Why Silver Knights Group Chess Lessons Are Better Than Private Chess Classes for Children

At Silver Knights, we believe that playing and learning are both essential to making your child a great chess player. It's important to learn concepts like check and checkmate, castling, and tactics, as well as some good chess opening strategies. But players also need to be able to apply these concepts in a real game.

In our online chess academy, the format of our group chess classes emphasizes both learning and play. Our coaches teach your child a concept or show them a game for the first half of the class, then have students play against one another in the second half.

The goal of this format is for your child to immediately put the concepts taught in the lesson to use. Private chess class students might not be able to do so unless they play their teacher or participate in a tournament. It can also be tough for kids to remember these concepts under the pressure of such intense games. More casual games, like those played against friends, will help your child stay relaxed and remember what they were taught. 

The ladder checkmate is one of our most popular lessons for beginners. 

The ladder checkmate is a basic but critical checkmate pattern. We can tell kids how to do the ladder checkmate a thousand times, but it won't be as effective as your child doing a ladder checkmate for the first time in a real game.

Participating in games against their peers gives kids many chances to practice. While one kid tries to do the ladder checkmate, the second kid might try to counter It. At that point, the first kid could try to counter the counter! Group play lets kids work together to improve their skills while competing against each other. 

We often think of learning as a process in which an instructor lectures and their students absorb that information like a sponge. But you have to squeeze a sponge to know exactly how much water is in it. In our group chess classes, game time is where kids have a chance demonstrate what they know and instructors can see how each student is progressing. This helps kids get valuable practice and helps their instructors figure out what they should teach next.

Group Chess Classes: The Thrill of Competition

A group class helps prepare kids for larger chess tournaments.

Group classes teach kids concepts they can use to win games. But most importantly, group chess classes make chess more fun for your child for several reasons.

First, there's the social side. Kids like hanging around with other kids more than adults. Our online Academy offers kids a chance to talk and socialize with peers of a similar skill level and usually a similar age. These online group lessons can be a great option for kids who don't have a chess club at their school or are significantly more advanced than other members of their school club.

Second, there's the thrill of competition. Kids in our online classes compete under a Grand Prix system. They play against each other in online tournaments and accumulate points by winning games. Whoever has the most points at the end of the season gets a reward, such as a chance to interview a current grandmaster. In the past, we've had interviews with chess legends like Magnus Carlsen and Judit Polgar!

This competition has a few advantages. It makes chess even more exiting and further drives students to practice what they've learned. It also helps encourage kids to participate in the lessons. Kids know that if they pay attention, they'll gain new skills they can use in their games. 

It's much easier to teach a child something if the child knows they can get something out of it right away. Our group chess classes use the thrill of competition to do just that.

Competing in a group chess club also helps kids mentally prepare for tournaments and large chess events. 

At most Silver Knights chess tournaments, players compete in a quad format where they play against three other kids at a table. Compared to competing against a dozen or so opponents in a group chess class, competing against three other kids isn't such a big deal. 

In other enrichment activities like piano or tennis, kids will be more comfortable on the big stage if they practice in front of their families and peers first. The same is true of chess. Tournaments can be stressful for kids, but facing off against classmates before the event can help your child be more relaxed when they play in front of strangers.

By playing in tournaments, kids can continue to challenge themselves and compete against other kids who love chess as much as they do. We encourage all of our students, especially those in the advanced classes, to participate in state and national chess tournaments (which we also organize). Our group chess classes prepare your kids for tournaments not just by teaching them chess concepts, but by mentally preparing them for a much larger stage. 

Group chess classes for kids thus offer numerous advantages. They let kids compete against kids of a similar skill level and help kids learn chess concepts by doing instead of listening. Above all else, group chess classes are fun, which is the most important thing for your child.

Private Chess Classes: Advantages and Disadvantages

While Silver Knights believes that group chess classes are the best choice for most children, we understand that private lessons might be the right choice for your child. Some of our coaches do teach privately in addition to teaching our group classes. If you think one of our online chess coaches might be the perfect private teacher for your child, we will happily put you in touch. 

Private Chess Lessons: The Upsides

Private chess classes do have their advantages. They offer greater personalization. A private tutor can pinpoint exactly which things your child can improve on. This can be important for a beginner who's struggling with chess basics, or a particularly shy child who might be intimidated by a group lesson format. The personal attention of a private coach can also be helpful for more advanced players who want to analyze their own games in detail.

Private Chess Lessons: The Downsides

As stated earlier, the most important thing anyone can do to get better at chess is to play repeatedly. Kids easily tire of playing the same opponent again and again. Even in a group chess class, kids sometimes complain and say, “I already played that kid!” That problem becomes worse if your kid is playing the same adult repeatedly week after week.

Furthermore, there's the issue of the skill gap between your child and their tutor. That gap can be too small, which will limit how much your child can progress, or too large, in which case your child could grow discouraged after losing every single game they play. In a group chess class, kids play against other kids at roughly the same level, creating an environment where they sometimes win and sometimes lose, but always improve. 

Private Chess Lessons: Reliability 

At Silver Knights, we make sure our chess coaches are properly trained and have the support they need to become excellent teachers and connect with your child. 

By contrast, finding a good private coach can pose a challenge in any subject, and chess is no exception. The right private tutor needs to have good emotional intelligence, be able to bond with your child, and of course know the subject material well.

As noted above, Silver Knights can help you find a private chess coach. But even then, you'll want to interview and get references from multiple chess coaches before deciding who is best suited for your child. That can take a lot of time and effort and delay your child’s start to chess.

Even if you find an excellent private tutor at first, you'll need to find another if your child progresses enough or personal circumstances change. Then you'll have to complete the process of obtaining references and interviewing instructors all over again. At Silver Knights, we have a roster of coaches who excel at teaching different levels, as well as online classes that are tailored to your child’s level. This allows us to provide a smoother, easier process, which will help your child learn.

Group Chess Classes: The Best Choice

People think of chess as a solitary game. A genius learns alone, perhaps supported by another genius tutor.

But chess is a game, and games are about having fun. Most people have fun when they learn with other people. And when people are having fun, learning becomes a lot easier.

Whether online or in person, a Silver Knights group chess class can connect your child to all sorts of peers and coaches who are ready to make chess a fun experience. Private chess tutors do have their advantages, but for most kids, a group chess class is a much better way to study the game and have a great time doing it.

Consider joining our online chess program today!