Renaissance Knights Events

Renaissance Knights Chess Foundation is a non profit educational organization that offers several exciting and fun before, during or after-school programs for students in grades K-12. Sessions are customized for each school and location. School-funded or parent supported programs are available. Click here for Renaissance Knights

Free Chess Curriculum for Schools - To download and complete the order form to receive your complimentary three book chess curriculum set Click here. The three-volume curriculum, titled Teaching Chess Step by Step, features a Teacher's Manual (336 pages), Exercises (160 pages) and Activities (48 pages). The materials provide teachers with mechanics to lead a group of beginning students from the rudiments of chess rules to the ability of playing a full game in a competent manner. Combined, they bring a 21st Century approach to teaching one of the oldest strategy games in existence. Click here for Kasparov Chess Foundation

I have found that Wholesale Chess has the best overall prices and customer service of any online retailer. Renaissance Knights Chess Foundation receives 6% merchandise credit when purchases made through this link. Click here for Wholesale Chess

Chess Magnet School offers a free section online program where students can Learn To Play Chess, Practice Checkmates and play against the computer. Click here for the Learn Chess Program. Chess Magnet School is an engaging online training site where students progress at their own rate and coaches can use their unique chess coaching features to guide and monitor the progress of their students and classes. They offer a free 30 day trial period and may provide free memberships to Title I School children. Coaches should contact Hal Bogner 1-650-284-5062 or 1-877-378-4319 to inquire about the free memberships. Click here for Chess Magnet School

The US Chess Trust offers free USCF memberships (limit of ten memberships per school) for disadvantaged students who are attending a Title I school and have never been a USCF member before. Click here for US Chess Trust Chess For Youth Program

www.sports.cps.k12.il.us

501 W. 35th Street
Chicago, IL 60616
773-535-8040

Since 2006 Renaissance Knights has been a consultant to the CPS Sports Department and operates this website to provide information to CPS Chess Coaches & Players

SWISS PAIRING SYSTEM

Perhaps the most common form of chess tournament, the Swiss-style chess tournament offers participants multiple matches in the same event, with the added bonus of producing both a single champion and a minimal number of participants who leave the tournament without experiencing a victory.

In the first round, the list of players is divided in two, with the top overall seeded player going against the top player from the “bottom half.” The second ranked player would compete against the second best player from the bottom half.

Rank	Name	First Round Opponent
1	Jose	Freddy
2	Maria	Sandy
3	Sean	Julia
4	Sally	Kareem
5	Freddy	Jose
6	Sandy	Maria
7	Julia	Sean
8	Kareem	Sally

The logic of this approach is that the tournament should avoid pairing off the two “best” players in the first match, yet not have “blowouts” by pairing off the very top and the very bottom players. In the second round, the Swiss approach really kicks into gear. At this point players are organized into sub-groups based on their results from the first round. Normally, winners play against other winners from the first round. People who had draws or ties, play against others with draws or ties. And those who lost play against others who lost.

Subsequent rounds are organized similarly; thus by the fourth round, players 3-0 square off and players 0-3 compete. By facing more and more successful competition, the best players are continuously more challenged, and by playing against other players with similar results, the least skilled players get more and more likely to a win game.

TEAM SWISS

The only difference between a Swiss and Team Swiss is that in the Team Swiss the pairings are set such that players do not compete against other players from their own team. Swiss Team provides an added benefit: team prizes can be awarded. But given that chess at the scholastic level is a team endeavor, by giving team prizes we promote camaraderie and support of the group. By setting the number of scores to count per team one can easily give both individual and team prizes.

We may not use this restriction in the final round for undefeated players from the same team.