What is a chess buddy?

Someone once taught you how the knight jumps, and now it is your turn to teach a friend. When your friend can play a whole game alone, you are done. Your friend can play chess for the rest of their life. You also get someone new to play with.

What to teach, in this order

• Teach how each piece moves: pawns first, then one new piece each game.
• Teach that White moves first, and then you take turns.
• Explain check, which means the king is under attack and must get out of it.
• Show how a game ends: with checkmate, a draw, or someone giving up.

Then play whole games.

Where do you teach?

You can teach anywhere there is a board. Try the kitchen table, recess at school, the library or a park. A club works too, if there is one near you. If no friend wants to learn yet, ask a cousin, a neighbor, or a younger kid at school. Ten minutes at a time is plenty. Stop while it is still fun, so your friend asks for more.

Should I let my friend win?

No, because a win you give away is not a real win. Play with fewer pieces instead, like pawns only, or kings and pawns. Then your friend can win for real. In the first games, give hints instead of answers. If your friend leaves a piece you can take, ask them: what can my knight take now? When they find it themselves, they remember it. A friend who wins a pawn game today wants to play the whole game tomorrow.

How you get the sticker

Your grown-up or coach checks it and hands you the sticker. Tell them who your friend is and when you started teaching. It is even better if they watch your friend play a whole game. This sticker needs no club, because a grown-up at home can check it. Did you teach a friend before you had the passport? It still counts.