End of Year Party

Three Champions:  Nick Bruck (2nd), Taylor Walton (1st), Andrew Uriarte (3rd)

Chess Club and Friends

Four Seniors honored with School Letters:  Taylor Walton, Juve Ruiz, Maxx Bates, and Tyler Jaramillo

We honored Erwin Kett for his dedication with a beautiful wood board from Poland

Curly and Miles Can't get enough. . .

Julia and Andrew 

They are better chess players than bowlers!

Umm . . .

Nick and Miles (Miles was awarded Most Inspirational Player)

Nick Bruck, WRHS :MVP

The New WRHS Chess Champion

Andrew Uriarte was voted in as President and Miles Hendrix as Vice President for the 2010-11 school year.

End of the Year Summary

Here is to a great year!  We had members attend over 23 local to national tournaments and we collectively earned over 43 awards.  We added a club website, purchased training software, sponsored a simul, boasted over 28 active members, featured guest lecturers, and had lot's of fun.  Here are other achievements.

Team Achievements:

2010 State Scholastic Champions

2010 West Jordan 1st Place

2010 Twin Falls Invitational 1st Place

Individual Achievements:

Nick Bruck

1^st Place Christmas Blitz

3^rd Place 11^th grade West Jordan

2^nd Place WRHS Chess Championship

Andrew Uriarte

2^nd Place Christmas Blitz

1^st Place High School Winter Tournament

1^st Place Santa’s Bughouse

1^st Place Challenger MVCC

3pt. trophy West Jordan

2^nd Place 11^th grade State Scholastics

2^nd Place Class E State Closed

3rd Place WRHS Championship

Tyler Jaramillo

2^nd Place High School Winter Tournament

Adam Porth

2^nd Place Southern Idaho Open

2^nd place Challenger MVCC

1^st Place Class E State Closed

Chris “Curly” Ellis

1^st Place Santa’s Bughouse

3^rd Place High School Winter Tournament

3 pt. Trophy West Jordan

Taylor Walton

1^st Place Think Like a King Contest

1^st Place WRHS Chess Championship

Desmond Porth

1^st Place U800 US National Scholastics

2^nd Place 7^th grade West Jordan

1^st Place Middle School Winter Tournament

Darwin Porth

1^st Place K-3 Winter Tournament

Dylan Porth

1^st Place 4-5^th grade Winter Tournament

3 pt. trophy West Jordan

6^th place 4^th grade State Scholastics

Jake Whitlock

1^st Place 6^th grade Winter Tournament

1^st Place 6^th grade West Jordan

Raleigh Grossbaum

2^nd Place 10^th grade West Jordan

Shane Bruess

3 pt. trophy West Jordan

Maxx Bates

1^st Place 12^th grade West Jordan (Perfect Score)

3^rd Place Twin Falls Invitational

Miles Hendrix

1^st Place Twin Falls Invitational

Juve Ruiz

2^nd Place 12^th grade State Scholastics

Taylor Walton wins WRHS Chess Championship!

Miles and Taylor square off

      Taylor Walton (5.0) almost did not make it to the final section, but in an executive decision by Pres. Nick Bruck and Advisor Adam Porth, he did.  Fortuitously for Taylor!  He maintained a renewed focus and practiced his guitar and chess on a daily basis, according to his father.   It sure showed up in his tournament games for the championship.  He wins a mahogany board, a nice trophy, and a place in WRHS history on the perpetual plaque.
       Defending champion, Nick Bruck (5.0) earns second place with only one loss to Taylor.  In the game against Taylor, recording mistakes prevented Taylor from continuing record keeping and put Nick in time trouble.  In the future, it was decided that all participants in the championship will be required to record in order to claim a win, loss, or draw.  Nick wins a trophy and a Saitek digital clock.
       Andrew Uriarte (4.0) won third place after a win against Tyler Jaramillo (3.0).  Andrew wins a trophy and Chessmaster 9000.  Senior Tyler Jaramillo leaves our Chess Club program with a fourth place book by Emmanuel Lasker, Common Sense in Chess and some great memories.  I think he was happy to win third place as he wanted to win that program.  Esdras Santiago (2.0) and Miles Hendrix (2.0) were welcome participants and played tough games against all competitors.

Standings in the WRHS Championship are:
1st place  Taylor Walton, 5.0 
2nd place Nick Bruck, 5.0 
3rd place Andrew Uriarte, 4.0 
4th place Tyler Jaramillo, 3.0 
5th place Miles Hendrix, 2.0 
6th place Liam Skye, 1.0 
7th place Esdras Santiago, 0

End of year party!

Particulars:
Meet at Bellevue Memorial Park for giant chess, recreational play, pizza and awards, and then we will head to the bowling alley for bowling.  All alumni, parents, and friends of chess are welcome.  We will be honoring 4 seniors with school letters and pins, awards for all club members, trophies and prizes for WRHS Championship, and door prizes will be drawn.  We will vote for President and Vice President for next year (must attend to vote).  State Championship medals will be awarded as well.

Date:  Friday, May 28
Time:  6 pm
Place:  Bellevue Memorial Park (near my house)


Pictures from last year

Championship nears an end

The games are getting exciting and Andrew is beginning to calculate the possible outcomes.  I see much more confidence displayed among the players and a propensity to pay more attention to each others games.  Tonight, the boys actually analyzed a game between Miles and Andrew.  Chess Club is really bringing these kids together and they are being nicer to one another, as well as supporting one another more.  It makes me proud to see the growth.  Danny Mills (former Blitz and Bughouse Champion) visited with Junior Hidalgo.  Danny still has the knack for seeing sound, winning strategies and decisively beat me down in a game.  Julia is beginning to grow as a player as well.  She is showing me and the team her support by wearing our club shirt at the Las Vegas Open. That's right . . . her mom is bringing her to this prestigious tournament in June.  I hope she has a great experience there and doesn't let her enthusiasm wane during those tough games.

Standings in the WRHS Championship are (so far):
1st place  Nick Bruck, 5.0 (done)
2nd place Taylor Walton, 4.0 (2 games left - Miles and Esdras)
3rd place Andrew Uriarte, 3.0 (1 game left - Tyler)
4th place Miles Hendrix, 2.0 (2 games left - Taylor and Tyler)
5th place Tyler Jaramillo, 2.0 (2 games left - Miles and Andrew)
6th place Liam Skye, 1.0 (done)
7th place Esdras Santiago (1 game left - Taylor)
Good Luck on Tuesday, guys!

Nick, Taylor, Andrew and I discussed the championship next year.  Some important notes:  1.  All players will be required to keep score, 2.  We will start two weeks earlier next year.

Tuesday Chess Club

Nick Bruck played a Simul against 6 people.  He commented on how hard it was to keep all the games straight, however, he performed very well with 4 wins and 2 losses.  Great Job!  I hope more kids opt to play some Simuls.

Championship Rounds Begin

1. Miles Hedrix        1
2.  Nick Bruck         1        
3.  Tyler Jaramillo     0
4.  Liam Skye           0
5.  Esdras Santiago   0        
6.   Andrew Uriarte   0
7.  Taylor Walton      0

Group 1

Miles Hendrix 5 1/2

Nick Bruck 4 1/2

Liam Skye 4

Maxx Bates 2

Shane Bruess 2

Chris Ellis 1

Stephen Poklemba 1

**Group 1 is complete and Miles, Nick, and Liam move into the final Championship round.

Group 2

Esdras Santiago 6 1/2
Tyler Jaramillo 6

Andrew Uriarte 5 1/2

Taylor Walton 4

Juve Ruiz 1

Jason Black 1

WRHS Chess Championship Update

Group 1

Miles Hendrix 5 1/2
Liam Skye 3

Nick Bruck 2 1/2
Maxx Bates 2

Shane Bruess 2

Chris Ellis 1

Stephen Poklemba 1

Group 2

Esdras Santiago 5 1/2
Tyler Jaramillo 4
Andrew Uriarte 3 1/2

Taylor Walton 3
Juve Ruiz 1

Jason Black 1

Half our Club

WRHS Chess Championship Update

Group 1
Liam Skye 3
Miles Hendrix 3
Shane Bruess 1
Chris Ellis 1
Stephen Poklemba 1
Maxx Bates 0

Group 2
Esdras Santiago 1 1/2
Juve Ruiz 1
Taylor Walton 1
Jason Black 1
Andrew Uriarte 1/2

Who says chess isn't a sport?

My favorite chess scene

Chess Nuts

The Killing

Man vs. Machine

Chess is a Communist Game

WRHS Chess Club Website is Released!

Yipee! Our WRHS Chess Club now has their very own website!  This will be a great improvement as my family news and personal chess material is now on separate sites from the WRHS material.  Temporarily, all of my sites will be in dynamic flux and the new WRHS Chess Club site will be continually under construction until everything has been transferred.  Here is the new link:  www.wix.com/aporth/WRHS-Chess-Club

Educator's guide to the Benefits of Chess

I re-aquinted myself with a website link to the benefits of playing chess.  This was one of the first sites I came across that reports some of the chess literature.  It even offers a nice summary of each of the studies they are reporting.  My top ten favorite reasons to play chess include:

1. Chess develops a scientific way of thinking.
2. Chess teaches independence.
3. Chess promotes imagination and creativity.
4. Chess enables you to meet very interesting people.
5. Chess is a game for all ages (and is not a factor for opponents).
6. Chess improves memory.
7. Chess improves concentration and focus.
8. Chess promotes sportsmanship.
9. Chess provides global awareness.
10. Chess is fun!

The number of kids playing tournament chess is going down in Idaho!

Report to ICA for the Idaho Scholastic State Championship

March 27, 2010

            During the open board meeting at the Idaho Closed, concerns about the low scholastic numbers were raised by numerous individuals.  The following graphs indicate trends for the years 2006 – 2010 for the Idaho Scholastic State Chess Championship. 

Figure 1.  Total numbers of kids for each section.  This graph shows that the majority of the kids attending the tournament are in the elementary years, primarily in grades 2-5.

Figure 2.  This graph shows the percentage of kids in elementary, middle, and high school years attending the tournament.  The most stable group appears to be the high school sections.  There is variability in the elementary and middle school percentages.  Between 70% and 80% of the tournament is comprised of elementary kids.  The fewest number of kids is in the high school sections (less than 10%).

Figure 3.  This graph shows the total number of kids attending the tournament.  It also shows a trend-line that was a linear correlation.  The trend-line indicates that overall scholastic numbers are declining.

Figure 4.  This graph shows the total number of elementary kids. This group shows greater variability in total numbers and a marked decrease in participation from 2006 to 2010 compared to middle or high school groupings.  The low R-square value indicates the variability and the high slope of the regression is greatest for elementary section. 

Figure 5.  This graph shows the total number of middle school kids.  This group is declining from 2006 to 2010.

Figure 6.  This graph shows the total number of kids in the High School Section.  This group is declining from 2006 to 2010.

Figure 7.  This graph shows the total number of kids in the Championship Section.  This group is declining from 2006 to 2010.

Figure 8.  This graph shows the average gain (above the x-axis) or loss (below the x-axis) for each grade transition.  The tournament in grows between K and 1^st grade, 1^st and 2^nd grade, and 2^nd to 3^rdgrade.  From 3^rd to 4^th grade on to graduation, the tournament declines each year.  In fact, each grade transition loses 25%.  The largest loss to the tournament occurred in the 3^rd to 4^th grade year (+16 +(-3) = -19).  In actuality, there are only 5 students less in the 6^th to 7^th grade transition (-16 + (-11) = -5).

Conclusion: 

            As illustrated in the above figures, the Idaho State Scholastic Chess Championship is not growing, but declining in the number of players from 2006 to 2010.  Despite this, the middle school and high school sections are the most stable in terms of numbers in the tournament.  The elementary, middle school, and high school sections are all declining, however, at different rates.  The middle school and high school sections are declining the least fastest (you have to think about what “declining least fastest!” means).  Each year the tournament loses 25% of the previous players on average, beginning in 3^rd grade.  Though the bulk of the tournament (>70 %) are from the elementary sections, the greatest rate of decline is in the elementary sections, specifically in the 3^rd to 4^th grade transition. 

            Further discussion is needed to decide what may be the causes of these declines, however discussion should be focused on retention of players in each section with emphasis on 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th grades.