Beyond the Basics Group Course

Join our Beyond the Basics group, an 8-week course that is the perfect environment for advanced beginners players to learn and develop new chess skills. This course is the natural progression after completing the Intro to Chess course, but completion of that course is not required. Beyond the Basics is intended for students who already know how to move the pieces, understand basic elements of 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 around 800.

Classes are on Monday and begin on June 24th from 4:30pm - 6:00pm

Please note that the booking system says June 15th, but that is not correct.
Click Here to Book

What Will I Learn?

Our Beyond the Basics group course spans 8-weeks, and provides a progressive learning experience based on the ChessKid curriculum. The course is taught by US-Chess-certified coached, and topics include, but are not limited to:

Opening Play:
- Common opening themes and pawn structures
Middlegame Magic:
- Advanced Chess Tactics (double attack, fork, pin, skewer, discovered attack, double checks, removal of defenders, and deflection)
- Pawn tactics: passed pawns, pawn promotion, and other pawn tactics
Endgame Play:
- King play
- King and rook mates
- King and pawn endings
- Advanced endgame play and winning technique (e.g., opposition, magic square)

Common Questions

Q: What is included in the course?

A: Each student will be provided with a notation book and a copy of the curriculum with exercises and assignments.

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

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.

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 a US-Chess Federation sanctioned rated tournament game.

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 feel rest assured that the instructor will be happy to go over concepts in person when you return!

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.

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.