CT State Chess Association 2021 Scholastic Club of the Year 

2025-2026 Chess Club Registration is NOW OPEN!

Please contact jessica.bower6@gmail.com or victoria.poncedeleon28@gmail.com with sign-up questions.

The Riverfield Chess Club is open to PTA member students in 1st through 5th grades. We hope to see all of our familiar faces from last year, as well as many new ones! 

Please register and pay membership dues by September 23, 2025 via the Google Form:

(https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfXsrXfbjNIVgwcy580KUIqsgQ6p1s5Mr9bS8Es_D-VmafeFg/viewform)  

Membership Dues

Single-child registration: $75.00 per child

Family registration (more than 1 member): $120.00 per family

Please send a check made out to Riverfield PTA and send it with your kid to school in an envelop marked as "Chess Club".

Important Chess Club Information

When does Chess Club start? There are two start dates—returning players start before new players. 

Returning players: First Chess Club Meeting is on Friday, Sept 26, 2025 at 8:00 am in the APR! 

New members: First meeting for new members is on Friday, Oct 3, 2025 at 8:00 am in the LIBRARY. All new members participate in a 5-week introductory chess clinic with former Club Director Matt Tuccillo.  

What is chess? Chess is a time-honored game (dating back 1,500 years!) that teaches kids critical thinking, strategy, competition, and sportsmanship – skills they can use throughout their lives. Once learned, it becomes a life-long love, something they can play anywhere, anytime, with anyone, at any age.

What is Chess Club? We are an extra-curricular club at Riverfield run by parent volunteers that offers chess instruction and game play in a fun and safe environment. Our main goals are helping our Riverfield kids develop critical thinking skills, confidence and self-esteem. We accomplish these goals by practicing positive sportsmanship and exposing our chess players to various forms of competition, while always prioritizing fun! Chess club has been a part of Riverfield for more than 25 years and is the largest scholastic club in CT. Have we mentioned that our club was named CT State Chess Association 2021 Scholastic Club of the Year?!

How do structure club meetings? The year kicks off with a beginner chess clinic for all new members. While this clinic is held in the Library, all returning club members begin with a fall round robin-style tournament in the APR. Over the course of the fall, we hold small-group break-out chess lessons, so our kids can continue to hone their chess skills. As the year unfolds, we continue to run a combination of “friendly” matches and tournaments, as well as weekly skill-based chess problem challenges. We want to see our kids consistently engaged in chess play, so they can practice their sportsmanship and game skills. 

And there’s more! Wait, there is more?! Yes! While chess can be a competitive game, we always want our kids to have fun! So, some weeks we include a MEGA CHESS SET for our kids to play with after their matches. Once a year, we host an optional after-school class called “Girls Who Checkmate,” and we carry on our annual chess exchange tradition with Cesar A. Batalla School in Bridgeport for a select group of members. When it’s cold outside and the kids are getting cabin fever, we mix a board game day (or two) into our schedule! For those with a competitive spirit, we host an external (optional) chess tournament at Riverfield. We also celebrate our chess successes throughout the year with promotion prizes and a big, annual end-of-year awards breakfast! 

Who can join? Chess Club is open to everyone in grades 1 through 5, at any skill level, from “I have no idea what chess is” to children wanting to compete in external state tournaments. We offer something for everyone.  There were over 90 Chess Club members last year and we hope for another fun and engaged group this year! 

If you have any questions, please contact Jessica Bower at JESSICA.BOWER6@GMAIL.COM

For anyone looking for a replay of the chess lessons for players new and old, please find helpful links here: 

1. This link explains the chess pieces:  http://www.chesslab.com/rules/chesspieces.html
2. This link explains how to set up the chess board:  https://www.chess.com/article/view/how-to-set-up-a-chessboard
3. This link explains basic piece movement and game strategy:  https://www.chess.com/learn-how-to-play-chess#chess-strategies
4. Matt Tuccillo recorded the Riverfield Beginners Class posted to a YouTube channel. The 5-session live class translated into 7 videos covering all the same topics as the live class - for each video, click "more" in the description field to see the specific subjects covered.  If your child misses any live sessions this month, or if you want to review anything at home, these videos are a good way to do it.  Please excuse pandemic appearance.  Here is the (non-public) link to the full class: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLHxXi1YKqJPH-7-QXxpRZmhglQ2rC276m