Scholastic Chess Series
For more information or to order: www.championshipchess.net

Having only a basic knowledge of the game of chess, I have spent a lot of time over the years looking for chess books for kids and never found anything that taught much more than the basics. Then we started traveling to homeschool conventions and met the folks at Championship Chess. Both of my boys have spent countless hours playing other homeschool children at the tables they provide. In fact, you’ll usually find several kids standing, patiently waiting for a game to finish so they can have a turn.

Championship Chess has developed a solid curriculum, the Scholastic Chess Series, which provides step-by-step instruction for both the beginner as well as those who already know the basics but need help with the finer points of the game. This series of workbooks currently includes three titles, Chess Basics, Chess Openings 1, and Endgame Strategies 1. Each workbook has clear explanations and lots of diagrams to illustrate the lesson topics. Although the books can be used on their own, they are best used along with the corresponding videos that have been produced by the publisher. Each book has a section in the back explaining which pages in the book correspond with the coaching sessions on the video, making the program easy to implement. The coaching sessions on each well-produced video consist of a camera shot with the instructor standing in front of a large chess demonstration board, which he uses to place and move pieces to illustrate the topic being introduced.

Authored by long time chess coach, Stephen Schneider, (who is also the instructor on the videos), the Scholastic Chess Series begins with board layout, pieces and their movements, and basic game play. After your child has mastered the basics of the game, including lots of practice playing with you (after all chess is a two-player game!), they are then ready to move on to learning some great opening moves that can quickly put their opponent on the defensive. For many young (and older) chess players, getting and staying in a good position to end the game is the biggest challenge. The final book in the series teaches the basic skills needed for closing out a game successfully. These endgame strategies have really helped my oldest son improve his game. The lessons throughout the series are entertaining and full of encouragement, building confidence with each newly mastered skill.

Though not required, the folks at Championship Chess highly recommend students learn on a tournament board. They graciously provided us with the set they offer for sale on their website and we found it really does make working through the lessons much easier. This board, with its standard rank and file number/letter system, is used in all illustrations and in the video coaching sessions. Students will be learning game notation, which allows them to go back and replay game situations to learn what they could have done to change the outcome of the game. The author suggests watching the coaching session, then reading the corresponding pages in the workbook and doing the activities. Each lesson has at least one activity that allows the student to apply what they have learned. The activities are usually puzzles, which the student should set up on their chessboard, then mark the appropriate moves on the score card provided in the book using proper notation (answer keys are provided for all activities and puzzles). Chess notation and score cards are formally introduced in Chess Openings 1, however, students are taught how to "name the squares" very early in the Chess Basics workbook.

The Scholastic Chess Series can be used in a classroom or in chess clubs; however, it is perfect for home use as well. I especially appreciate that the lessons do not require parents to already know how to play the game. If you do know how to play and then let your child begin studying through this series without you, you will find yourself in checkmate more often (and more quickly) than you’d like. As far as parent/teacher involvement in the learning process goes, older students will be able to work through the video and workbook lessons on their own, while younger students will need more oversight from a parent to make sure they understand the lesson material.

The game of chess builds thinking and reasoning skills that students will use throughout their lives. With the Scholastic Chess Series, kids as young as five years old can begin building solid problem-solving skills while having fun. This is simply the most comprehensive, easy to use chess instruction program I have seen. Highly recommended!

Making the grade: A
Cost: $22.50 each workbook, $25.00 each video
Value for your homeschool dollar: 9
Reviewed by Cindy Prechtel, Editor