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Hello,
I am teaching a chess course starting in September and am spending the summer creating resources for it. I was wondering if anyone has suggestions for sites about teaching chess, specifically drills and exercises to practice skills? I have started making some exercises, but do not want to duplicate work if these resources already exist.
thanks for the sites! chessbase.com & chessgames.com feature articles on tactics,openings etc.Jeff Coakley's series of 3 books are great teaching tools for beginners to intermediates.Very well recommended by everyone.
Who are you teaching? What levels? If you can give me more info. I can direct you to some resources...
As mentioned chesscafe.com is an excellent source for teaching material at all levels....
Thank you John and Egidijus for your replies. Much appreciated.
Thank you John for pointing out the sites and the books. I am looking at Jeff Coakley's books. they look really good and I will probably order them from Amazon. Thank you Egidijus for the tip on chesscafe. I read that site fairly regularly, but have never looked through the archives.
I am teaching a 120 hour high school course to grade 12 students (around 17 years old). Some will have a little experience with chess, but most will be beginners. There will be between 25 and 30 students in the class.
I am looking for exercises similar to the rockford chess site if they exist.
Any other advice or recommendations would be appreciated.
Hey Luke, if you have a small budget and some computer resources I would recommend Chessimo. Unlimited user accounts per program and it teaches tactics, strategy and endgames all in one package.
At Strategy Games store in Toronto there is a series of teaching books by a Dutch author which I have been told is fantastic.There is also a DVD on this series. I teach to primary kids in Toronto schools up to highly Advanced levels. This week,I will get you the author of the series,you may also find it on Strategy games web site.
Good luck with your high school course. I hope you keep us posted on your progress. I use the Jeff Coakley books for the Mississauga junior club. I highly recommend them for kids. However, while the content maybe great even for your high school class, the students may be put off since they are geared for kids. You may want to use the material, but keep the source to yourself!
Thank you John and Egidijus for your replies. Much appreciated.
Thank you John for pointing out the sites and the books. I am looking at Jeff Coakley's books. they look really good and I will probably order them from Amazon. Thank you Egidijus for the tip on chesscafe. I read that site fairly regularly, but have never looked through the archives.
I am teaching a 120 hour high school course to grade 12 students (around 17 years old). Some will have a little experience with chess, but most will be beginners. There will be between 25 and 30 students in the class.
I am looking for exercises similar to the rockford chess site if they exist.
Any other advice or recommendations would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Luke
Hi Luke,
The Coakley Books are published by the Chess'n Math Association. They are available at our online retail shop. You will find the pricing to be very competitive :)
Jason,
Good to hear from you. I am planning to organize a charity blitz tournament at some point in August. I will drop you a line when that is. The chessimo site looks good, but I will probably not have access to computers every day and the days that I do have access, I would like the students on FICs or KICs (the kids version of FICs) in order to establish a baseline outside of the class. I like the youtube channels, but will use them as supplements since GM Susan Polgar was very generous and sent me a copy of her video series and two of the books she has written. These are are excellent and I have developed a lot of the course around these. I plan to incorporate her philosophy of chess as a cornerstone of the course.
Bob,
That is a good point about the Coakley books, it does look like it is aimed at younger students. I will definitely keep the Canadian chess community updated as the course progresses. There has been a lot of encouragement which I appreciate.
Larry and John,
Are these the 5 series of STEP books by Car Van Wijgerden? This is the first I have heard of it. Could you tell me more about these books? is there any place with scans of a few pages so I can get a feel for them? They look more serious than the Coakley's which would mean I would not have to adjust the material, which as Bob pointed out would probably be necessary to do. I have ordered through the CFC (or strategy games) in the past and have had good success.
Larry and John,
Are these the 5 series of STEP books by Car Van Wijgerden? This is the first I have heard of it. Could you tell me more about these books? is there any place with scans of a few pages so I can get a feel for them? They look more serious than the Coakley's which would mean I would not have to adjust the material, which as Bob pointed out would probably be necessary to do. I have ordered through the CFC (or strategy games) in the past and have had good success.
Luke
Hi Luke,
This is the blurb on the series:
European Trainers’ course for Scholastic Chess that trained the majority of younger club players in the Netherlands and Belgium. The course was developed in the 1980s over a five year period. Building on the Dutch chess legacy of World Champion Max Euwe and other trainers preceding him, educational teacher and International Master Cor van Wijgerden (the Netherlands federation’s trainer for some 12 years) worked several years on novel ideas and then invited the brilliant pedagogue Rob Brunia to join him. Their intention was to devise a method that could last for many years to come. Brunia had acquired an impressive knowledge of junior chess and worked all his life with gifted children (he died on 08 January 2005 – aged just 58).
This course broke fresh ground and opened up new horizons. Where previous courses stopped after teaching the basic moves, and others tried to teach too much too fast, the intention for this course was to make sure any child with a bit of interest could advance to club level and beyond.
Cor van Wijgerden was in an ideal position, and the course was adopted by the Dutch Chess Federation (KNSB) nationwide. It is now used in thousands of primary and secondary schools and in most of the over 800 chess clubs in the Low Lands. Unlike other training methods that require teachers to be experts or masters, this course accepts club players with moderate playing strength. More important are enthusiasm, patience, a positive outlook on life, the willingness to work with children, and some teaching experience. The course is, however, most successful for players who have at least a playing strength of Elo 1,400 (USCF 1500).
The course consists of 5 Trainers’ Manuals and 5 Workbooks that are used by the children in the class. Basically, Trainers' Manuals (volumes 1 and 2) are meant to be used by school teachers (who even may have a rudimentary knowledge of chess), and further by any club players – with an ambition to train junior and adult players in their club – and parents themselves. Many parents who play chess like to pass on their love of the game, and this course is the ideal medium. If club players have some teaching skills to start with, so much the better. After studying and absorbing Manuals 1 and 2 (and passing a certification test – see below), they can easily lead club trainings sessions. There is no general rule on how fast children learn. The speed at which to proceed depends very much on the children you work with, and the skill of the teacher. Without a solid foundation of the basics, however, children cannot make a lot of progress. Therefore it is better to start slowly, then speed up when children thoroughly understand these basics. Step 1 consists of 15 lessons, and Step 2 of 13 lessons. Please do not make the lessons too long. Especially in the beginning one hour at a time is plenty: 20 minutes teaching, 20 minutes (at most) exercises and at least 20 minutes of play is the most effective.
The teacher uses the respective Manual and the children have the corresponding Workbook ’Learning chess’ with a series of diagrams that cover the various subjects discussed by the teacher. So progress of the children appears to be best if the first course is done in a very leisurely manner and children completely understand each subject. Although two Manuals can be taught by a teacher in six months, experience shows that better results are obtained if just Step 1 of this course is spread over 9 months or even a whole year. One will easily catch up on ‘lost’ time at a later stage.
This course will identify in a totally logical manner the children who have talent. But even moderately gifted children will retain pleasure in playing chess, and be able to become reasonable club players, provided they follow the course material meticulously, and repeat it at home. Parents are encouraged to help with their homework and play a game with them. It has been scientifically established that - up to reaching Elo 1800 (USCF 1900), chess will act as a catalyst for developing intellectual qualities in a child. Results of thorough research in several countries (worldwide) have shown that children obtain better marks in for instance mathematics, music and languages, if they have learned to play chess. Children who regularly play chess start thinking more logically, they rapidly and permanently improve their powers of concentration, they learn to overcome minor disappointments (like losing a game), they start to show ambition and curiosity, they become more competitive and assertive, and they develop a higher degree of perseverance to succeed. And many of them do not mind at all the tag of being a bit of an ‘intellectual’ and it helps an otherwise shy child to become aware of the fact that it may be smart. Chess therefore has a really positive image and helps to develop a good self-image too!
When you – as a parent or a budding teacher - follow this course through self-study, you will improve your own chess skills and understanding of the game at the same time. Provided there are enough people who sign up, we intend to have a comprehensive two weeks’ training seminar later this year. Those interested should complete the course by passing the official examination – i.e. our Certificate Course for Beginners. By doing that, you will attain the same status as the 2,000 teachers that improved their chess teaching skills in the Netherlands, Belgium and the Netherlands Antilles since 1988. Another 3,000 parents in these countries as well as in (the former Dutch overseas territory) Surinam used the course to teach their children and friends at home. In many clubs, this course is used too by older club players to iron out weaknesses in their chess knowledge. Many of these players were autodidacts, and it is perfectly possible to improve one’s Elo by a few hundred points.
The course has now also been translated into German, French and English. Introduced into Germany in 2003, it is getting there the same approval and acclaim as in the Netherlands.
Anyone completing the course can expect to have acquired in a highly efficient manner the most essential chess skills to teach absolute beginners and people who only know the basic moves, and bring them to the level that they can participate in junior events or equivalent tournaments. And these skills can be used in an increasing number of countries to further the worldwide ‘Chess-in-Schools’ program (promoted by FIDE). It is therefore the first step to become a chess (semi-) professional, and to the more enthusiastic teacher with a bit of ambition – in theory – it even should open doors to teach overseas.
The strength of this course lies in the fact that it has incorporated the latest educational ideas and techniques and child psychology, and that it is up-dated regularly. It does not rush the more complicated aspects of the royal game. It allows each child to progress at its own speed. Learning to play chess will be both educational and fun, just like any other board game. By using this advanced method, you may count on being accepted at any accredited school as an official youth chess teacher and expert.
Workbooks 1 and 2 are the corresponding material used by the children in the classes. Besides a tuition fee, each child is expected to buy these moderately priced books and keep them as a permanent record. A chess set, folding board and holding bag (course materials and basic chess equipment) – if ordered in sufficient quantity – will be sold to teachers or clubs at an attractive discount. The kids that complete course 1 and workbook 1 get a diploma. The same applies to course 2 and workbook 2.
Trainers' Manuals 3 and 4 will improve a chess teacher’s skills to the level that anyone with that kind of ambition and interest can become a chess professional at club level. And by learning how to organise junior events and by keeping stock of basic chess materials (a chess shop through a low-risk small investment), graduates can become 100% involved in chess.
A chess professional who teaches at club level and who is active in a few elementary schools or high-schools may expect to earn more than enough to survive in chess. These four manuals will provide a solid foundation for an alternative career by attaining the Certificate Course Intermediate.
Workbooks 3 & 4 – for the kids – are to be used in conjunction with these Manuals.
We herewith wish to emphasized that an enthusiastic teacher will transfer his love of the game to his students, and will encourage them to improve. A loving parent is good, but a school teacher with some knowledge of chess will make it a thrilling experience. Experience shows that NOT JUST the more ambitious or talented children will sign up for the next year.
A considerable percentage of the children who start on Step 1 – who could hardly be considered future champions – will show up for Step 2 if they are motivated.
The difference almost invariably appears to be that the teacher inspired them, and that they loved the way the lessons were structured and the method of teaching. The course will tell you how to do this, and is in this respect unique.
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