management team and volunteers in order for everyone to beup to date with any new information.In all, it was a great honor to host a chess camp and organize the chess tournament. I’m happyto see many kids who really enjoyed chess and who knows? Maybe this is the start of theirchess career. Nonetheless, I believe they will be successful in the near future and beyond.
Thank you very much, GSSYA!
Daniel Guan
The motive for creating the camp itself derived from me wanting to utilize my knowledge andgive back to the community in some form, which is when I considered making the camp topicabout chess. Chess is a highly beneficial extracurricular which can benefit kids and adults alikethrough logical thinking, planning ahead, and pattern telling recognition. With these variousbenefits in mind, the hope was that more kids would get to know more about chess and becomeinterested in it.
The classes for the camp were designed to try to benefit the student as much as possible. Toachieve this, the student’s students’ level and understanding of chess had to be measured,done through a skill assessment on the first day. Afterwards, the students’ areas forimprovement and needs were taken into consideration. Customized teaching materials wereused to best teach them, including fun example analysis, real interactive puzzles, and breakoutrooms to work on a more individual basis. This style of teaching was elected over simply readingteaching slides, which can create highly boring monotonous classes, which are not suitable foryoung kids.
When creating the camp, considerations to test if the teaching materials were useful for thestudents were kept in mind. Hence, at the end of each week, online practice through the form ofan online simul (simultaneous exhibition) or online arena was conducted. These practicesconsisted of students playing against tutors or against each other in full games combined withanalysis on the games done by the tutors afterwards. This was multifunctional as it allowed thetutors to understand the progression in skill level of the students and allowed the students to getan extensive breakdown of their mistakes through the analysis done by the tutors. These help tobring together a fun learning experience packed with many lessons that were beneficial not onlyto improve chess skill, but also for the in-person chess tournament on the final day.The in-person (OTB) chess tournament was hosted with many considerations and steps,including:
A) Picking a convenient, safe and appropriate venue for chess event.B) Applying for a permit to be granted access to the venue;C) Making attractive promotional posters and sharing them as early as possible;D) Distributing volunteer jobs based on the volunteers’ chess experience and background.
All volunteers met regularly during the whole preparation process to keep everyone informed andupdated. Out of everything discussed in these meetings, the MOST important point was toalways be helpful and supportive when someone needs back-up. “We are always here for you”!E) Communicating between the management team and volunteers in order for everyone to beup to date with any new information.In all, it was a great honor to host a chess camp and organize the chess tournament. I’m happyto see many kids who really enjoyed chess and who knows? Maybe this is the start of theirchess career. Nonetheless, I believe they will be successful in the near future and beyond.
Thank you very much, GSSYA!
Daniel Guan
Free Chess Club
Free Chess Club
for children in community
Free Chess Club
Free Chess Club
for children in community