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Advancing Towards Mastery Group Course

Join our Advancing Towards Mastery group class, an 8-week course that is the perfect environment for intermediate players to learn and develop new chess skills. It is strongly recommended that students take the Beyond the Basics course prior to starting this course, but that prerequisite may be skipped with approval from the instructor. This course is intended for students who already understand basic tactics and strategy, and can play complete games following all the rules. To take this course, students should have a Chess.com rating (or equivalent other rating) of at least 1100.  
 

Classes are on Saturdays and begin April 13th, 2024 from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm
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What Will I Learn?

Our Advancing Towards Mastery group course spans 8-weeks, and provides a progressive learning experience based on the ChessKid curriculum, but also based on a custom Manasota Chess Center curriculum.  The course is taught by US-Chess-certified coaches, and topics include, but are not limited to:

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  • Basics of Pawn Play

    • Majorities and Minorities​

    • Pawn Chains

    • Space

    • Building Strength

  • Good v. Bad Pieces

    • Cramped Pieces​

    • Nominal v Absolute Piece Power

    • Bad Bishops, Good Knights

  • Finding High Level Plans

    • Critical Thinking in Chess​

    • Prophylactic Thinking

    • Advanced Drawing Techniques

  • Art of Exchanges​​

    • Preserving Strong Pieces

    • Eliminating Weaknesses

  • Endgame Transition

    • Known Positions​

  • Attacking Chess

    • Using Pieces to Coordinate an Attack​

  • Advanced Pawn Play

    • Creating plans with pawn structures​

  • Game Evaluation

    • Short-term and long-term plans​

    • Evaluating each side

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Common Questions

Q: What is included in the course?

A: Eight weeks of instruction, homework assignment, and a copy of the curriculum with examples and exercises.

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Q: How much does the course cost?
A: The course is $300 for the bundle of eight hour-and-a-half lessons, which includes all the above-mentioned materials as well as supervised free play with other students during the class.

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Q: Is there an age limit?

A: No, we have found that the most important thing is combining students of the same skill level, not just based on age.

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Q: How good will I get at chess after the course?
A: The sky is the limit, and that will depend upon your interest and commitment, but the course covers all of the skills you will need to play higher-level meaningful games.

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Q: What happens if I miss a class?

A: Luckily, the instructor has made private YouTube videos for each class, which are only accessible through a special link. You can watch the content from any day that you miss, and rest assured that the instructor will be happy to go over concepts in person when you return!

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Q: What is the refund policy? Can I join the class late?

A: The Manasota Chess Center offers prorated refunds through the first two classes. During that time, a student may withdraw for any reason and receive a prorated refund for the remaining classes. The refund period ends before the start of the third class. In other words, the prorated refund period extends from the time you register to the date prior to the third class. After the third class, no refunds are provided for any reason.

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Students may sign up for the group classes before the start of the third class (lesson #3). New students will not be approved after this deadline. Exceptions may be made by the Manasota Chess Center.

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