Chess Learning Print Pack
Start Here
Six true-beginner lessons covering the board, pieces, check, checkmate, castling, stalemate, and draw basics.
Includes 6 lessons in curriculum order.
Student copy only — no answers are embedded in this document.
Teacher/Parent: view the separate answer key
In this pack
- Lesson 1: The Board and Setup
- Lesson 2: Rooks, Bishops, and Queens
- Lesson 3: Kings, Knights, and Pawns
- Lesson 4: Capturing and Check
- Lesson 5: Getting Out of Check and Checkmate
- Lesson 6: Castling, Stalemate, and Draw Basics
Worksheet: The Board and Setup
Topic: basics | Level: 1 | Start Here branch
Learn the square names, the light-square-on-the-right rule, and where every piece belongs before the game starts.
Why This Matters
- Every square has a name made from a file letter and a rank number, like that square or b7.
- Before you set up the pieces, turn the board so the light square is on the right.
- Queens start on their own color: the white queen on d1 and the black queen on d8.
Objectives
- Name files, ranks, and simple coordinates like that square.
- Use the "light square on the right" rule to orient the board correctly.
- Set up the kings, queens, rooks, bishops, knights, and pawns in the right starting places.
Practice Tasks
- Label the files a-h and the ranks 1-8 on a blank board.
- Write the rule that helps you turn the board the right way before you set up the pieces.
- Name where the white queen, white king, black queen, and black king start.
Board Walkthrough
Follow the lesson one board at a time. The teacher answer key includes the move list.
Practice Positions
Solve each position on paper first. Answers live only in the separate teacher/parent key.
Practice 1
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Practice 2
Black to move. Find the lesson move.
Practice 3
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Practice 4
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Mini-Game
Play from the normal starting setup. Before every legal move, say the square name you start from and the square name you land on.
Worksheet: Rooks, Bishops, and Queens
Topic: basics | Level: 1 | Start Here branch
Sliding pieces move in straight lines or diagonals, but they stop when a piece blocks the road.
Why This Matters
- Rooks slide in straight lines. Bishops slide in diagonals.
- Queens combine both patterns, so they are the strongest sliding piece.
- A sliding piece must stop before a blocker or capture the first enemy piece in its path.
Objectives
- Move rooks on ranks and files.
- Move bishops on diagonals.
- Explain that queens combine both patterns, but none of these pieces may jump over blockers.
Practice Tasks
- Write one sentence for how a rook moves and one sentence for how a bishop moves.
- Why can't a rook on a1 move to a4 when a pawn is still sitting on a2?
- Explain why the queen is sometimes called a rook plus a bishop together.
Board Walkthrough
Follow the lesson one board at a time. The teacher answer key includes the move list.
Practice Positions
Solve each position on paper first. Answers live only in the separate teacher/parent key.
Practice 1
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Practice 2
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Practice 3
White to move. Find the move that gives check.
Practice 4
White to move. Find the move that gives check.
Mini-Game
Play with the rook, bishop, and queen. Before each move, say whether the path is straight or diagonal, and whether any blocker is in the way.
Worksheet: Kings, Knights, and Pawns
Topic: basics | Level: 1 | Start Here branch
Kings step one square, knights hop in an L-shape, and pawns march forward with their own special rules.
Why This Matters
- Kings are precious: they step only one square and cannot walk into an attacked square.
- Knights move in an L-shape and are the only pieces that can jump over other pieces.
- Pawns move forward, capture diagonally, may move two squares on their first move, and can promote when they reach the end.
Objectives
- Move the king one square in any direction without walking into danger.
- Use the knight's L-shape jump over other pieces.
- Explain pawn direction, the double-step from the starting square, diagonal captures, and a first look at promotion.
Practice Tasks
- Draw a knight's L-shape and write two squares it could jump to from b1.
- What is the biggest safety rule for kings?
- Write the special pawn rules: first move, captures, and promotion.
Board Walkthrough
Follow the lesson one board at a time. The teacher answer key includes the move list.
Practice Positions
Solve each position on paper first. Answers live only in the separate teacher/parent key.
Practice 1
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Practice 2
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Practice 3
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Practice 4
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Practice 5
White to move. Find the best promotion.
Mini-Game
Try legal king, knight, and pawn moves only. Notice that the knight can hop, kings step one square, and pawns only march forward.
Worksheet: Capturing and Check
Topic: basics | Level: 1 | Start Here branch
Most captures follow a piece's normal move pattern, while pawns are special because they move forward but capture diagonally forward; check means the king is under attack right now.
Why This Matters
- Most pieces capture by using the same move pattern they normally use, except the destination square has an enemy piece on it.
- Pawns are special: they move straight forward, but they capture one square diagonally forward.
- The square a piece attacks is important even if no piece is standing there yet.
- Check is special because a king under attack must be rescued on the very next move.
Objectives
- Capture by moving onto a square occupied by an enemy piece with a legal move pattern.
- Spot attacked squares and notice when a king is in check.
- Say the difference between a regular move and a move that checks the king.
Practice Tasks
- Write a short definition of a capture.
- Write a short definition of check.
- For each practice position, say whether the winning move was mainly a capture, a check, or both.
Board Walkthrough
Follow the lesson one board at a time. The teacher answer key includes the move list.
Practice Positions
Solve each position on paper first. Answers live only in the separate teacher/parent key.
Practice 1
White to move. Find the safe capture.
Practice 2
White to move. Find the safe capture.
Practice 3
White to move. Find the move that gives check.
Mini-Game
Play a few moves and say out loud when you are capturing something or giving check. If neither happens, say "quiet move."
Worksheet: Getting Out of Check and Checkmate
Topic: basics | Level: 1 | Start Here branch
When a king is in check, you must fix it right away by moving the king, capturing the checker, or blocking the line if that works.
Why This Matters
- You may never ignore check. Your very next move must make the check disappear.
- There are only three rescue ideas: move the king, capture the checker, or block the line if the attacker slides.
- If none of those work, the position is checkmate, not just check.
Objectives
- Use the three rescue ideas: move the king, capture the checking piece, or block the check.
- Explain that every legal reply to check must make the attack disappear.
- Tell the difference between check and checkmate.
Practice Tasks
- List the three main ways to get out of check.
- How is check different from checkmate?
- Look at the practice positions and name which rescue idea was used in each one.
Board Walkthrough
Follow the lesson one board at a time. The teacher answer key includes the move list.
Practice Positions
Solve each position on paper first. Answers live only in the separate teacher/parent key.
Practice 1
White to move. Find the checkmate.
Practice 2
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Practice 3
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Practice 4
White to move. Find the lesson move.
Mini-Game
White starts in check. Try legal replies only, and notice that any move which does not fix the check is rejected.
Worksheet: Castling, Stalemate, and Draw Basics
Topic: basics | Level: 1 | Start Here branch
Castling has a few important safety rules, and not every game ends with checkmate — some endings are draws.
Why This Matters
- Castling is a special king move: the king moves two squares toward a rook, then that rook hops over it.
- You may not castle out of check, through check, or into check, and pieces between the king and rook must be gone.
- Some games are drawn: stalemate is the famous one, but insufficient material, threefold repetition, and the 50-move rule matter too.
Objectives
- Castle only when the king and rook have not moved, the path is clear, and the king does not castle through danger.
- Tell stalemate apart from checkmate.
- Use simple draw words like stalemate, insufficient material, threefold repetition, and 50-move rule.
Practice Tasks
- Write the four castling safety checks you should ask before you castle.
- Explain the difference between stalemate and checkmate.
- What do these draw words mean in kid-friendly language: stalemate, insufficient material, threefold repetition, and 50-move rule?
Board Walkthrough
Follow the lesson one board at a time. The teacher answer key includes the move list.
Practice Positions
Solve each position on paper first. Answers live only in the separate teacher/parent key.
Practice 1
White to move. Find the safest king move.
Practice 2
Black to move. Find the safest king move.
Practice 3
White to move. Find the move that forces stalemate.
Practice 4
White to move. Finish the checkmate.
Mini-Game
Try castling on both sides. White may not castle kingside through the bishop's attack, but queenside castling is still legal.