How to teach chess

I'm the top player at my  school with no competition.  A lot of my friends want me to teach them how to play. I have taught a few. Obviously, I know how to move the pieces. How would you teach a person new to chess how to play?

I would just direct them to www.chess.com and if young enough send them to the kids site :))

never tell them wat to move, ask them questions about what u do and what they need to ask for, my student is doing great :D

true. And I can register as a parent and register them. Of course, some people want to learn right then and now.

I teach a one quarter Chess elective at my school (junior highers)...a few thoughts.

1) teach the basic of how pieces move, en passant, castling, pawn promotion, stalemate, etc.

2) then let them play for a bit with no real specific instruction.

3) then start giving lessons on general principles...for example: the questions you should ask yourself before you move, and the questions you should ask yourself after your opponent moves, etc.

4) teach basic terminology:  pins, forks, traps, etc.

After that, you might just want to get something like The Dummies Guide (or Idiot's Guide to Chess and follow their lead.  Just a thought.

Thanks!

And I almost forgot...(as others have already mentioned) definitely get them on chess.com.  From there you can assign them to do things like the Tactics Trainer or assign various articles for them to read, or have them choose an opening for them to learn.  Also, you could set up school tourneys.  I do that with my kids...

After them knowing how to move the pieces & pawns, it is very important for them to grasp hold on a few openings/defenses. This is to let them understand why certain move are being made and not otherwise.

Most often than not, a good opening moves decides a better middlegame. And a good middle game chessplay decides a better endgame. Just leave the sacrifices to a much later lesson 'cos in involves lots of careful planning and sharp maneuvering.

I wouldn't have them memorise the openings just yet: it makes no sense to copy moves they don't understand, because they won't know the purpose of the move, and won't be able to use the advantage given by a certain opening.

If a player loses a lot of his games through certain opening traps, it makes sense to explain that, but otherwise, complete beginners will benefit more from not hanging their pieces.