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Learn chess from the very first move

ChessLab Academy teaches chess on a real board with a spoken instructor and captions. Every exercise checks your actual move, and on each move you can ask "What can I play?", "Why is this a good move?" or "What happens if I play something else?"

Module A: First steps

What chess is, the board, how every piece moves, captures, check and checkmate, special moves and piece values.

• What chess is: Know how a game starts and how it is won.
• The board: Find any square by its name.
• The rook: Move the rook and capture with it.
• The bishop: Move the bishop along diagonals.
• The queen: Use the most powerful piece.
• The knight: Learn the knight's jump.
• The king: Move the king safely.
• The pawn: Move, capture and promote pawns.
• Captures and protected pieces: Take free pieces and leave protected ones alone.
• Check: Give check and get out of check.
• Checkmate and stalemate: Tell checkmate from stalemate and deliver mate in one.
• Castling: Castle and know when you can't.
• En passant: Capture a pawn that has just moved two squares.
• Piece values and trades: Count material before you capture.
• Module A check: Show you know the rules.

Module B: Your first games

How to start a game, the centre, development, king safety, the early queen, hanging pieces, threats, and a coached game.

• Your first moves: Play the first four moves of a real game and know why.
• How to start a game: Apply the three opening principles.
• Why the centre matters: Use your moves to control the centre.
• Developing knights and bishops: Bring a new piece into play with each move.
• Protecting your king: Castle early and keep a safe shelter.
• Moving the queen too early: See why an early queen can lose time, and defend against Scholar's Mate.
• Avoiding hanging pieces: Notice when a piece is attacked and keep it safe.
• Recognising threats: Ask "what does my opponent want?" before every move.
• A coached practice game: Play a whole game with hints and warnings.
• Module B check: Show you can start a game well.

Module C: Basic tactics

Forks, pins, skewers, discovered attacks, double attacks, removing defenders and basic mates, with real puzzles.

• Forks: Spot and play forks.
• Pins: Spot and play pins.
• Skewers: Spot and play skewers.
• Discovered attacks: Spot and play discovered attacks.
• Double attacks: Spot and play forks.
• Removing the defender: Spot and play remove the defender.
• Back-rank checkmates: Spot and play back-rank mates.
• Basic mating patterns: Spot and play mate in one.
• Module C check: Solve mixed tactics.

Module D: Opening fundamentals

Ten important openings, one at a time: first openings for White, then defences for Black.

• Italian Game: Play the Italian Game and know its main ideas.
• Scotch Game: Play the Scotch Game and know its main ideas.
• London System: Play the London System and know its main ideas.
• Queen's Gambit: Play the Queen's Gambit and know its main ideas.
• Ruy Lopez: Play the Ruy Lopez and know its main ideas.
• Scandinavian Defence: Answer with the Scandinavian Defence and know its main ideas.
• Caro-Kann Defence: Answer with the Caro-Kann Defence and know its main ideas.
• French Defence: Answer with the French Defence and know its main ideas.
• Sicilian Defence: Answer with the Sicilian Defence and know its main ideas.
• King's Indian Defence: Answer with the King's Indian Defence and know its main ideas.
• Module D check: Show you know the opening ideas.

Module E: Essential endgames

Basic checkmates, the opposition, pawn promotion, king and pawn endings and simple rook endings.

• Checkmate with king and queen: Force mate with king and queen against a lone king.
• Checkmate with king and rook: Force mate with king and rook against a lone king.
• The opposition: Win king and pawn against king.
• Basic pawn promotion: Win the race when the king can't catch your pawn.
• The square of the pawn: Know at a glance whether a king can catch a pawn.
• The Lucena position: Win rook and pawn against rook by "building a bridge".
• The Philidor defence: Draw rook and pawn against rook.
• Module E check: Show your endgame basics.

Intermediate and advanced

After the beginner modules: candidate moves, combinations, calculation, open files, outposts, rook endings, deep calculation and engine-assisted study. More lessons are being written.

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