The Curriculum
The Pathway
One curriculum, eight levels — from a child's first legal move to preparing for a rated tournament.
The levels
Rating bands are CFC (Chess Federation of Canada) ratings. A child is placed by what they can demonstrate, not by the number alone.
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First Moves
Unrated – 600
Typical duration · [2 terms]
By the end of this level, a child can —
- Set the board up correctly and name any square out loud without counting up from a1.
- Play a whole game start to finish without an adult stepping in to settle a rule.
- Checkmate a lone king with a king and queen, from any starting position.
- Say why a move is illegal when their own king is left in check.
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Apprentice
600 – 800
Typical duration · [2 terms]
By the end of this level, a child can —
- Notice a piece hanging — theirs or their opponent's — before they touch anything.
- Finish a king-and-rook against lone king endgame without stalemating.
- Get both knights and bishops out and castle inside the first ten moves, unprompted.
- Record a full game in algebraic notation while playing it.
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Scholar
800 – 1000
Typical duration · [2–3 terms]
By the end of this level, a child can —
- Spot a fork one move before it lands, and set one up on purpose.
- Count attackers and defenders on a square before capturing on it.
- Win a king-and-pawn endgame by taking the opposition.
- Say out loud what their opponent threatened, after every single opponent move.
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Vladimir
800-1000
Typical duration · [2 terms]
By the end of this level, a child can —
- Set the board up correctly and name any square out loud without counting up from a1.
- Play a whole game start to finish without an adult stepping in to settle a rule.
- Checkmate a lone king with a king and queen, from any starting position.
- Say why a move is illegal when their own king is left in check.
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Journeyman
1000 – 1200
Typical duration · [3 terms]
By the end of this level, a child can —
- Find a two-move combination — pin, skewer, deflection — in a position that looks quiet.
- Put the rook behind the passed pawn without being told to, and know why.
- Play their first eight moves as White and as Black from memory, and explain each one.
- Manage a clock well enough never to lose on time in a winning position.
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Adept
1200 – 1400
Typical duration · [3 terms]
By the end of this level, a child can —
- Give up material for a return they have actually calculated, not one they hope for.
- Convert an extra pawn into a win against an opponent who defends properly.
- Find the weak square in a position and plant a knight on it.
- Review their own loss afterwards and name the move where it turned.
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Candidate
1400 – 1600
Typical duration · [3–4 terms]
By the end of this level, a child can —
- Calculate a forcing line four moves deep and check it against the opponent's best reply.
- Choose a plan from the pawn structure rather than waiting for a tactic to appear.
- Hold a worse position by finding the most stubborn defensive setup, not the fastest move.
- Prepare for a named opponent by looking at how that opponent has played before.
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Expert
1600 – 1800
Typical duration · [4 terms]
By the end of this level, a child can —
- Keep an opening repertoire of their own and update it after every tournament.
- Convert a small endgame edge — bishop against knight, rook and pawn against rook.
- Budget their time across a full classical game rather than spending it in the opening.
- Annotate their own games with candidate moves and evaluations, not just the result.
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Grandmaster
2600+
Typical duration · [2 terms]
By the end of this level, a child can —
- Set the board up correctly and name any square out loud without counting up from a1.
- Play a whole game start to finish without an adult stepping in to settle a rule.
- Checkmate a lone king with a king and queen, from any starting position.
- Say why a move is illegal when their own king is left in check.
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Master
1800+
Typical duration · [ongoing]
By the end of this level, a child can —
- Prepare specific lines against a specific opponent the evening before a round.
- Steer a game toward the kind of position their opponent has historically handled badly.
- Play the technical endgames accurately — rook and bishop against rook, and their kin.
- Walk a younger player through a position without ever giving away the move.
How a child is placed, and how they move up.
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Assessment
A short assessment — one game and a handful of positions. Twenty minutes, no preparation needed.
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Placement
The child starts at the level they can already play at, which is not always the level their age suggests.
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Promotion on evidence
They move up when they can demonstrate the capabilities of their level to a coach — not when the term ends.
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Termly review
Every term, each child’s progress is written down and sent to parents, and summarised for the school.
The Record
Every term, in writing.
Parents receive a single page: the level their child is working in, the capabilities they have demonstrated, the ones still outstanding, and the coach's note on what to practise at home.
Schools receive the same information as a cohort summary — attendance, how the group is distributed across the levels, and who moved up this term.
Where would my child start?
An assessment answers that in twenty minutes. Book one, or ask us for a written proposal for your school.