Chess puzzle competition is very different from tournament chess play.
Contestants in a chess puzzle contest receive a paper-and-pencil test that includes a series of chess boards with pieces in particular positions.
Questions are based on analysis of material or possible moves in each given diagram.
A chess puzzle event provides an avenue for chess participation that does not require the time and resources of actual tournament play.
Setting up chesspuzzles on a real chess board or playing online chess is great practice!
Contest Format
Chess Puzzle is offered for grades 2-8 in three divisions: grades 2-3, grades 4-5 and grades 6-8. As with other A+ events, districts may choose to structure with these as combined divisions or may choose to offer a separate division for each individual grade level.
Each division will take a 30-minute objective test plus a separate 5-minute tiebreaker section. A different test is provided for each of the three divisions. The tiebreaker section is identical for ALL divisions.
All Chess Puzzle test questions are now multiple-choice format, to allow for a broader scope of questions and increase the educational value of the contest (and make grading even easier).
All grade levels will take the same tiebreaker section. Tiebreakers need only be graded for contestants actually involved in a tie.
Scoring
+1 for correct answers (for both test and tiebreaker)
no deduction for incorrect or unanswered questions (for both test and tiebreaker)