Coach's Corner: Laura Smith

Many of us would think that parenting three kids and working as an elementary school teacher doesn’t leave much time for pursuing another career. Not NM Laura Smith! The Brooklynite manages to be both a chess coach and Chessable author. It couldn’t be any other way as chess has always been an important part of her life.

Growing up, Laura was one of the top junior players in the United States and participated with success in Pan-American Youth Championships. At one point, she was the highest-rated 13-year-old in the country. As time went on, she started her coaching career in 2010, when she became an instructor for Chess in the Schools. The experience inspired her to get her master’s degree in education.

But it wasn’t until 2020 that Laura leaned more into chess coaching.

“The biggest joy fills my heart when I am walking in my neighborhood in South Brooklyn and I hear a kid say, ‘Mom, that's my chess coach!’ – hearing them refer to me as their enrichment teacher makes me feel good.”

Laura shares her views and tips on chess coaching in this interview:

What is your chess coaching philosophy?

Hard work pays off but give it time!

As a coach, I now see how rushed coaching chess or learning chess can be. I was guilty of it before I discovered my mentors: NM Dan Heisman, and the two founders of the Step Method Rob Brunia and Cor van Wijgerden. They showed me that everything I thought I should be teaching was completely out of order. Why do so many beginner books include X-ray attacks? I love a good x-ray (not the doctor ones, those are scary) but seriously, all jokes aside, first beginners must have extensive practice in board vision before they concern themselves with fancy-shmancy puzzles.

Suppose a player has only 3 hours a week for chess training. How should they spend their time?

Tactics, tactics, and more tactics. Also, practicing and analyzing their games.

What is the biggest factor for improvement for players under 1200 (Chess.com)? Under 2000?

The Under-1200 crew needs to master counting tactics at the intermediate level. Board vision is huge, and they need to do puzzles daily that focus on counting attackers and defenders in complicated positions. They also really need to master forcing move evaluation for both them and their opponents. 

For the Under 2000 crew, it depends. Are we talking about the 1900s or the 1400s? I know that at some point, inevitably, we have to coach openings. To be honest, I do not coach players over or about 1700. I am not in a place in my life to keep up with complicated Sicilian variations or the French. Let's be real; I never liked the French Defense, it just isn't my thing! I know amazing coaches heavily prepare files with great detail and I do know creating your own databases of games played with certain openings is very helpful for the next time you are faced with a pesky variation. No better feeling than playing someone you lost in the same opening and ambushing them with a surprise variation.

What is your preferred way to improve at openings? What's the approach to chess openings that you try to teach your students?

Chessable reminded me I could master new openings through MoveTrainer. I will never forget making the decision to study The Black Lion on Chessable with my fave GingerGM!

What is your preferred way to improve at the endgame?

I find it helpful to ask my friends who are good, to go over their thought process step by step.

Is there anything else you would like to advise ambitious chess improvers?

Don't get overwhelmed! Every person on social media will have their opinion regarding chess. Take your time finding out which type of coach fits your style and if you are self-learning, try to connect with people who are more experienced than you and ask questions. They will often be willing to share their triumphs with you.

Laura Smith’s Courses

To date, NM Laura Smith has published two Chessable courses for beginners. Her debut course, Forcing Moves for Beginners, was shortlisted for Best Tactics Course and Best Beginner Course in 2023. Her second course, Can I Take It? A Beginner's Guide to Capturing Pieces, was co-authored by NM Dan Heisman, a highly respected U.S. coach.

Both of Laura’s courses were so well received that they were also translated to Spanish. Check out Laura’s Chessable author page.