Dr. Alexey Root asked the beginners if a black rook on a8 could stop five white pawns, on White’s second rank, from promoting if White moved first. The beginners thought not, so Dr. Root called on them to make the pawn moves and she made the rook moves. Then the beginners experimented in pairs with pawns all on the third rank, all on the fourth rank, all on the fifth rank, and with pawns adjacent to each other or not.

After experimenting, Dr. Root led a discussion about where to position a rook to stop pawns and that pawns were stronger the further up the board that they progressed.

For the intermediates and advanced groups, Dr. Root allowed students to play in pairs or solo against her in a simultaneous exhibition. The students chose the start position for each individual simul game and had to notate the game.