Let Your Child Teach You Chess!

December 4, 2008
Tags: Learning Chess Articles

Written by Laura Sherman of YourChessCoach.com

Many children learn to play chess at home. You, the parent, teach them how to move their chess pieces, set up the chess board and begin play. Depending on your skill level these lessons may be rudimentary, but know they are invaluable. You have started him down an exciting path. Inevitably he will venture off and play others in school or perhaps even take lessons. As this happens expect him to come home one day and beat you. As he continues to learn and expand his knowledge those victories may become commonplace.

How you handle these losses will determine your child’s future in chess.

If you are upset in any way your child will probably give up playing chess rather than risk hurting you again. Count on that. If you are elated and proud, you will give him the greatest win of his life. Just try to stop him now!

When your child is trouncing you consistently, that is the time to allow him to teach you something about the game. Yes, it may involve swallowing your pride a little to allow your cute little 9-year-old child to show you the ropes of this ancient game, but you will actually be continuing his instruction in the best way possible. And he will in fact be able to help you improve your game.

When anyone is given the opportunity to teach someone else a skill, their ability improves in that area. Teaching is a powerful way to learn. Breaking down a subject so that someone else can grasp it involves a challenging process that brings about a greater understanding for the teacher. It is truly a way to master a subject.

As a chess instructor, I’ve come to discover that many parents have a limited knowledge of chess: some parents were taught by their parents to play chess, while others learned from a two-page instructional sheet they got from a recently purchased chess set. Needless to say there are some misconceptions and missing information, which, if not corrected, could be passed down to younger generations learning chess. For example:

1. You can capture the king. NO! You never take the king off the board. Checkmate is the only way to win (unless your opponent gives up). Checkmate simply means the king is in danger and can’t get out of it by any means.
2. A pawn can only be promoted to a piece that has been captured. NO! You can promote a pawn into anything but a king. You may have multiple queens on the board! Some chess sets provide you with two queens, but if yours doesn’t simply flip a captured rook over and voila you have a queen.

Congratulations on having a brilliant chess champ in your family! Their victories on the board will translate into life wins, which will carry forward into adulthood. Remember your child’s victories are in fact yours.

Editor’s Note: Wholesale Chess offers a number of chess sets perfect for beginning chess players, many of which include two queens and a missing piece replacement guarantee.

This article was written by Chess Instructor Laura Sherman, of YourChessCoach.com. Your Chess Coach is devoted to teaching chess to children of all ages, giving them the many life skills that the game offers. You can learn more about Laura at YourChessCoach.com.

If you would like to ask Laura a question about chess, you can ask the question in the comment space below, leave your email, and Laura will respond directly to you.