MISAA Chess 2012

The MISAA Chess Tournament is happening now!

Scholastic Monster Sale 2012

Scholastic Books Philippines will have their Monster Sale:

  

My Weekend's Best Finishes

I got my premium account for Chesscube and slowly I am discovering the advantages of having one. You get to play VIP-only tournaments with 150 cubit worth of prizes for the champion. I think I got 8 championships this afternoon and this one game I'm showing gave me my eighth. Visit the link here.

My black pieces were outnumbered. I was down on the exchange in the middle game that started with White's 22nd move exf6 but somehow found a small hope when I made my 30th move Rxe5. This was a harmless sacrifice but when my opponent took it, the trap was set. Six moves later, I gave an elementary checkmate with my Rook and Bishop against a cornered King.

And here is another game from the same tournament, with the black pieces against a higher-rated opponent:

 

Philippine Reading Convention 2012

Calling all Literacy Advocates, Educators and Teachers:

Bro. Armin Luistro, Secretary of the Department of Education (DepEd), will deliver the keynote address in the Annual National Convention of the Reading Association of the Philippines (RAP), which will be held on November 8-10, 2012 in Century Park Hotel, Malate, Manila.

It will focus on the theme “K-12 and 21st Century Literacies,” with strands on K- Grade 3, Grades 4-7, Grades 8-12 and 21st Century Literacies; Technology, Assessment and the K-12 Curriculum; and Implications of the K-12 Curriculum on Teacher Education and Development. Speakers are curriculum, language and literacy experts, educational technology specialists, professors, researchers, and literacy advocates.

They include Dr. Jay Blanchard, a member of the International Reading Association Board of Directors from Arizona State University and Dr. Daniel Churchill of the Hong Kong University. We invite you to participate in this timely event as our schools nationwide embark on a new basic education curriculum that responds to 21st century demands.

The registration fees are: RAP Members/ Early Bird (before October 15, 2012) – Php 4,500.00 Non-RAP Members/ Walk-in Registrants – Php 5,000.00

Payments may be deposited to:

Account name: Reading Association of the Philippines Bank of the Philippine Islands (Loyola Katipunan Branch) Current Account No.: 3081–1721-87 The registration fee is inclusive of snacks and 1 lunch, kit, CD of handouts and certificates.

Participants are responsible for their own accommodation arrangements.

For further information, visit the rap web site at http://rap.org.ph/ or contact any of the following mobile nos.: 09155331040 (Nong), 0920239020 (Heidi) and 09154144728 (Mitzi), or email queries to us at rap.litforum@gmail.com. Participants are encouraged to register early as slots are limited.

The registration form may be downloaded from the RAP web site. The program, CHED memo, and DepEd advisory are attached.

We look forward to your valuable presence at the convention! See you there!

Truly yours,

Melissa Alma Orencia Conference Director

You may also download through my Scribd the Invitation Letter and other pertinent documents for the Reading Association of the Philippines Convention.

Full Movie: Searching for Bobby Fischer

The movie I've been searching for in the last twenty years is here. I watched this film in the theaters as a fourth year high school student but never really made an impact on my interest in chess. This they say is the definitive movie to watch if you want to turn your kids away from the game!

So here it is, the movie Searching for Bobby Fischer:

Free Download: Song of the Bird

I found a PDF copy of Anthony de Mello's "Song of the Bird" and I'm sharing it here. The Jesuit priest from India wrote some of the finest books on spirituality and awareness which has influenced scholars and leaders from around the world.

Just like any great thinkers and writers, Anthony de Mello had brushes with the Jesuit authority and was faulted for bordering on a rather radical and liberal teachings.

Download this book and try to read it wherever and whenever you feel like it.

SORRY BUT SCRIBD REMOVED THIS DOCUMENT FROM MY COLLECTION. IF YOU WANT TO HAVE A COPY, LEAVE A COMMENT AND EMAIL AD. I GOT IT FOR FREE SO I AM SHARING IT TO ANYONE INTERESTED FOR FREE.

Song of the Bird

Today's Date: 10-11-12

Coach Leo reminded me about today's date, ten-eleven-twelve! And in celebration of the "iskalera" allow me to share this video from the band Down under, Frente:

Last Move from NBS First Move Tournament

Do you remember this neat, proud and professional-looking poster found in almost all National Bookstore branches around the country?

Last October 6, 2012, the NBS First Move Chess Tournament series had its last edition at the Sports Loop of Robinson's Galleria.

Some of the good things that will always be remembered about this tournament:

• Tournament schedule begins and ends on time.
• Equipment were always enough for the players. 
• Provided beginners the opportunity to play in a tournament atmosphere.
• The playing hall gave the players the comfort they needed to play the game. 
• Organizers made sure the tournament was organized accordingly. That's the reason why they are called organizers.

So now I say "thank you to NBS, Robinson's Malls and John Sy!"

People come and go but the game lives on.

Dyscalculia Conference in London

Do you have money to go to London?

If you have, then by all means you should go to London and see the fantastic place where the Fab Four grew up, the 2012 Olympics happened and attend the 5th National Conference: Dyscalculia and Maths Learning Difficulties:

LW Dyscalculia Conference Leaflet 2013

Free Download: October FIDE CIS Newsletter

Here is our free download for the month, the October issue of FIDE Chess in Schools Newsletter:

OctoberFIDECISNews

International Days in October

For the whole month of October, the whole world is observing two themes and these are: Breast Cancer Awareness Month and International Augmentative and Alternative Communication Month. And here are some more:

October 7 - World Smile Day

October 8 - World Hospice and Palliative Care Day

October 8 - World Humanitarian Action Day

October 9 - World Post Day, recognized by the UN

October 10 - World Mental Health Day, recognized by the UN

October 10 - World Day Against Death Penalty, recognized by the WCADP

October 13 - International Day for Disaster Reduction, recognized by the UN

October 14 - World Standards Day

October 15 - International Day of Rural Women, recognized by the UN

October 15 - Global Handwashing Day

October 16 - World Food Day, recognized by the UN

October 17 - International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, recognized by the UN

Workshop: Storytelling 101

This morning I gave an introductory lecture and workshop on storytelling for the volunteers of the Mobile Reading Program of Imus City. There were twenty-five participants of varied age group. The number of the participants allowed everyone to participate in the discussion and workshop with ease.

Jollibee-Lotus was the organizer for this event in cooperation with the SK Federation of Imus City.

Thank you so much for the technical support you guys gave and congratulations to the participants of the workshop!

Happy storytelling! Storytelling 101

World Teacher's Day 2012

I never planned to post anything about this day, the World Teacher's Day. Reason? There's just too many days and dates to remember teachers and their undying love for learning.

Honestly, I remember it once was celebrated in February, then in December and now in October.

Are there really that many days to remember and celebrate teacher's day?

But my plan not to post any was changed because of the impromptu singing my students did at the end of the day. They sang to us to Happy Teacher's Day to the tune of Happy birthday! Wow! It was so simple and yet so powerful! I guess it was the twinkling in their eyes, the sincerity of their action that moved me.

Thanks to you Grade 8 Beacon School students, graduating class of 2013!

And here is a video shared to me by Maggie in celebration of. Maggie my co-teacher and the Sosyal Atenean-Choir Singer-American-Bisaya whose love for Aegis and Gloc9 rivals that of my love for Pinoy Pop Culture.

Salute to teachers:

SENIA Meeting

I'll be attending the Special Education Network in Asia-Manila meeting this afternoon at the International School Manila with our Learning Support Coordinator, Ms. Yvette.

This would be my first time and I'm excited!

Back Rank Mates

Back-rank mates are considered as one of the deadliest weapons one can use against your opponent's King. Back-rank mates appear often in low level games among beginners. There are variants of back-rank mates and it gives you the same annoying feeling of losing a game that way.

A back-rank mate is a result of carelessness. Even grandmasters blunder what more of the players rated 2000 plus? With a little help from luck and a lot of tactical decoying and distractions, one can steal a point against these mighty warriors.

Here is a game I played against a 2050: