Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s), Nov. 4, 2019
Thank you all for your patience and support during the strike. I know that this was a difficult time for families and students, and we hope that you understand why teachers felt forced to make this choice. Now, it is time for us to look ahead. And we have a lot of chess fun to look forward to!
Here are the details about the upcoming CCF tournament: November 9th at Brooks College Prep Academy 250 E. 111th Street (11100 South), at Martin Luther King Drive Schedule: Registration 8:30 - 9:15a.m. -All players must check-in at the tournament site by 9:15! Tournament 10:00a.m. - 3:15p.m. -Late arrivals will not be paired in the first round. Trophy Presentation 4:00p.m. (estimated) 5 Sections: Novice K-1 (Pawns), Novice 2-3 (Knights), Novice 4-5 (Bishops), Novice 6-8 (Rooks), Intermediate, Advanced Unrated, no entry fee; Swiss-style, 5 rounds (est.), USCF standard tie-breaks Awards: Individual trophies to the top 7 in all sections. Team trophies to the top two teams in all novice sections; top team in Intermediate and Advanced. Team score calculated by top four scores in novice sections, top three scores in advanced. Behavior: Remember that you are representing yourself and your school. You are expected to follow the Blaze Ways and our Core Values wherever you go. If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact me at acgeisler@cps.edu or (773)534-5055. Sincerely, Mr. Geisler Oct. 15, 2019
Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s), Due to some scheduling conflicts, the Nobel Invitational has been postponed. There will be no tournament this weekend. As soon as the event has been rescheduled, we will let you know. Also, in the event of a strike, any practices or events that are scheduled will be canceled. To make planning easier this week, I am canceling all practices that were scheduled. There will be no chess club or All-Stars practice on Thu. (10/17). I apologize for any inconvenience and I appreciate your understanding. For now, we are preparing for the next tournament on the schedule, which is the first CPS event, the All-Stars Tournament scheduled for Sat. Oct. 26 at Chicago Vocational High School. A flyer will be sent home, but there is also information on the Bateman Chess Team website: http://bateman.cps.edu/bateman-chess.html. As a reminder, you can also see the posted practice schedule there as well. Remember to sign up for email alerts on the team website as well, in case I need to send out any updates online. If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact me at acgeisler@cps.edu or (773)534-5055. Sincerely, Mr. Geisler Download Newsletter CC_CAS_2 Oct. 11, 2019
Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s), Welcome back! I hope the school year is going well for everyone. The All-Stars program will officially begin on October 22. However, we have an Invitational tournament hosted by Nobel Elementary on Saturday, October 19, so I wanted to invite last year’s All-Stars to get an early start.
If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact me at acgeisler@cps.edu or (773)534-5055. Sincerely, Mr. Geisler Download Newsletter CAS_1 Invitational Chess Tournament @ Nobel Elementary has been postponed. An update will be coming soon.Oct. 4, 2019 Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s), I hope the school year is off to a good start for everyone. We are excited to get the chess team up and running again for another successful year. There are some changes to our practice structure this year, and we have some upcoming events to put on the calendar. *As you all have likely heard, there may be a strike that begins on Oct. 17. If that occurs, unfortunately any school activities will be canceled, including practices and scholastic tournaments. I will certainly keep you up to date!
If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact me at acgeisler@cps.edu or (773)534-5055. Sincerely, Mr. Geisler Download Newsletter CC_1
May 30, 2019
Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s), Our Chess Club party is coming up on Tue. June 4. I am asking that each player bring a drink or snack to share. I will be providing pizza for everybody. We will be celebrating our successful school year of chess. This is also a reminder that our annual Chess-a-thon is Tue. June 11. Chess Team members can participate by hosting a board on one of the tables that will be set up at the Bateman park. Other Bateman students, parents, and community members can play against any of the Chess Team members. Non-Bateman Team kids will pay $1 per game, while adults can play for $2 (or more if they want to donate). I will be meeting the students at the park at 3:15 to begin setting up for the event, which opens to the public at 3:30. A separate permission slip will be sent home for that event next week. The final tournament of the school year is the CCF All-Girls tournament at Skinner North on June 8. This event was a big success last year, and we expect another great experience this year! Any girl on the chess team will receive an information sheet and permission slip. Unfortunately, I will be out of town that weekend, so any Bateman players will need to be accompanied by a parent. Sorry for the inconvenience, but I hope that we have a big group of Bateman girls to represent our school! The CCF Summer Camps (for rising 3rd-8th graders) are booking up fast! If you are interested, you may register at the following website: http://chicagolandchess.org/2018-chess-camps/. Bateman has 15 spots reserved for the camp that we are hosting the week of June 24-28. Reach out to me directly if you have any questions or concerns. Encourage your child to keep their chess game sharp by using their Chesskid accounts throughout the summer. Look out for online tournaments and other over-the-board chess opportunities by checking out the Bateman Chess Team website: http://bateman.cps.edu/bateman-chess.html. If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact me at acgeisler@cps.edu or (773)534-5055. Sincerely, Mr. Geisler (Member: United States Chess Federation, Illinois Chess Association, Chicago Chess Foundation) Download Newsletter Download Permission Slip Download CCF All-Girls Tournament Info CC_19 May 23, 2019
Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s), Congratulations to the players who participated at the final CCF tournament of the year at Nobel School. For those who were not able to play in a tournament this year, you will be on the waiting list for next year’s Chess program. As a reminder, this Thursday (5/23) will be our final practice of the school year. Also, unfortunately due to another scheduling conflict, there will be no Free Chess this Friday (5/24). After a week of no chess activities at Bateman, we will have our Chess Club Party on Tue. June 4. I am asking that each player bring a drink or snack to share. I will be providing pizza for everybody. We will be celebrating our successful school year of chess. I am very proud of the accomplishments of our team and its incredible individuals. This is a reminder that our annual Chess-a-thon is Tue. June 11. All-stars can participate by hosting a board on one of the tables that will be set up at the Bateman park. Other Bateman students, parents, and community members can play against any of the Chess Team members. Non-Bateman Team kids will pay $1 per game, while adults can play for $2 (or more if they want to donate). I will be meeting the students at the park at 3:15 to begin setting up for the event, which opens to the public at 3:30. We will be sending home more information soon about the event. The final tournament of the school year is the CCF All-Girls tournament at Skinner North on June 8. More information will be shared as we get closer to that event. The CCF Summer Camps (for rising 3rd-8th graders) are booking up fast! If you are interested, you may register at the following website: http://chicagolandchess.org/2018-chess-camps/. Bateman has 15 spots reserved for the camp that we are hosting the week of June 24-28. Reach out to me directly if you have any questions or concerns. Please also remember that the Chesskid accounts will be active all summer long. I encourage you to have your child keep their chess skills sharp by occasionally working on lessons, puzzles, and online games. Of course, it’s always great to play with family members over the board with real chess sets too! It has been another great year for Bateman’s chess program! I appreciate all of the support and commitment from the parents and guardians. We are looking to continue our Bateman Chess Team achievements next year and beyond! There may be some other summer chess opportunities. You can stay informed by bookmarking the Illinois Chess Association website: http://il-chess.org/all-events. This is also linked to our own Bateman Chess Team website: http://bateman.cps.edu/bateman-chess.html. If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact me at acgeisler@cps.edu or (773)534-5055. Sincerely, Mr. Geisler (Member: United States Chess Federation, Illinois Chess Association, Chicago Chess Foundation) Download Newsletter CC_18 May 21, 2019 Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s), Congratulations to the All-Stars who participated at the final CCF tournament of the year at Nobel School. For those who were not able to play in a tournament this year, you will be on the waiting list for next year’s All-Stars program. If a student is entering 4th grade, they have the option of joining the after school Chess Club. As a reminder, this Thursday (5/23) will be our final practice of the school year. Also, unfortunately due to another scheduling conflict, there will be no Free Chess this Friday (5/24). This is a reminder that our annual Chess-a-thon is Tue. June 11. All-stars can participate by hosting a board on one of the tables that will be set up at the Bateman park. Other Bateman students, parents, and community members can play against any of the Chess Team members. Non-Bateman Team kids will pay $1 per game, while adults can play for $2 (or more if they want to donate). I will be meeting the students at the park at 3:15 to begin setting up for the event, which opens to the public at 3:30. We will be sending home more information soon about the event. The final tournament of the school year is the CCF All-Girls tournament at Skinner North on June 8. More information will be shared as we get closer to that event. The CCF Summer Camps (for rising 3rd-8th graders) are booking up fast! If you are interested, you may register at the following website: http://chicagolandchess.org/2018-chess-camps/. Bateman has 15 spots reserved for the camp that we are hosting the week of June 24-28. Reach out to me directly if you have any questions or concerns. Please also remember that the Chesskid accounts will be active all summer long. I encourage you to have your child keep their chess skills sharp by occasionally working on lessons, puzzles, and online games. Of course, it’s always great to play with family members over the board with real chess sets too! It has been another great year for Bateman’s chess program! I appreciate all of the support and commitment from the parents and guardians. We are looking to continue our Bateman Chess Team achievements next year and beyond! There may be some other summer chess opportunities. You can stay informed by bookmarking the Illinois Chess Association website: http://il-chess.org/all-events. This is also linked to our own Bateman Chess Team website: http://bateman.cps.edu/bateman-chess.html. If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact me at acgeisler@cps.edu or (773)534-5055. Sincerely, Mr. Geisler Member: United States Chess Federation, Illinois Chess Association, Chicago Chess Foundation Download Newsletter AS_3 May 9, 2019 Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s), Thank you to all of the Bateman families that were able to make it out for the Chicago Chess Foundation tournament that we hosted on Apr. 27. Congratulations to the 3rd / 4th grade team who earned the 1st place team trophy! The K-2nd team also had an outstanding performance claiming the 2nd place prize! The Intermediate and Advanced teams finished in 2nd as well, but just missed out on the only team trophy in those sections. We also had two individual champions: Gabriel J. in the K-2, and Andrey N. in the Advanced, both of whom had perfect scores! We have one more whole team CCF tournament, with the details listed below. Let’s also wish good luck to the Bateman players who are traveling down to Nashville, TN for the Elementary Nationals tournament! As a reminder, our final practices will be Thu. May 23. Please see the important notes in the rest of this letter about the wrap up for our successful chess season.
Free CCF K-8 Tournament (Sat. May 18) Alfred Nobel Elementary School 4127 W. Hirsch (1400 N) Schedule: Check-in 8:30 - 9:15am -All players must check-in at the tournament site by 9:15! Tournament 10:15am - 3:00pm -Late arrivals will not be paired in the first round. Trophy Presentation 3:30 (est.) Sections: Novice K-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8, Intermediate, Advanced -Unrated, no entry fee -Swiss-style, 5 rounds (est.) -USCF standard tiebreaks -G/20 + 3 sec. increment in Advanced section (Bring clocks if possible) Awards: Individual trophies to the top 7 in all sections. Team trophies to the top two teams in all novice sections, top team in Intermediate and Advanced. Team score calculated by top four scores in novice sections, top three scores in advanced. Please return the permission slip by Tue. May 14. Be prepared to spend the day with us, as we wrap up another successful year for the Bateman Chess Team. As a reminder, I am not allowed to drive any students, so please make all drop-off and pick-up arrangements. If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact me at acgeisler@cps.edu or (773)534-5055.
Sincerely, Mr. Geisler Member: United States Chess Federation, Illinois Chess Association, Chicago Chess Foundation Apr. 23, 2019
Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s), I hope everyone had a nice spring break. Congratulations to the players who participated in the MVP tournament! We have two final free CCF tournaments left in the school year, but there are also other chess events from now through June to consider. Please make every effort to attend one or more of them so the team can continue to build our tournament experience. Here are some updates:
Please return the attached permission slip by Thu. Apr. 25, if you plan to attend. Because we are hosting, we will also be in charge of the concessions and other hosting responsibilities. We are looking for parent volunteers to help with these roles. Please contact Mr. Geisler (acgeisler@cps.edu) if you are willing and able to help. Even if you cannot commit to the full day, every little bit will help us run a smooth event. However, if you are dropping off and picking up your child, please be on time. I am not allowed to transport any students. The information is on the reverse side of this page. If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact me at acgeisler@cps.edu or (773)534-5055. Sincerely, Mr. Geisler (Member: U.S. Chess Federation, Illinois Chess Association, Chicago Chess Foundation) CCF Tournament on Sat. April 27 at Bateman Elementary School Schedule: Registration: 8:30-9:30am Opening Announcements at 9:45am Tournament 10:00am - 3:15pm -All players must check-in at the tournament site by 9:30! -Late arrivals will not be paired in the first round. Trophy Presentation 3:30 (estim.) 5 Sections: Novice K-2, Novice 3-4, Novice 5-6, Novice 7-8, Intermediate, Advanced; Unrated, no entry fee; Swiss-style, 5 rounds (est.), USCF standard tie-breaks G/20 + 5 sec. increment in Advanced section when clocks are available Notation required in the Advanced section Awards: Individual trophies to the top 7 in all sections. Team trophies to the top two teams in all novice sections, and the top team in the intermediate and advanced sections. Team score calculated by top four scores in novice sections, top three scores in intermediate and advanced. |