First steps in chess
An introduction to chess through short challenges instead of long games. Each piece is introduced the first time it appears, with its picture, its name and how it moves, read aloud too. In teams, each side solves the same challenges at the same time in its half of the screen, and the first to reach the target score wins.
What children practise
- Learning how the rook, bishop, queen, king, knight and pawn move.
- Spatial awareness: ranks, files and diagonals on boards from 4 x 4 to 8 x 8.
- Planning the shortest route to collect stars in as few moves as possible.
- Spotting squares guarded by the opponent's pieces before moving.
- Recognising checkmate and checking where the king could escape.
Levels and settings
Level 1
Rook and bishop on 4 x 4 and 5 x 5 boards: take the piece to the star.
Level 2
King and queen: collect 2 or 3 stars in as few moves as possible; the minimum is shown.
Level 3
The knight, which jumps in an L shape, on a 6 x 6 board.
Level 4
An 8 x 8 board: capture the black pieces without landing where you can be taken, and promote the pawn.
Level 5
Checkmate in one, with only one correct move, and the knight among guarded squares.
Auto
Starts at level 1 and moves up one level every 2 challenges.
How to play it in class
- Choose the year group and difficulty, or set the level yourself; under Piece you can practise all of them or just one.
- Decide whether to show help (where the piece can go and the guarded squares) and how many points win: 3, 5 or 8.
- Tap the white piece and then the square to move to. If the move is not allowed, the piece goes back, shakes and the game explains how it moves.
- Each solved challenge scores a point; the arrow starts the challenge again.
Ways to play
In teams, at the same time
The screen splits in two and each team plays on its own half at the same time.
For one player
One child plays on the whole screen at their own pace: on the whiteboard, a computer or a tablet.
Frequently asked questions
Do children need to know how to play chess?
No. Each piece is introduced with its name and how it moves, and a voice reads the explanation and the task. The first challenges simply ask them to reach a star.
What happens if a check is not checkmate?
The game explains why (the king escapes, your piece gets taken or another piece blocks the check) and the board goes back to how it was.
Is it free?
You can play 5 free games without signing up. After that, a one-off payment of €9.99 unlocks all 78 games for ever, on all your devices. There is no subscription.
Do I need to install anything?
No. It opens in the browser of the interactive whiteboard, panel, computer, tablet or iPad. Once loaded, it also works offline.
More Classic games games
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Tic-tac-toeThe classic game of noughts and crosses on a huge board that the whole class can see from their seats.
Connect 4Tap a column, or drag the disc over it, and the disc drops to the lowest free space.
BattleshipsEach team has its own sea with hidden ships, placed at random by the game so nobody can cheat.First steps in chess
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