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MY STUDENTS AT THE NAG

 This year I had 4 students taking part in the 2025 NAG held at the same venue (Our Tampines Hub) but in December instead of end November.  In my opinion November may be a better time but I guess this is subjected to OTH's availability. Some top players were absent perhaps due to the schedule, but it does not take away the credit of the winners in the categories (which were changed to odd years from even years in 2024).  My students were placed in the lower of the age-category so they had uphill tasks when facing older opponents. So if they performed well, it is indeed a bonus.  U9 2 students competed in the U9 category. G scored 4.5/9 so he passed. Towards the last 4 rounds, he finally saw the light to review the notes in order to help his games. That made for his passing when he was scoring 1.5/4. E on the other hand could not get settle down in the tournament and had to settle for 3.5/9 scoring 1.5 from the last 4 games. From the scoresheets, he was not comfortabl...
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REPOSTING AN OLD ARTICLE FROM 1986

 Having lost my copy of the Singapore Chess Digest August 1986 ( 25 years ago) which this article of mine was published, I took a trip to the Library to retrieve it and reproduce it unabridged: LETTER TO THE EDITOR Dear Sir,     Chess clubs are created solely for players and enthusiasts to interact and exchange ideas regarding the game. It is often the hive of chess activity in strong chess—playing nations like the USA, Britain and West Germany, where friendly matches and club leagues are most popular.    However, chess clubs today seem to have lost their grip on the chess scene in Singapore. Poor attendances, little activity between clubs and, judging from the number of clubs that have been formed then closed after some months of hunger pangs, the direction of chess is vague and uncertain. Just what does a chess club serve to do for the interested player?    Well, it is certain that all clubs want to provide competitions for players, be it friend...
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ZOOM GROUP CLASS FOR KIDS 2026

  After the National Age-Group Championships, I can see that interest is strong in the younger kids that took part. Many desire to have chess lessons. I was approached by quite a few parents whether I take in students for 1-1 lessons, but many may not be afford my rates. So I am now offering to do a 4 part simplified series of my “Zoom Class For Improvement” to those who wish to attend but are unable to afford 1-1 private lessons. However, parents need to know that there are of course compromises to this approach: a.       The topics cannot be tailored to suit each child. b.       The schedule has to be fixed so there is no way of adjusting it c.        Measuring progress is not in the scope of the lesson THE TOPICS 1                     Visualisation and Board Awareness 2    ...
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WHY PLAY NAG?

 I often wonder why myself.   Is it for personal achievement? Fulfiling parents' expectations? Trying out for DSA? Or just to get better. Whatever the reasons, do treat the NAG differently from the weekly events that you may play in.   A lot of time is invested - for young players with accompanying persons, many sacrifices are made to babysit you at the venue. Your time is also invested in playing the game. NAG is not a FUN event and should not be regarded as one. It is a testament of how well you currently are plus a measure of you against the rest of the cohort ( meaning those of your age plus those 1 year older). Therefore I would take the NAG as seriously as a mini " exam ". 9 test papers. 9 examiners, ie your opponents who will not stop asking your questions till you end the test. The results at the end of 9 rounds will decide who passes and who fails. Nobody walks into an exam expecting to fail. Yet why do players not treat their preparation seriously??...
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RERUN OF SERIES " ZOOM CLASS FOR IMPROVERS"

* * UPDATE : 3 HAVE SIGNED UP  ! For those who have missed the series, I am doing a re-run of the Zoom Class for Improvers to start in January 2026. We can start only if we get a minimum of 6 students for the sessions. $100 to be paid upfront before the start, with presentation slides AND the video of the full session given to each participant. A sample clip for the first session on Visualisation. Interested ? Please drop me an email at jfan2003@gmail.com with the header " Zoom Class for Improvers" and we can take it from there. To reiterate the topics that I am going to cover, they are:  Date Topic 05/1/2026 Board Awareness and Board Vision 12/1/2026 What to watch on Youtube? 19/1/2026 How to study Chess Books 26/1/2026 Playing online for improvement   03/2/2026 Selecting an Opening that suits you
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ZOOM CLASS GRADUATION !

 So we've come to the final session tonight! The past 4 sessions was productive in getting the content across to the enthusiastic participants, with good questions on the related topics. Of the 4 sessions, most had challenges in visualisation which was not covered in most chess literature. It is always easy to read about it, watch videos to show how its done but nothing like practicing it regularly to see progress in the games. This effort takes a long time to master but the dividends are worth it. The next challenge came in on Playing Online for Improvement. When reviewing the games of the participants, most preferred to spend time on shorter time controls  probably owing to lack of time. However, it is better to accumulate spare time to solving puzzles if there isn't enough time to play a minimal 10 5 or 5 3 game. Anything less than that would not work towards chess improvement. Lastly I urge my participants to try and play regularly over the board. Committing 2 hours a week...
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