REQ: Tips and training for planning and visualization - Chess Forums

rayrayl

Mar 9, 2010

0

#1

Hello, I am about three months into chess after I purchased ChessMaster. I am in a section right now that deals with mating exercises with simple setups like K vs K& Q and K and R etc..where you have to mate say in seven or so moves.

I am having a hard time getting the plan correct and end up mating in more moves than I should and for some reason just cant seem to be able to visually plan things out correctly?

Does anyone have any tips or training recommendations for how to get better at this? I actually have great memory for many things for example I am great in games like concentration that are static but for some reason I cant seem to keep everything in my head when having to plan the motion of things....???

Thanks, Rei

Shivsky

Mar 9, 2010

0

#2

First of all, welcome to chess and I'm glad you want and you're trying to get better.

Some basic advice that may be relevant to your situation:

1. Do not force "improvement"....you just can't! The learning rate for patterns is different for different people .... and even for different activities! Do the right things to stimulate growth and let the growth come willingly ... don't stick a gun to your head (literally or metaphorically) :)

2. Practice a lot of mate in 1 and mate in 2 puzzles. The first steps for any player should be visualizing / calculating 1-2 ply ahead.

3. Visit chesscafe.com and try the Chess Mazes. They really help train your board vision.

4. Repetition helps reinforce patterns ... to borrow a wise quote => don't practice until you just get it right, practice until you NEVER get it wrong.

5. Finally => it is important that you "get" the idea , rather than execute on it as perfectly as you can. ... In a real game => there's no reward for performing a checkmate in 4 forced moves when you can just as easily find it in 6 forced moves. A puzzle is one thing but don't be hard on yourself for not getting the precision aspect down yet, that will come with time.

orangehonda

Mar 9, 2010

0

#3

Shivsky made some good points. I'd say as long as you're not taking 15-20 moves you're understanding the idea behind it. Beginners who don't know how to mate will give many pointless checks and chase the enemy king around never mating it. It's not necessary to force mate the fastest way possible to understand how it works, and like Shivisky said, give some time for the patterns to sink in and you'll get faster soon enough -- the move limit is to challenge you, but not absolutely necessary.

Shiviksy suggests solving mate in 1 and mate in 2 puzzles -- and I agree this will help and is also one of the best exercises to do when starting out. They help visualization, pattern recognition (basic mates are a must), king's safety awareness, and often teaches you to see the whole board (the times there's a bishop or rook in a far corner that helps give/prevent mate).

With Chessmaster and the things this site offers you have a ton of great training resources at your fingertips. One last word, some people make the mistake of spending more time studying than playing, but until you're an expert or master more time should be spent playing and analysing your own games than on study, especially when just starting out. Of course basic mates are vital, keep up the good work :) just don't lock yourself in chessmaster for 6 months when you could have been playing (this site even has greeters who will talk/give take backs/answer questions through the game).