Introducing Chess to Young Kids (Sponsored)

You know those Sponsored Posts where I get paid to talk about amazing products and services? Yup, this is one of them! But because I’m so selective about who and what I share with you, I just know you’re going to love Chess At Three!

We’re big fans of board games in our house. It’s pretty much our go-to present and as a result, the kids have an insane amount of games and puzzles. Seriously, our game closet is beginning to rival the one in The Royal Tenenbaums and I’m totally not exaggerating.

So, yeah, we’re big fans of board games in our house so when Jim and I saw an article on introducing young children to Chess, we were immediately interested. Chess at Three?! I’m barely able to do Chess at 35. But my 4 year old son is crazy about games so we figured it wouldn’t hurt to try!

When you first get the Chess At Three pdf, you’re a bit overwhelmed with the amount of lessons (20) but once you actually start them, you realize just how quick and easy the system is. There’s a little bit of preparation needed on the part of the instructor (especially if you’re like me and don’t play Chess that often…ok, never!) but reading through and understanding each lesson only takes about 15 minutes and then you’re ready to share with your kid.

Both Jim and I were so impressed with how appropriate for young kids this curriculum is. Chess At Three totally understands that if you tell a 4 yr old that the King moves forward one square at a time, he’ll remember that for all of 5 seconds. Maybe 10, if you’re lucky. BUT…if you tell the same kid that “This is King Fischer and his belly is so large he has to move slowly, one square at a time.” Well, that even helps me remember!

Each of the pieces is introduced with a story that you read out loud and then follow with some basic play. When I took the picture above, we were on Lesson 3, where we introduced the kings’ children (aka. Pawns). Jack is setting up a really basic game where the Pawns and Kings were trying to get across the board first. The lessons really follow through from the introduction to practical use of each character, giving the instructor guidelines and hints along the way.

For example, one of those hints was to explain that when two opposing Pawns met straight on and couldn’t move forward, we would call them “locked” and clap our hands, intertwining our fingers into a fist. Just brilliant. Kids absorb and recall facts so much easier when there’s a physical activity involved. Even my two year old enjoys participating in the “locked” motion!

As I mentioned before, we’re still going through the lessons and are about half way through but I am 100% confident in my recommendation for the Chess At Three curriculum! Jack is having an absolute blast learning about the characters and playing the games while I’m overjoyed that he’s working on things like creative problem solving, concentration, memory, and strategic thinking. It’s a total win/win for everyone!

So, if you have young kids at home and you want to start introducing them to the wonderful world of Chess, definitely check out Chess At Three. I know you, and more importantly, your kids are going to love it!

And since we’re all crazy about Chess over here, I made up a “Life Is Chess” Free Printable that I thought I would share with you all. Hope you enjoy!