Hi all,

I'm planning to volunteer to introduce and manage a chess club at my son's elementary school. I'm excited about it, but also realize I need some guidance to pull this off successfully, so appreciate any suggestions you have to offer.

Right off the bat I'm no master player myself - around 1100 playing blitz online. That doesn't count for much around here, but I'm hopeful with sufficient preparation that I'm a decent enough player to pull this off successfully. I'm willing to invest more time into my own chess game to try and increase my rating if I need to reach a higher level of play to teach kids.

So what should I focus on these next few months? What would you spend your time doing for an hour a week with a group of 4-8 yr. old kids learning to play and improve their chess game? Should we watch chess.com videos (I'll spring for a paid membership  )? Should I prepare tactics exercises, practice openings, have them play me/each other, review historical games and notations from others far better than me?

A PE teacher who knows the rules will be an assistant for what it's worth and I will have a computer with a projector and other equipment like TV/DVD player in the classroom to use.

Thanks!

Thanks for the tips and reply, as well as the URL you posted - all very helpful!

Hi, I agree with Culleux, small children prefer simplified chess "games". Ideas from our pro chess club:

1, Place 8 queens on the chessboard in a way that they can not capture each other (yes, it is possible :)!

2, Place a Knight on any square and jump in regular "L" shape of Knight. The aim is to jump onto every square without landing on a square more than once. (yes, it is possible :) You need a lot (64) of pebbles to trace the route.

Best regards, Ed

Brave Knight- 

A lone knight vs 2 connected pawns. The knight must stop the pawns. 

When the knight wins you add a pawn. When the knight loses you remove a pawn.