What is the most effective way to teach chess to kids?

I recently got a cool job teaching an 11 year old chess. Many of the details are still being worked out (and I am unsure what his level is), but I will be teaching once a week for probably between 1-2 hours. What are some effective ways to teach openings, tactics, strategy, and endings, and what are the key concepts I should get to first?|||Assuming he knows notation, go over his games.





Otherwise rhymes are memorable, like knight on rim is grim.|||Hello;





Wow! That is a cool job.





I would teach him that chess is not a game ... it is an art, and winning is good, but playing the pretty moves is what it is all about. It is better to be a good person than a great chess player (there have been people who were both like E. Lasker).





Gens Un Sum,





Bill





|||There are many steps on openings, tactics, strategy, and endings in a book i love, The Book is called The Complete Book of Chess published by Usborne books. If you want to order it google the website. It is really good. Give it to the kid to read inbetween sessions. then you should look at it.|||I think you should use the data base of master games to teach him. It aquires chess just like aquireing a language|||I am assuming he already knows the moves. If he doesn't, they're pretty easy to teach, don't worry.





You should teach him tactics before strategy. Here's a piece by piece rundown:





Pawns: These form the wall of the armies. If you like, you could demonstrate this by inviting him to play a game without pawns. Stress that pawns can be used to control certain squares of the board, and can form a wall around key pieces. It's okay to lose some pawns, but don't sacrifice them without a reason. One good analogy is that the pawns form a dam, and the rest of the pieces are the water. If you take a middle pawn and lose it, the rest of the army can pour out.





Bishops: Long range pawns. They can be used to supplement pawns in protecting or attacking. Occasionally, they can be used with the Queen to form a diagonal battering ram. They are most useful towards the end of the game, when there's more space for them to roam about.





Knights: These are nice in the middle of the game, when the board is a mess. They can simply float over pieces. They can hang back a little to guard certain squares, if you like. The farther up the board a Knight is, the more it hurts the opponent. But make sure it is on a square where it won't be threatened and have to retreat.





Rooks: Many newcomers ignore this piece, since its hard to bring out. This is a mistake. Think of them like cannons, sitting on the other side of the board, but still blasting away at the enemy's base. Two of them on the same file can form a devastating battering ram. Two rooks used together are more powerful than a Queen. They are slightly more useful in open spaces, but enclosed ones work well.





the Queen: Newcomers love this piece. But make sure she's not brought out too early, or she'll be chased all over the board. She should work with Rooks and/or Bishops to crumble the enemy's defense.





the King: If he's new, he should guard his King.





That's a quick piece rundown. Some basic tactics are the Pin (where a piece can't move, or the King would be in check), the Skewer (where one piece threatens two pieces, usually occurs with a Knight), and Open File (Where the only piece on a file is a single Rook).





There are some basic strategies you could begin teaching him, but it varies depending on playing style. He could try to jam up the board with various pieces, and use his Knights to wear down the opposition. He could also get ahead in pieces, then start trading off until he is vastly superior in material.





That's all I have for now.





~~~All hail Whipped Cream Head!~~~