Hello and welcome to the Kids Academy chess course! My name is Robert Lazorczyk, and I’m here to help you learn all about chess. Chess is a super fun game, and today we’re going to talk about the most important piece on the chessboard: the king!
The king is like the leader of your chess army. Your job is to keep your king safe while trying to catch your opponent’s king. That’s how you win the game! You can spot the king because he’s the tallest piece on the board and has a little cross or plus sign on top.
Think of the king as an old man who moves slowly around his kingdom. He can only move one step at a time. He can go forward, backward, sideways, or even diagonally. For example, if the king is on a square called e4, he can move to eight different squares around him.
Let’s practice! If the king is on d5, where can he go next? He can move to d6, or any square that’s just one step away. Kings can also capture other pieces by moving one step in any direction. If there’s a black rook on e6, the white king can capture it by moving diagonally.
If there’s a rook on d8 and another on f7, which one can the king capture? The king can capture the rook on f7 because it’s just one step away!
It’s super important to keep your king safe. Never move him to a square where he can be captured by an enemy piece. For example, if there’s a rook on d8, the king shouldn’t move to d6, d5, or d4 because those squares are dangerous.
If your opponent tries to move their king into danger, remind them that it’s not allowed and they should try a different move.
Remember, the king moves one step at a time in any direction. He captures pieces the same way. The king is the most important piece, so always keep him safe. A good tip is to keep your king behind your other pieces for protection.
That’s all for now! I hope you had fun learning about the king. See you next time, and don’t forget to subscribe to our channel for more fun videos! Bye!
King’s Journey Game: Create a simple chessboard on a piece of paper or use a real chessboard if available. Place the king on any square. Roll a die to determine how many moves the king should make. For each move, decide which direction the king will go. Try to reach a specific square on the board in the fewest moves possible. Discuss with a friend or family member why you chose each move and how you kept the king safe.
King’s Safety Patrol: Draw a chessboard and place the king on a square. Use small objects like coins or buttons to represent other chess pieces. Pretend these are enemy pieces. Identify which squares are safe for the king to move to and which are dangerous. Explain why some squares are safe and others are not. This will help you understand how to protect the king during a real game.
Story Time with the King: Write a short story about a day in the life of the king on the chessboard. Describe how he moves around his kingdom and what he does to stay safe. Include challenges he faces and how he overcomes them. Share your story with a classmate or family member and discuss what you learned about the king’s movements and safety.
**Welcome to Kids Academy!**
Hi and welcome to the Kids Academy chess course! My name is Robert Lazorczyk, and I’m a certified teacher with international and national chess teaching certifications. I will be your guide as we begin to master this great game.
Today, we’re going to learn about the most important piece in chess: the king. The king is the leader of the army, and it’s our job in chess to keep our kings safe and to attack our opponent’s king. That’s how you win a game, and also how you can lose one.
You can identify the king because he is always the tallest piece on the chessboard and has a little cross or plus sign on top.
Now, let’s learn how the king can move. I like to think of the king as an old man who hobbles around his kingdom very slowly. He can move one step at a time, either on ranks, files, or diagonally. For example, if the king is on e4, he has eight different choices for movement: he can go diagonally, sideways, or even backwards.
Let’s practice moving the king! If the king is on d5, where could he go next? He has many choices, and one option is to move to d6. He could also move to any of the squares that are one step away.
Kings can capture pieces in the same way they move, one step at a time in any direction. For instance, if we place a black rook on e6, the white king can capture it by moving diagonally one square.
If we have a situation with a rook on d8 and a rook on f7, which rook can the king capture if it’s white’s turn to move? The king can capture the rook on f7 because it’s one step away, while the rook on d8 is too far.
Now, if we want the king to end up on g5 in two moves, what would be a good first move? The king can either move to f6 or g6 on the first turn, and then on the second move, he can reach g5.
It’s important to remember that kings can never be put in danger. He is the leader of your army and the most important piece. You must keep your king safe and never move him to a square that an enemy piece is targeting. For example, if there’s a rook on d8, the king cannot move to d6, d5, or d4 because those squares are controlled by the rook.
If you find yourself in a game where your opponent tries to move their king into danger, kindly remind them that it’s an illegal move and encourage them to try again.
To summarize: Kings move one step at a time in any direction—on ranks, files, and diagonally. They capture the same way they move, one step away. Remember, the king is the most important piece in your army, and you must keep him safe.
As a general rule, I recommend placing your king behind your other pieces for protection.
That’s it for now! I hope you enjoyed this video, and I’ll see you soon. Bye!
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