.(cid:3)3(cid:3)4(cid:3)%(cid:3)1(cid:3)2(cid:3).(cid:3)3(cid:3)4(cid:3)%(cid:3)1(cid:3)2(cid:3).(cid:3)3(cid:3)4(cid:3)%(cid:3)1 Chess Teaching Manual Created by International Master Tom O’Donnell -MJ?P>@?(cid:3)=T(cid:3)OC@(cid:3) C@NN(cid:3)#@?@M<ODJI(cid:3)JA(cid:3) <I<?< JKTMDBCO(cid:3)(cid:18)(cid:26)(cid:26)(cid:24) C@NN(cid:3)#@?@M<ODJI(cid:3)JA(cid:3) <I<?< RRR(cid:15)>C@NN(cid:15)>< I NTRODUCTION The Chess Federation of Canada is a charitable organization whose mandate is to promote and encourage the knowledge, study and play of the game of chess in Canada. The C.F.C. organizes National Championships and provides funding for the winners to go on to the World Championships. In addition, the C.F.C. has sent a team to the World Chess Olympiad each time it has been held (every second year) since 1964. The purpose of this manual is to encourage the playing of chess by young people. Chess has been shown to improve academic performance. A youngster taking part in a chess program develops: • critical thinking • logic, reasoning, and problem solving abilities • memory, concentration and visualization skills • confidence, patience and determination • poise • self-expression • good sportsmanship • children who participate in chess programs improve their self-esteem It is not necessary for the teacher using this manual to be a good chess player - or even a chess player at all. The course has been designed to take the teacher step-by-step through the basics and onto more advanced strategies. It is hoped that we have done our job well, but of course this is the first edition of this manual (experimental, if you will) and there is always room for improvement. If you have any comments or questions concerning this manual, we may be contacted by regular mail: Chess Federation of Canada 2212 Gladwin, E-1 Ottawa, ON K1B 5N1 Or by e-mail: [email protected] Homepage: http://www.chess.ca/ The author is a four-time Olympiad team member, and holds the title of International Chess Master, which he received for his results in international competition. He has taught chess to grade school children individually and in groups for almost a decade. Duplication of the contents of this manual is permitted within schools for educational purposes only. Copyright 1997 Chess Federation of Canada C@NN(cid:3)#@?@M<ODJI(cid:3)JA(cid:3) <I<?< RRR(cid:15)>C@NN(cid:15)>< C S HESS UPPLIES Chess equipment suited to the needs and budgets of schools. School Tube Catalogue # 3108 A complete chess set for schools. It contains solid plastic chess pieces (with a King that measures 3 3/4" tall) that will not break even if stepped on, a laminated paper board with alphanumeric borders and 2" squares which can be easily wiped down to clear up dirt or spills. The entire set is contained in a durable tube for easy storage. Quanity Pricing 1 to 11 $11.95 12 to 23 $11.45 24 to 47 $10.95 48 to 95 $10.45 96 to 191 $9.95 192+ $8.95 Demonstration Board Catalogue # 3108 Price: $19.95 Show the entire class what you want without having them all crowd around a small tabletop set. The board measures 27" wide by 32" long with 3" squares and can be hung anywhere. Vinyl pieces stick to the board and can be moved to show any position you desire. The entire set can be rolled up and easily stored in its own convenient storage tube. Aradora Chess Clock Catalogue # 3227 Price: $44.95 Sturdy plastic clock measures 6 3/4" x 4 1/4" x 2 1/4" with a large, easy to read face and seconds counter. This Romanian built clock also comes with an easy to see lever instead of buttons and a safety for locking the lever in the off position for travel. Place orders by Phone at (613) 733-2844 (M-F 9-5 EST) or by FAX (613) 733-5209 or by e-mail at [email protected]. C@NN(cid:3)#@?@M<ODJI(cid:3)JA(cid:3) <I<?< RRR(cid:15)>C@NN(cid:15)>< Table of Contents Teacher’s introduction to chess Running a school chess club How pieces move (Lessons 1-6) Identify squares (Lesson 1, part 1) How pawns move and capture (Lesson 1, part 2) How kings move and capture (Lesson 2) Check: king can’t be taken (Lesson 2) How rooks move and capture (Lesson 3) How bishops move and capture (Lesson 4) How queens move and capture (Lesson 5) How knights move and capture (Lesson 6) Simple strategy (Lessons 7-9) Check or checkmate? (Lesson 7) Checkmate or stalemate? (Lesson 8) Pins (Lesson 9) Special moves (Lessons 10-11) Castling The mechanics of castling (Lesson 10, part 1) How to determine if it is legal to castle (Lesson 10, part 2) Pawn Promotion (Lesson 11) Checkmate in one move: typical patterns (Lessons 12-15) Checkmate with bishop (Lesson 12) Checkmate with rook (Lesson 13) Checkmate with queen (Lesson 14) Checkmate with knight (Lesson 15) Simple tactics (Lessons 16-18) Take free pieces (Lesson 16) The point count (Lesson 17) Attacking and defending (Lesson 18) More tactics (Lessons 19-22) Forks (Lesson 19) Pins (Lesson 20) Skewers (Lesson 21) Discovered checks (Lesson 22) Another special move (Lesson 23) “En Passant” (Lesson 23) Combining pieces to make checkmate (Lesson 24-26) Checkmate with two major pieces (Lesson 24) Checkmate with queen (Lesson 25) Checkmate with rook (Lesson 26) For use in tournaments only Simplified rules of chess Running a chess tournament Round Robin pairing rules The Round Robin in action Sample Round Robin crosstable Blank Round Robin crosstable for use in tournaments Simplified Swiss system pairing rules Pairing Card sample Sample Swiss System crosstable Blank Swiss System crosstable for use in tournaments C@NN(cid:3)#@?@M<ODJI(cid:3)JA(cid:3) <I<?< RRR(cid:15)>C@NN(cid:15)>< Teacher’s Introduction to Chess That’s all of the equipment you will need to teach the class. Now onto the lessons. Don’t know anything about chess? Don’t panic. If you follow this guide you shouldn’t have ‘Twas the Night Before… any problems. Even if you do know something For those teachers who know nothing about chess, the students will probably be able to about chess, or for those a bit shaky on the rules, beat you fairly easily most of the time after a little explanation sheets have been provided for the while. Like learning how to play a musical instructor to read. The intent of these sheets is to instrument, or a new language, it is a big advantage give you, the instructor, a crash course on the to learn how to play chess as a youth. concept in question. As well, it is hoped that all To start, you need a demonstration board. possible questions have been anticipated. It is This is simply a chessboard that can hang on a nail, suggested that before you teach a specific lesson and uses some method for keeping the chess pieces you read the explanatory material on that specific on it. The demonstration board should have the lesson thoroughly. Try to answer the questions the letters “a” through “h” running along the top and students will be given for a specific lesson before bottom, and the numbers “1” through “8” running attempting to teach that lesson. along the sides. The reason for this is that all 64 It is not necessary to read all of the lessons squares on the chessboard can be identified by a before teaching the first lesson. You need only read letter-number combination. one lesson at a time, teach that lesson, and then Each demonstration board comes with a set move onto the next lesson. of 32 pieces. These are divided into two separate Lessons groups: 16 of which are “white” and 16 of which Each lesson is designed to take no more are “black”. The actual colours don’t matter (often than ten (10) minutes to explain. A typical hour “white” pieces are in reality red); but they must be will consist of five to ten minutes of explanation distinct from each other. and an exercise sheet based on the lesson that will For each side, their army of men consists of take ten to fifteen minutes. Many initial lessons the following: have tasks that are designed to reinforce new • Eight (8) pawns: The pawn is easy to concepts introduced in those lessons. In order to identify. It is the smallest piece, and the most perform the task it is necessary that you have a plentiful. On the following sheets, it is sufficient supply of sets and boards (one set and 2 Q identified by the symbol or one board for every two students will suffice). • Two (2) knights: The knight looks like a Future lessons provide students with the 1 O opportunity to play against each other in practice horse. It is identified by the symbol or games, encouraging them to learn individually and • Two (2) bishops: The bishop looks like a from each other. big pawn, with a slit in its head. It is identified The exercise sheets contain few words, % C by the symbol or particularly the absolute beginner sheets. This is • Two (2) rooks: The rook looks like a intentional, so that the students can work tower or castle. It is identified by the symbol independently without constant teacher direction. 4 S In the future, we hope to be able to provide or supplementary sheets for both keen students who • One (1) queen: The queen looks like a would like to do extra work at home, and for those head with a bunch of spikes coming out of it. who would rather work on a sheet than play on a Usually the spikes have circles at the top. It is chessboard. 3 R identified by the symbol or • One (1) king: The king has a cross on top . L of it. It is identified by the symbol or If you have chess sets in the class, the demonstration board pieces and the pieces used for the chess set will most likely look similar. C@NN(cid:3)#@?@M<ODJI(cid:3)JA(cid:3) <I<?< RRR(cid:15)>C@NN(cid:15)>< Running a School Chess Club Also it would be a good idea to choose vinyl or paper boards over folding cardboard ones. Why run a chess club in your school? The problem with cardboard is that the boards Perhaps you are a chess enthusiast with free break in half very easily and if someone spills their time. Or a teacher who is interested in chess and yogurt or drink on the board it will begin to who sees the benefits which chess gives to deteriorate pretty fast. children. Or perhaps you know nothing about Vinyl boards have the advantage of being chess, but the principal is angry with you and this very durable and easy to wipe clean. Paper boards is your punishment. are much cheaper but rip easily and deteriorate It doesn’t matter. If you follow the step-by- pretty fast if food or drink is repeatedly spilled on step instructions in this manual you will be running them. a chess club in no time. Let’s begin. If your goal is to combine good quality with Location, Location, Location lack of expense, buy paper boards and laminate What’s true of real estate is also true of them. They will last at least a couple of years, and chess clubs, but in a different way. You choose the they cost very little (under $1 per board). location of your house based in part on all of the It is important that you get ones with neat distractions nearby (e.g. parks, libraries, tennis notation along the edges (the letters “a” through courts, etc.); you choose your chess club location “h” along the top and bottom, and the numbers “1” based on the lack of distractions. So, if possible, through “8” along the sides) if you wish to use don’t have it in the hallway, in the music room, or much of the instructional material in this manual. in the gymnasium. There are too many other neat The letters and numbers are used to identify the things for kids to do – noisy neat things. squares on the board, much like those on a map or Try to pick a place that’s reasonably quiet. on the board game Battleship. That’s top of the list. Also pick a place with plenty Okay, What’s the Bottom Line? of open floor space. Children generally prefer to The total cost of ten sets and ten boards play on the floor, which is good, since they don’t should run to no greater than $100 - $150. That make as much disruption when they accidentally may seem like a rather large initial outlay, but that knock pieces onto the floor. works out to $7.50 per person, at most, for an If your club is held during lunch hour, try to entire year. Of course, with reasonable care, the arrange for as many garbage cans in the room as sets and boards will last a lot longer than a year, so you can get. And locate them strategically the cost per person is even less. For a list of some throughout the room. There are few things as of the items sold by the Chess Federation of disruptive as having someone knock over someone Canada see the product flier and catalogue that else’s half finished (and completely forgotten) juice came with this manual. box on the floor. Bedlam may ensue. Supervision Equipment In order to supervise chess it is not Of course you can’t play if you don’t have necessary that you play chess. If you don’t play sets and boards. At first, you might ask the children chess, deputize one or two of the more to bring their own equipment, but it is ideal if you knowledgeable and mature members to act as don’t have to rely on their memory. This will arbiter (referee) in case of dispute. If no one seems require a modest expenditure. Let’s do some to know what is going on, or if the dispute is arithmetic. cannot be resolved using common sense, please Suppose you have twenty children in your refer to the section: Simplified Rules of Chess, club. At one set and board for every two children later in this manual. you will need ten sets and ten boards. You may be tempted to buy the least expensive set and board you can find. That could be a big mistake. Much of the cheapest equipment is cheap for a reason. It falls apart after very little use. You should purchase solid plastic pieces. That way when someone steps on a piece - and someone will at every meeting – you won’t have to scurry to find replacements for the shattered piece. C@NN(cid:3)#@?@M<ODJI(cid:3)JA(cid:3) <I<?< RRR(cid:15)>C@NN(cid:15)>< Lesson 1 (part one) The first thing you do is look along the row of letters at the bottom for the letter Algebraic Notation (Sheet 1-1) that is in line with the “X”. In this case, the letter “e” is directly below the “X”. Objective: • Teach students how to read and write The second thing you do is to look along the row of numbers located vertically moves using algebraic notation. Skills Developed: on the left side of the board to find the • Concepts of horizontal and vertical. number that is in line with the “X”. In this • Able to read grids such as maps and line case, the number “3” is directly to the side graphs. of the “X”. Algebraic notation is the way in Putting the two parts together, you which chess players read and write moves. get “e3”, which is the name of that square. Each move is an abbreviation of the piece The reason that it is a good idea to that will move, followed by the destination get the children to identify the squares by square of that piece. their proper names is to avoid confusion. If The names of the squares are a letter- you are teaching a dozen kids, for example, number combination. The way you “read” a and you ask the question, “Where should chessboard is the same way you read the the black queen move?” you will get co-ordinates on a map, or those found on answers like “To the left” or “Diagonally the children’s board game Battleship. up” which require further clarification. Another way to describe to children the names of the squares is to compare them Algebraic notation avoids this problem to the names of people. Just like people since each square has a unique name. have a first and last name, so do the A way to introduce the kids to squares. The only difference is that, for algebraic notation is to place a piece on a each square, its first name is a letter and its square on the demonstration board, and ask, last name is a number. “What square is this piece on?” Experience At the top of the next column is an has shown that repeating this procedure a example of how to read the squares on a dozen or so times will result in half of the chessboard: @@@@@@@@ players grasping the system. The sheets will merely reinforce this knowledge. For the cW’W’W’W’> other half of the students, the sheets will d’W’W’W’W> serve as further examples to practice. Additional reinforcement can be provided if eW’W’W’W’> students are given the chance to work on o’W’W’W’W> the sheets in pairs. nW’W’W’W’> Also, try using different explanation strategies to help students understand the b’W’W;W’W> concept of algebraic notation. Use examples mW’W’W’W’> such as, “It’s also like a crossword puzzle, l’W’W’W’W> when you go ACROSS first, the DOWN,” or, “A plane flies along the runway, then jih_‘fak goes up.” Be creative if it helps students relate the concepts to realistic situations. The “X” shown above is on which square? C@NN(cid:3)#@?@M<ODJI(cid:3)JA(cid:3) <I<?< RRR(cid:15)>C@NN(cid:15)>< Sheet 1-1: Names of Squares 1. Put an “X” on these squares: 3. Print the names of the squares with the (cid:13) a1, e4, c2, g7, h5, b8 on them: @@@@@@@@ @@@@@@@@ cW’W’W’W’> cW’W’W’(cid:13)’> d’W’W’W’W> d’W’W’W’W> eW’W’W’W’> eW’(cid:13)’W’W’> o’W’W’W’W> o’W’W’W’W> nW’W’W’W’> nW’W’W(cid:27)W’> b’W’W’W’W> b’(cid:13)’W’W’W> mW’W’W’W’> mW’W’W’W’> l’W’W’W’W> l’W’W(cid:27)W’W> jih_‘fak jih_‘fak 2. Put an “X” on these squares: 4. Print the names of the squares with the (cid:13) g3, c6, f1, b4, h8, d2 on them: @@@@@@@@ @@@@@@@@ cW’W’W’W’> c(cid:13)’W’W’W’> d’W’W’W’W> d’W’W’W’W> eW’W’W’W’> eW’W’W’W(cid:27)> o’W’W’W’W> o’(cid:13)’W’W’W> nW’W’W’W’> nW’W(cid:27)W’W’> b’W’W’W’W> b’W’W’W’W> mW’W’W’W’> mW’W’W(cid:27)W’> l’W’W’W’W> l’W’W’W’W> jih_‘fak jih_‘fak C@NN(cid:3)#@?@M<ODJI(cid:3)JA(cid:3) <I<?< RRR(cid:15)>C@NN(cid:15)>< Answer Sheet 1-1: Names of Squares 3. Print the names of the squares with the 1. Put an “X” on these squares: (cid:13) on them: a1, e4, c2, g7, h5, b8 ANSWER: See below. ANSWER: (left to right) b3, c6, e1, f4, g8 @@@@@@@@ @@@@@@@@ cW;W’W’W’> cW’W’W’(cid:13)’> d’W’W’W;W> d’W’W’W’W> eW’W’W’W’> eW’(cid:13)’W’W’> o’W’W’W’9> o’W’W’W’W> nW’W’9’W’> nW’W’W(cid:27)W’> b’W’W’W’W> b’(cid:13)’W’W’W> mW’9’W’W’> mW’W’W’W’> l;W’W’W’W> l’W’W(cid:27)W’W> jih_‘fak jih_‘fak 2. Put an “X” on these squares: 4. Print the names of the squares with the (cid:13) g3, c6, f1, b4, h8, d2 on them: ANSWER: See below. ANSWER: (left to right) a8, b5, d4, f2, h6 @@@@@@@@ @@@@@@@@ cW’W’W’W;> c(cid:13)’W’W’W’> d’W’W’W’W> d’W’W’W’W> eW’9’W’W’> eW’W’W’W(cid:27)> o’W’W’W’W> o’(cid:13)’W’W’W> nW;W’W’W’> nW’W(cid:27)W’W’> b’W’W’W;W> b’W’W’W’W> mW’W;W’W’> mW’W’W(cid:27)W’> l’W’W’9’W> l’W’W’W’W> jih_‘fak jih_‘fak C@NN(cid:3)#@?@M<ODJI(cid:3)JA(cid:3) <I<?< RRR(cid:15)>C@NN(cid:15)>< @@@@@@@@ cW’W’W’W’> Lesson Plan 1 (part two) d(cid:19)Q(cid:19)Q(cid:19)Q(cid:19)Q> How Pawns Move and Take B eW’W’W’W’> (Sheet 1-2) W L o’W’W’W’W> Objective: H A • Familiarize students with pawns; nW’W’W’W’> I C teaching them how to move their pawns b’W’W’W’W> T and capture those of their opponent. K Skills Developed: m2(cid:12)2(cid:12)2(cid:12)2(cid:12)>E • Visualization of possibilities before they l’W’W’W’W> occur. jih_‘fak • Critical thinking when faced with many choices. Movement Pawns are the most plentiful piece on the chessboard. Each side starts with eight Pawns normally move forward one of them. They are aligned with the white square at a time. They are the only pawns along the second row (moving “up” chessmen that can’t move backward. They the board), and the black pawns on the can’t jump over either their own friendly or seventh row (moving “down” the board). enemy pieces. Also, pawns may not capture Each player looks at “ranks” (rows) any of their own chess pieces. from their perspective. For example, if If a pawn has not yet moved or white has a pawn on a3, he would say that it captured (i.e., is still along its starting rank) is on his “third rank”. If black had a pawn it may move forward two squares. An on a3, he would say that it is on his “sixth example is given below: @@@@@@@@ rank”, since he starts counting from the top. The starting position of the pawns in cW’W’W’W’> a chess game are given at the top of the next d’W’W’W’W> column: eW’W’W’W’> o’W’W’W’W> nW’W’2(cid:19)W’> b(cid:12)W(cid:19)W’W’W> m2’2’W(cid:12)W(cid:12)> l’W’W’W’W> jih_‘fak Pretend that it is white’s turn to play in the position above. Which one of the C@NN(cid:3)#@?@M<ODJI(cid:3)JA(cid:3) <I<?< RRR(cid:15)>C@NN(cid:15)><