Time Required:
10 minutes
Tools Required:
- Big chess board
- All giant pieces
Chess Objective(s):
Students will be able to:
- Demonstrate how to set up the chess board for the beginning of a chess game
General Objective(s):
- Improve gross motor skills
- Enhance coordination
- Demonstrate teamwork
- Demonstrate good sportsmanship
Description:
Place all giant pieces, separated by color, at opposite end of the play area from the giant board. Break participants into 2 groups. Tell the participants that the goal is to set up their entire side of the board. One person per team at a time will run and get the piece they are told to get and place it in the correct place on the board.
Variation 1:
Have two coaches, so that teams can keep going as soon as the team member returns.
Variation 2:
Give clues instead of piece name, like “this piece can only move diagonally.”
Variation 3:
For small groups, you can set up just one side of the board and have them all on the same team. Repeat a few times and try to beat your speed, or make it harder the second or third time by incorporating variation 2.
Description for Parents
The children formed into a white team and a black team. They ran a relay race to retrieve the pieces from the opposite end of the room and set up the giant chessboard. Afterwards, we all set up the little boards, too.