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Chess Tip of the Day: Think First, Move Second!

Chess is for everyone

chess kids

The Illinois All Grade, created and sponsored by the Illinois Chess Association, is held during the fall of each year, usually in November. Each grade is held as a separate tournament - each player plays only others in their own grade. To be eligible players must be Illinois residents attending Illinois schools or being home schooled within the state.


The All Grade is held in Central Illinois in odd numbered years, usually in Peoria. It is held in the Chicago metropolitan area in even numbered years.


Team trophies are also given for the top team scores in each grade group. To compete as a team, all players must be from the same school or home schooled but teamed with the school that they would attend if in the public school system. The top 3 individual scores are combined to determine the school's team score. As in all trophy tournaments, it is impossible to plan for ties. When they do happen we provide the trophy to the player who played the most difficult schedule by adding up the scores of his opponents. See the FAQ for more details.

This tournament designates a state champion for each grade, Kindergarten through senior in high school, and so "playing up" in a higher grade is not permitted and probably not even desired.



GPCF

Greater Peoria Chess Foundation

The GPCF is the driving force behind Peoria Chess. We provide sets and boards to the local school chess programs and tournaments and activities. The Foundation supplies the fiscal muscle to promote chess in the Greater Peoria area. Our youth chess programs involve 100s of youths of various ages and have included the state champions both individual and school team. See our web site for more details on our services. The GPCF is proud to have obtained the bid for the 2019 All Grade and hope you enjoy your stay.


ICA

Illinois Chess Association

The State All Grade Championship is only one of many tournaments sponsored by the ICA. In addition to the All Grade in the fall, the ICA also sponsors the K-8 Championship in the spring. In the All Grade, students play only those in their own grade. In the K-8, at the end of the school year, the emphasis is more on teams and grades are mixed so that more schools can have team participation. ICA also provides adult tournaments such as the Illinois Open, the Illinois Class and the Illinois Senior championships.


Venue

Peoria Civic Center

The Peoria Civic Center should be a familiar site to scholastic chess players in Illinois. It has been the host site for The IHSA and IESA state tournaments for years. This year's All Grade will be held in the same Ballroom. But instead of having skittles the area a distance away, we are splitting the ballroom into 2 sections with the playing space in one section and the skittles between round space next door. This year we have added new nearby team rooms for the convenience of the larger schools. Please contact us if you or your school is interested in getting one of the team rooms.