Chess Club members learn how to play and enjoy chess in a fun and relaxed setting. Good sportsmanship is emphasized. Open to fourth and fifth grade students, chess club meets in the art room each Monday morning we have school from 7:30 A.M. to 8:30 A.M.
10 Opening Rules
- Open with a center pawn
- Make as few pawn moves as possible
- Try to keep at least one pawn in the center of the board
- Develop with threats (move your pieces while attacking other pieces)
- Knights before Bishops
- Don’t move the same piece twice
- Don’t bring out the Queen too early
- Move to gain control of the center of the board
- Castle as soon as possible
- Don’t sacrifice a piece without a good reason
Attacking:
- Attack with all the pieces I can
- Use more pieces than my opponent
- Look for weaknesses in my opponent’s camp and target them
- When I am ahead in development or space, start attacking
- Don’t attack until my King is safe (such as Castling)
Defending:
- Defend with as few pieces as possible
- Counterplay (defend with attacks, not just defensive moves)
- Patience: patiently defend and wait for an opening for counterplay + don’t make a bad position worse due to impatience
- Less space: exchange pieces
Advantages:
- Space (my pieces control more of the board than my opponent). When I have a space advantage: don’t rush, avoid exchanges, keep improving position
- Time (my pieces are in a good position while my opponent’s pieces are still on the first rank)
- Unsure what to do? Move a piece into a better position (where it is attacking more squares)
Endgame
- Play slowly and carefully
- Play King aggressively
- Create a passed Pawn (a Pawn that cannot be stopped by another Pawn)