Chess is now more than just a game of Chess
Building Skills Beyond the Board
Every Month Counts
I have been continuing to play chess with my daughters, and it’s been fun to watch their progress. My older daughter is about to turn 4 years and 2 months old, and my younger one is nearing 2 years and 9 months. I still count their ages in months—it feels right at this stage when every month brings such noticeable changes in their development. The way they grow and evolve month by month is incredible. Meanwhile, I sometimes lose track of my own age. I was born in 1972, so I do the math when I need to.
Early Differences in Chess Understanding
There is a noticeable difference in their understanding of chess. While the younger one comprehends much less than her older sister, she is already far ahead in skill compared to where her sister was at 2 years and 9 months. It’s been fascinating to watch, especially since we’ve only recently started playing chess regularly together.
Making Memories Over the Board.
The older one shows more interest and can play chess for 2 to 3 hours easily, whereas the younger one lasts about 10 to 30 minutes. I think that’s completely normal, partly because of their age. It might also be that the more you understand the game, the more enjoyable it becomes—and the more you want to play it.
Memory Types: Visual vs. Auditory
They also seem to have different types of memory, though I’m not entirely sure how to describe it. The younger one seems to have a much stronger auditory memory than visual memory, while the older one shows a significantly better visual memory than auditory.
This is evident in how the younger one easily memorizes song lyrics, quickly picks them up, and is always singing. She seems to enjoy listening to music much more than her older sister.
A Multilingual Household
It’s worth noting that three languages are spoken in our household: Icelandic, Portuguese, and English.
I am Icelandic and speak Icelandic with my children, while my wife, who is Portuguese, speaks Portuguese with them. Lately, though, she has started speaking more and more Icelandic with them and is essentially learning the language alongside them. My wife and I also speak a lot of English with each other, though we’ve been gradually shifting to speaking more Icelandic together.
Although the children only speak Icelandic, they mostly understand Portuguese when spoken to, and they likely comprehend more English than I realize. Interestingly, there are certain terms and objects for which they prefer to use Portuguese words instead of Icelandic ones.
Children have an incredible ability to pick up languages. My two older sons from my previous marriage became fluent in English by the ages of 5 and 6 simply by watching Cartoon Network and YouTube. It’s actually quite common for Icelandic children to become very skilled in English by ages 5 to 7, as the language is so widespread in their environment.
The Importance of Observing Details
As I mentioned, the older one has a strong visual memory, which is evident in her keen observance and attention to detail. Even before she turned two, her first task in the morning after waking up was often to check if the toilet seat was up. If it was, she would promptly put it down.
A Splash of Color on the Chessboard: My Older Daughter Figuring Out the Details.
When I pick them up from kindergarten, the younger one has often taken off her socks. They end up in a basket along with several other pairs from the group—maybe 8 - 12 pairs. I usually don’t recognize the socks, but the older one almost always knows exactly which socks the younger one wore to school that morning. Similarly, she is remarkably observant about which belongings belong to each child in her group.
I believe her strong visual memory makes it so easy for her to remember where the pieces were on the chessboard if there’s ever a mix-up—like when pieces fall or her sister moves them around. She also has an impressive ability to recall sequences of moves. Once, I stepped away from the chessboard, and when I returned, she had made several moves for both sides and captured one of my pawns in the center. At first, it didn’t seem right, but when she demonstrated the sequence of moves she had played, it all made sense. It was a three-move knight combination. Clearly, a strong visual memory is a significant advantage in chess.
Beyond Chess: Lessons From Books and Experiments
But what do I mean when I say, "Chess is now more than just a game of chess"? Let me take a moment to explain.
I’ve been reading and listening to several books lately.
These books are:
Atomic Habits: Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results
The Talent Code: Greatness Isn’t Born. It’s Grown. Here’s How
Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning
How to Raise a Genius! by Laszlo Polgar
The Perspective of Children with Diverse Backgrounds on Learning Through Play - (Sýn barna með fjölbreyttan bakgrunn á nám í gegnum leik) a master’s thesis by my sister in preschool education
Next on my list, among others, is Uncommon Sense Teaching.
What I’ve learned from these books is that all healthy children are born with the potential to become geniuses and can learn anything. Laszlo Polgar’s daughters are a fascinating example of this—they were part of an experimental project by their father, who set out to prove that any child could achieve extraordinary success with the right upbringing and training. I may not be explaining this perfectly, but you can explore more by watching these YouTube videos.
Teaching Through Play
For children to learn effectively, teaching must be both engaging and enjoyable. I firmly believe that the best way for children to learn is through play. They need to understand the game well, and it should strike the right balance—not too hard or too easy—to keep them interested.
For example, I created some simple puzzles for my daughters, mostly back-rank mates in one move, and they found it fun. However, as soon as the puzzles became too challenging, they lost interest and wanted to do something else.
Easy Backrank Mate in one.
I planned to teach them how to identify squares like A1, E4, H7, and so on, but it’s too difficult for them at the moment—simply because they can’t count to 10 yet. Before they can grasp this concept, I first need to teach them how to count and familiarize them with the necessary letters. They know some letters and numbers, but not quite enough yet.
My older daughter's first attempt at learning the squares.
They don’t learn well if I just recite a chant like “1, 2, 3…” or “A, B, C…,” so I had to come up with a fun game to teach numbers. We use small blocks with numbers written on them, and we practice putting them in the correct order while saying their names aloud. Then, I make a "toilet" shape with my hands, and we pretend the blocks are poop (because all kids love pee and poop jokes at a certain age). I’ll say, “Put 5 in the toilet.” If she puts in the correct block, I make a “blub” sound. If she picks the wrong block, I pull my hands away, and the "toilet" closes.
Another game involves putting all the blocks in a pile and hiding one of them in my hand. They have to figure out which block is missing by identifying the one that isn’t there.
One more game is where they try to arrange the blocks in the correct order as best they can. Once they’re done, I point out any blocks they placed incorrectly, and they try again to put them in the right order.
Numbers Blocks
This is just one small example of how learning can be simple, fun, and engaging through play.
We’ve only been doing this for two days, a few minutes at a time, and they’re already getting quite good at it. They’re picking it up quickly, and soon it’ll just be about improving their knowledge of the letters.
Once they have a better understanding of letters and numbers, identifying chess squares will likely become much easier for them.
According to a book I read by Laszlo Polgar, this was one of the first things he started teaching his daughters. However, the details are a bit vague, as the book is written in the form of an interview with him, and the English and grammar are unfortunately often unclear to me.
Learning the Dance of the Kings
I’ve also been playing “King against King” with my older daughter, just as Laszlo Polgar did. It was a bit challenging to explain how the game worked on the chessboard, so we played it on the floor in the hallway of our apartment. I pretended to be the white king, and she was the black king. I took a step forward, then she did the same, and so on. When we stood opposite each other with a small gap between us, she stepped to the side, and I forgot to take the opposition as I should have—so she stepped past me.
She wasn’t grasping the concept with the kings on the chessboard, but in this real-life setting, it clicked for her immediately. Afterward, I brought out two Lego figures and set them up as kings on the chessboard.
Two Kings on the Table.
Their role was to play the same game we had practiced on the floor, but this time on the chessboard. To make it more engaging, whenever a Lego figure reached the end of the board, it earned a raisin as a prize waiting at the finish line. The only thing I had to ensure was making a mistake at some point so she could win—otherwise, she didn’t find it fun. I expect we’ll keep playing like this for a while before I introduce actual kings on the board.
A Chess-Focused Learning Journey
In reality, there are no limits to what children can learn—it all depends on the teacher and how interesting and engaging the material is for them.
This has truly become more than just a game of chess. While they’re learning chess, they’re also learning to count and familiarize themselves with the alphabet. It’s all interconnected. Once they’ve learned to count and started understanding what numbers represent—like a pawn being 1 and a bishop being 3—they can begin grasping concepts like 1 + 2 or 1 - 2.
By learning where squares like E4 and H7 are, they’re essentially mastering a coordinate system. Chess intertwines with so many foundational skills we develop in our early years that I could go on endlessly about its connections. I’m genuinely excited to see what new games and methods we’ll create as we continue this journey of learning chess together.
But more on that later, along with the methods I’m using and will be using .
My Own Progress and Challenges
And what about me? I wish I could say similarly positive things about myself, but while they’re learning at the speed of light, I’m learning at a snail’s pace.
My Status at the End of December
As an adult, it’s so easy to find excuses. I’ve recently started working, which means I can’t play chess as much as I used to. On top of that, the preschool was closed over the holidays, making it challenging to focus on my own chess while taking care of the kids and playing with them—whether it’s chess or something else. Despite all that, I’ve still managed to improve. In December, I only played 29 games:
7 Blitz games (I had stopped playing Blitz, but I played a few instead of nothing due to lack of time).
21 Rapid games.
2 Classical games.
In Classical, I’m still just 1685? But I estimate I’m around 1600 - 1700.
I also have a coach now who helps me analyze my games, identify weaknesses, and practice with me. Overall, I’m optimistic about the future, even though my interest in chess and the time I have for it is a bit divided now between myself and my daughters.
Thank you for reading, and more later.