Grandfather dilemma

In Holland , children only learn to read and write when they are 6.

Then you can read the 1st edition Fischer book to him (wink)

If he does like to play chess , I hope he will find out on his own how to play it . It would be torture to a kid that young to read any chessbooks , there is way more interesting literature for them.

Oh dude there is a niche market for chess comics!!!!! Storyline runs through the game tll the King is mated!

Pelly, I was thinking of the best way to get him interested in it at that age.

You don't really want to leave it to chance and you want to set up your best opportunity for a successful outcome the way you want it to go.

So, I retraced my steps back to when I was 7 and tried to remember what it was my father possibly could have said to have interested me in the game then.

Did he appeal to my desire to be perceived as "smart"? (That's what got me into the "gifted" school).

Did he make it seem like it was something only for older boys and men so that I'd feel like it was a rite of passage into manhood? (That's what got me excelling at sports in my youth.)

Did he make it seem like it was taboo or forbidden by most so that I'd naturally want to live on the wild side with him and learn the game? (He used to smoke cigars and I remember thinking he was so cool like some kind of james dean but smarter and more of a tough guy. Of course I'd neither confirm nor deny if I put marijuana in mine when I was younger).

Did he bribe me? (He paid me cash to memorize certain bible passages at the same age).

Did he tell me all the pretty girls would want to be my girlfriend if they knew I was the best at chess? (That seemed to work with the guitar.)

Well, as hard as I tried to remember, I couldn't.

So I feel like maybe the best thing for you to do, is to use all of these tactics as part of your overall strategy and plan to get him playing chess early.

Surely with so many advantages to these persuasive ideas and the fact they are used for good, all of them together should work.

Let's also anchor chess to things we already know he thinks are great.

If he has a favorite sports idol or movie star actor, then of course, you can let him know you think he'd probably be able to beat them at chess once he learns it or would be like them. lol. you get the idea.

Finally, we can use the "keeping up with the Jones'" strategy to get him wondering if other boys his age around the world could beat him or if he would beat them instead. He certainly doesn't want to think there are little 5 year old boys in other cities or countries that are two years younger but are gloating over him because they got a head start learning chess before he did. We must show them!

Here they are again:

*desire to be perceived as smart by others

*rite of passage into manhood

*will be cool

*bribe him

*desire to beat younger boys at the game and then teach others

*the prettiest girls will like him more

*linking desire to learn the game by anchoring its mastery to people and things he admires

This is certainly not an exhaustive list of persuasion tactics, but should be enough to get some other ideas rolling.

I do hope he takes to the game the way you want him to! He'll love it and probably be naturally good with such support. :-)

Keep us updated on your progress with the mission grandpa.

The future of all may be riding on this one (or at least his potential enjoyment of chess he can play with grandpa who passed his love for the game down to him. 

I had a neighbour that suddenly rang the door and that learned me to play chess at the age of 8. He was jewish.

Where I live , it's the jehova's witnesses that do that. Ringing the door I mean. Not teaching anything of course , because I just slam the door in their face before they even get the chance to say 1 word.

@pelly - put a pentagram windchime up - that scares the hell out of them hehehe I should know ...

By the way, there are more important things to teach children. Chess is in essence a waste of time. Better than watching soaps, but still...

With there being better things to teach a child than chess - who decides what is good and not? How many kids that play physical sport can play it for the rest of their lives? Play it past age 30? Past highschool? ( except golf) -With Chess you find it teaches you to be able to analyze situations better not just on the board but in life, it is a social game where you can make life long friends, it teaches you focus which is used in life.......... I see no reason against teaching a child chess!

@Ajatsatru: No need to apologize , I took it as a positive advice.

Yes of course it's more encouraging/rewarding when he beats me in the beginning , but when he grows up to be an adolescent , I think it is better and more realistic for him to lose games when he doesn't play well. It might insult his intellect when he finds out I'm cheating and letting him win. But as long as he is just a little kid , I would be glad to lose.

This all is just speculating. I haven't taught him anything yet and there is a realistic chance he won't like the game at all. As you know , I'm fine with that. Then I will teach him how to chase and seduce girls , one advice given by LearningTheMoves.

Thanks for returning on this thread and elaborating on the subject.

@Flaming:

Yes , chess has a high educational value. It learns you to concentrate , work hard to reach your goals , cope with failures , deal with stress and tension , solve problems yourself .... etc. These are all skills that are of great social importance.

One of my best friend's cousins had a lot of jehova's visit him, and when he got tired of them and they didn't understand any subtle, polite way of his saying leave me alone, he answered the door "jungle style" and they never visited him again.

@chasm wrote :

One of my best friend's cousins had a lot of jehova's visit him, and when he got tired of them and they didn't understand any subtle, polite way of his saying leave me alone, he answered the door "jungle style" and they never visited him again.

The problem with this strategy is that you will have to know who's ringing your door. It might be a woman , perhaps your neighbour , asking for a cup of sugar. Then you might end-up in jail with the many jehova's and things get really bad.

You can always peek through the window of the main door before going through with it, and where I live, the police have bigger things to worry about than people answering the door nude.

there is a darker way to do this re the polgars /gata kamsky but im sure your daughter wouldnt be happy

My son learned to play when he was four. There were lots of chess diagrams on the scrap paper he used for scribbling his pictures. He learned from the diagrams how to set up the chessboard, and then asked me to teach him the game.

What was I to do when my four year old son had set up the pieces correctly? I was certain that I had a prodigy on my hands. Now that he is an adult, I know that it was my attention, rather than the game of chess, that he craved.

Your grandson will do anything you want to have your attention. If you want him to play chess as an adult, wait until he shows a genuine interest in the game.

I've learned a lot about teaching kids since my son was young. I now recommend starting with simple games like Pawn Wars. http://chessskill.blogspot.com/2009/10/pawn-wars.html