I had a demonstration board and, nearby, one chess set for every two children for the “practice” parts of my lesson plan. The groups rotated to me (35 minutes each for Intermediate and Advanced and 20 minutes for Beginner) in the order of Intermediate, then Beginner, then Advanced. There was a parent volunteer in my classroom.

Pawn Day for Beginners and Intermediates (two separate classes)

Beginners: I taught the two-rook checkmate on the demonstration board, calling on students to make Black’s (the defender’s moves) and, after the pattern became clear, White’s moves. Battleship Chess (king and 4 pawns against king and 4 pawns) for the remainder of the 20 minutes. Both the two-rook checkmate and Battleship Chess plans are explained in Children and Chess: A Guide for Educators.

Modification for the Intermediate group, done after the two-rook mate lecture: I put a White K on d6, a Black K on d8 and asked students “Where could you put the White queen so that the position is a checkmate?” During Battleship Chess, I took one child at a time aside to test for being able to complete the two-rook checkmate or one-queen checkmate (child’s choice of what to be tested on).

Pawn Day for Advanced Players

Taught the Ke3 and Pe2 vs. Kd5 (White to move and eventually win) on the demonstration board. Students then practiced that drill with a partner and, after the pawn promoted to either a R or a Q, students continued on from that position to practice the K and Q vs. K mate or the K and R vs. K mate. I tested those who felt ready to demonstrate their knowledge of the K and P vs. K leading to the K and Q or K and R checkmate.