Chess Strategy For Kids

(Fig 1.1: Middle of the board, the central 4 squares highlighted in red: e4, d4, e5, d5)

Why: Controlling the center gives you command over both the kingside and queenside, allowing pieces to move more easily across the board. A strong center typically provides more space (control of your opponent's territory), making it easier to create an attack. Pieces also control a maximum number of squares when placed in the center compared to in the corner (except for rooks, which control the same number of squares regardless of their position).

Silver Knights Expert Chess Strategy Tip: We teach central control in our lessons but but you can show your child this idea with a simple exercise. Place a knight in any corner of the board (h1, a1, h8, or a8) and ask them to count how many squares the knight can control or move to... only 2! Put the knight in the center and ask the same question, where the answer is now 8 squares. That's the power of the center!

(Fig 1.2: Notice how the active White knight covers 8 squares from the center, maximizing its influence. Compare this to the restricted Black knight on the absolute corner of the board, which controls only 2 squares—a clear contrast in piece activity. )

How: Starting from Move 1, actively move your pawns and pieces toward the center. The most popular opening moves at all levels, including expert play, are 1.e4, 1.d4, or 1.c4: all aimed at controlling the central squares. After this, develop your minor pieces (knights and bishops) toward the center rather than the sides.

(Fig 1.3: A strong opening setup: central pawns (d4, e4) control space while knights and bishops are developed toward the center. This ensures maximum mobility and impact.)

Develop Your Pieces

What: Your child should learn to develop their pieces as soon as possible. In the opening stage, they shouldn't waste time with unnecessary pawn moves or one-move threats. Instead, they should focus on getting their pieces out quickly to challenge their opponent's position for the long term, rather than making short-term threats.

Why: The pieces are the foundation of chess. Without properly developed and coordinated pieces, your child’s plans, threats, attacking ideas,  and defenses will lack foundation. Your child will learn why mobilizing all the pieces is they key to success. 

Silver Knights Expert Chess Strategy Tip: All of our expert coaches at the chess academy program emphasize the importance of piece development. They demonstrate this through games that show how proper development leads to success and how underdeveloped positions can be exploited. By analyzing students' practice games and reinforcing this concept in the classroom, we help make this fundamental principle intuitive. 

How: Your child should try and develop their minor pieces (knights and bishops) toward the center as soon as possible. Castle early to protect your king, then move your queen to connect your rooks - it's that simple!

Keep Your King Safe

What: We will teach your child to castle as soon as possible after developing a few/all of their minor pieces. This moves the king to safety and away from the vulnerable center files, where it could be easily attacked during the opening or middlegame.

Why: The king is the most important piece in chess - this is no exaggeration! It's important that your child learns to castle quickly, as opponents will try to attack through the center and create checkmating threats. Delaying castling leaves the king vulnerable in the center, where it's most exposed. When castled, the king is safely shielded in the corner, protected by pawns in front and supported by a rook!

Silver Knights Expert Chess Strategy Tip: Our experts frequently demonstrate games where one side castled and the other didn't. The result? These games often end in a sudden checkmate! Here's an example game showing exactly this: Former World Champion and "Magician from Riga" Mikhail Tal exploiting his opponent's uncastled king by opening up the center. Showcasing these types of games demonstrates two things: a) It shows your child the importance of king safety, and b) It teaches them how to exploit an opponent's uncastled king!

How: We help your child understand that king safety should be a priority from the beginning of the game. They should develop their minor pieces and castle early. While kingside castling is generally considered safer, queenside castling can oftentimes create dynamic positions. The choice of where to castle depends on various factors, including which side offers better king protection and what plans the position requires.

Middlegame Chess Strategy For Kids

Now that your child knows the most important opening chess strategies, it's time we explore some important middlegame chess strategy for kids!

Handle Your Pawns With Care!

What: "Pawns are the soul of chess" - these were the words of 18th-century chess master Philidor. Pawns can help you attack, defend, and even promote to stronger pieces! We remind your child not to take pawn moves lightly, since once a pawn moves forward, it can never move backwards!

Why: Pushing pawns carelessly can create permanent weaknesses in your pawn structure. A pawn moved too far forward without careful consideration becomes vulnerable to attacks. However, strategically advancing pawns can be powerful, especially in endgames where they have the potential to promote to stronger pieces. 

Silver Knights Expert Chess Strategy Tip: Many intermediate and advanced students at our academy program study different pawn structures, including doubled pawns, isolated pawns, and pawn chains. Exploring these concepts with your child can help them understand which formations are advantageous and which should be avoided. Our experts also teach children about the power of passed pawns, as well as how to execute pawn breakthroughs and initiate pawn storms effectively.

How: At our Online Chess Academy Program, we teach your child to pay attention to each pawn move and the changes it brings to the pawn structure, both short-term and long-term. Pawn strategy is an extremely complex topic; it's best to break down the concepts into smaller, easier-to-understand chunks. Our expert chess teachers recommend starting by studying simple pawn structures and then slowly introducing more advanced chess topics, like when to create pawn breakthroughs and pawn storms.

Fig 2: The pawns on the squares highlighted in blue are known as "doubled pawns" since the two pawns are on the same file; similarly, the pawns on the squares highlighted in yellow are called "connected passed pawns" as they form a lovely "pawn chain." Meanwhile, the pawn on the squares highlighted in red is called an "isolated pawn," as there are no friendly pawns on adjacent files (in this case, the h- and f-files). All of these are examples of different types of pawn structures. Isolated and doubled pawns are generally considered weaknesses, whereas a pawn chain is a valuable asset!

Trade Pieces Carefully!

What: Trading or exchanging pieces is an integral part of chess. However, it's not a good chess strategy to trade pieces at every opportunity. Each trade, no matter how small, changes the dynamics of the game - for better or worse. That's why it's crucial to think carefully before making any exchanges.

Why: Trading pieces can simplify positions, which might be beneficial when you have a material advantage or when your opponent has a strong attack. However, trades can also weaken your position by compromising your defense or pawn structure. For instance, trades that result in doubled or isolated pawns can create major strategic weaknesses for your opponent to target.

Silver Knights Expert Chess Strategy Tip: Our expert coaches, including more than ten FIDE Titled chess experts, teach trading strategies appropriate to the students' skill level.  We will help your child make good decisions at the chess board by comparing the "before" and "after" situation for any potential trade. While even chess masters sometimes struggle with trading decisions, the goal is to help your child make the right choice more often than not.

How: We discuss with your child why trades can significantly impact the position. This helps them develop a habit of evaluating trades before accepting or offering them by considering:

a) Material count after the trade (ensure they're not losing pieces)
b) Resulting pawn structure (avoid creating weaknesses)
c) Strategic and tactical implications
d) Immediate consequences (check if the opponent has any immediate plan/move).

 

Avoid Weaknesses!

What: In chess, weaknesses are defined as any square/pawn/piece that is vulnerable to the opponent's control/capture/target, either immediately or in the foreseeable future. Anything vulnerable, such as unprotected pawns, poorly defended squares in your territory, or pieces susceptible to attack or trapping, can be considered a weakness.

Why: At times, weaknesses may seem "basic" and harmless, but they can easily become a matter of serious complications—this holds true even at the most elite level of chess. Not only do weaknesses pose a problem on their own, but they also expose their entire territory and pieces to potential exploitation by their opponent. These vulnerabilities/weaknesses often force the side with weaknesses into a passive position, where their focus turns on defending rather than chasing their plans.

Silver Knights Expert's Chess Strategy Tip: Our experts will teach your child to recognize and identify common weaknesses in a chess position. This can be confusing but we remind students that "a weakness is only a true weakness if it can be attacked or exploited." This advice can be found in the famous chess strategy book "My System", authored in 1925 by chess legend and master Aaron Nimzowitsch.

How: We will teach your child to scan both their own and their opponent's positions for potential weaknesses. Look for unprotected pawns, poorly defended squares, and vulnerable pieces. When they spot weaknesses in their opponent's position, we help them plan how to maneuver their pieces to exploit these opportunities.

 

(Fig 3: The d5 square is a weakness—an unprotected and vulnerable square in Black's territory, ready to be occupied by White. The knight on c3 is ideally positioned to take control of this weak square.)

 

Chess Endgame Strategy for Kids

We've covered almost all the most important foundational chess strategies for kids, but it's not over yet! Let's now explore a few of the most important endgame chess strategies for kids!

Activate the King in the Endgame

What: Throughout the opening and middlegame, our biggest priority is keeping the king secure.  However, after pieces are traded - especially the queens - the threat of checkmate is much lower. When this happens, the king becomes a powerful piece. We will teach your child should to activate their king and involve it in the endgame once they're certain it's safe to do so!

Why: Since the king is at less risk of getting checkmated in the endgame, it can act as both an attacker and defender. After most pieces are traded, especially in King and Pawn endgames, the king becomes a crucial piece that often determines the outcome of the game.  

Silver Knights Expert Chess Strategy Tip: This endgame principle is one of the most important in chess endgame strategy. Our experts explore this topic in detail at the Queens level of our online class by showcasing the games of great players like Capablanca, who was a former world champion and has set the gold standard for endgame play since the 1900s. 

How: We teach numerous endgame positions to help students understand when it's safe to activate the king. Repeated practice will help them recognize:

1. When it’s safe to activate the king

2. The best path for the king to take, usually attacking enemy weaknesses or defending their own

3. Any potential tactical threats to watch out for
   
   

Fig 4: White's next moves, as seen in Andreanne Guillot (White) vs. Ozge Yalçın (Black) should focus on activating the king—an extremely principle as discussed.. The plan is Kf2 → Ke3 → e5 → Ke4, bringing the king into the center to exert maximum pressure.

 

Place Rooks Behind the Passed Pawn

What: Rook and pawn endgames are one of the most common situations. Your child will learn that a rook should support (or attack) a passed pawn from behind rather than from the front.  

Why: Putting the rook ahead of your own passed pawn might seem natural, but it can lead to positions where the pawn's promotion is blocked by your own rook. In such cases, the opponent's rook can catch up from behind and apply pressure, paralyzing your rook since moving it would leave your pawn unprotected.

Silver Knights Expert Chess Strategy Tip: Rook endgames are one of the most important and practical endgames to study. After your child has studied basic King and Pawn endgames, we focus on Rook endgames next. Why? Because roughly 7 out of 10 endgames your child encounters will involve this endgame! Our Queens level lesson cover all the most important endgames. 

How: Your child will study many endgames with rooks and passed pawns.  We will show them examples of positions that end in draws versus wins.  We demonstrate how placing the rook behind your passed pawn puts maximum pressure on your opponent. 

Fig 5: If you have a passed pawn, always place your rook behind it! This restricts your opponent’s rook, as moving away would allow your pawn to promote, while your own rook retains flexibility. Conversely, avoid placing your rook in front of the passed pawn. As seen in the diagram on the right, when your opponent’s rook is behind your passed pawn, your own rook becomes passive—tied to the pawn, with no good squares to move to without losing the pawn.

 

Universal Chess Strategies For Kids

This section covers a few of the most important, universally applicable chess strategies for kids. 

Prophylaxis in Chess

What: Prophylaxis is a concept that teaches preventive thinking.  No matter what chess position you have, whether it's training puzzles, practice games, or a real-life game: you should always look for what your opponent wants. Do they have any threats? What's their idea? Then, look for ways to prevent it.

Why: A common mistake among amateurs is focusing solely on their own plans while ignoring their opponent's ideas. This can lead to disasters, as players might miss potential counterattacks, tactical threats and a lot more. That's why we teach your child to actively recognize their opponent's plans, ideas, and threats, and then find ways to prevent them.

Silver Knights Expert Chess Strategy Tip: Prophylaxis is a universal, easy-to-learn concept but extremely hard to master. Our experts believe the key to helping your child understand this chess strategy is through constant reinforcement and careful analysis of their own games. 

How: We make it a habit for your child to ask these questions before each move:

1. "What is my opponent threatening?"
2. "Is that threat worth my attention?" 
3. "Does my opponent have a strong reply to the move I am considering?" 
   

Talk to Your Pieces!

What: All chess grandmasters talk to their pieces. This might sound amusing to adults but we have found that children of all skill levels can understand and apply this fun approach.  We will teach your child to look for ways to improve their piece placement by "asking" pieces where they "want to be", for example.  

Why: Uncoordinated pieces and pieces that are not optimized take away a lot of opportunities. To do anything, from creating a nice strong attack to defending efficiently, all of the pieces must be active and well placed.  That's why it's important to periodically talk to the pieces and check on how they are doing.  

Silver Knights Expert Chess Strategy Tip: Our expert chess coaches love explaining this concept to children in our chess academy program! We use real-life examples to make it easy to understand.  Understanding piece maneuvering and optimal piece placement can be quite difficult.  But everyone can understand that a bishop who "feels boxed in"  would probably "like to move to a better place". 

How:  We encourage your child to develop a habit of reviewing and recognizing the potential of each of their pieces. We do this in a fun way that develops good chess habits. 

Conclusion

Want to learn more? Our expert coaches provide engaging, interactive semi-private lessons in our online academy program, featuring games, positions, exercises, and quizzes. We also offer our students several exciting Weekly Bonus Lessons, online tournaments and much more! Try out a $5 Trial Chess Class.