Special Chess Class

The Special Class is addressed to students who can and enjoy spending at least 6 hours/week for studying.

The Special Class program includes the other 2 modules (main module and openings module) and,
in addition, the students of this class have our special high support: they are closely observed by us, their solutions to exercises are corrected and recorded, their games are analyzed and their plan of improvement is continuously "modeled" according to their needs and progress.

Our extra support offered to the students of this class consists in:

Problems & Comments to Solutions
Every month, we publish sets of problems and exercises into the main account. We expect from our students to solve those problems/exercises and, then, write down and send their solutions to us.

First of all, explaining the solution (in write) will force the student to get an organized thinking in chess, of course, following the way of thinking we taught to them.

Then, besides giving the correct solutions, we analyze their answers evaluating the weaknesses and strengths in their play and way of thinking. We comment especially around where the response is not good, telling WHY the solution was wrong and how the good one could have been found.

This method (solving problems, writing down the thoughts and, then, receiving a professional feedback) assures the improvement and was successfully used in Botvinnik's and Dvoretsky's chess schools and in all training camps for national chess teams.

Annotating the Games
We analyze the games of the students of the Special Class.
The students are encouraged to send us all the OTB (over-the-board) games they will play, together with their comments and analysis as follows:

• Comments - We are interested to know what the students were thinking during the game, how comfortable they were in the different stages of the game and where they thought that a "key-position" occurred in the game. What variations did they consider during the game and how much time they spent to think at the moves are also important aspects.
• Home analysis of the game - After the game, the students have to do on their own the analysis of their games in order to discover better moves and plans for them and for their opponent. The analysis of the game should be made by THEM first, and, only then, verified by us.

We will then analyze the students' games, thoughts, and home-analysis and will discuss our conclusions with them. Again, a professional feedback on one of the most sensible tasks a serious student has to do for his progress is invaluable.

Opening Repertoire
Another very sensible area is the opening repertoire. The Special Class includes the extra module on opening preparation and we provide a very important support for this preparation. Any questions or doubts of the students are treated with much care so that any problem will be solved quickly and thoroughly.

Besides providing opening lessons and materials, we work together with the students for making them to understand the openings subtleties and the middlegame positions. In the end of the year, the student will have a strong opening repertoire, well understood and well known.

Entry requirement

We dedicate lot of time to our students of this Special Class and, therefore, we are asking for some conditions to be fulfilled. So, if you want to register, please consider:

• You have at least 6 hours/week for studying chess;
• You know and understand that you'll have to work hard following exactly our methods;
• You have ChessBase or Fritz software, or you can purchase one of them until you start the courses and you know or can learn to use them;
• You can print the materials that we will send to you in .pdf format;
• You will solve the exercises on your own, on the real board and won't cheat by using more time than advised or chess engines;
• You will follow our method, advises and you will do your "homework". However, we won't ask from you more than you can give or more than the initial program specifies (and which is made TOGETHER with you).

The Special Class monthly fee is 190 USD, or about 140 EUR, including all modules: strategy, tactics and openings.  A lot of professional work, methods, experience gathered in many years and a lot of time dedicated to every student cannot be cheaper than that. Moreover, you probably know that most good trainers in the world take this money for only 4 hours of online debate and nothing more. Our type of communication by email is the most efficient as both you and we will work in our good time to get the scheduled tasks completely done.

For subscriptions, please contact us through email and tell us about you, your age, level in chess, time for chess, aspirations, how many tournaments you are able to participate in during next year, courses attended until now and the books you have studied. You are also welcome to include your games or a selection of your latest games as any other details you consider useful.

After admission, the students will be tested for their skills and knowledge. Also, discussions about the specific issues as opening repertoire and psychology should give us a complete profile of the student.