If you and your child have just taken to playing chess, it is easy to wonder how long it will take to master the game. The answer, unfortunately, is not a fixed number. Chess is a game easy to understand and difficult to master. Depending on the calibre of the learner and whether the player has offline or online chess coaching.
It takes a couple of hours to a few weeks to master the basic rules of the game - including moves of different pieces, including special moves like en-passant, coastline, promotion, etc, along with the basic understanding of checks and checkmates. Some easier checkmate strategies and stalemates too, might be learned. However, all that is only meant for beginners. At this stage, you must also learn how to capture pieces.
After you have developed a basic understanding of moves and pieces, you must next learn about different gaming tactics and some strategies. The game of chess has several tactics. Tactics in chess are moves made to gain a strategic advantage. Some common tactics involve pin, fork, discovered attacks, skewer, double checks, etc. Some checkmate strategies can be learned at this stage. Unlike the basic moves, you must not only learn how to play tactics but also how to ‘see’ them on board and how to create opportunities for them. Thus mastering this level can take much longer.
Additionally, you may want to keep a record of games by now. For that, you must learn chess notation. You must also learn about things like passed pawns and how to play with them. Opposition is a crucial end-game tactic that must also be learned.
Things only grow more complex as you move to higher levels of chess. At this time, you have a basic understanding of chess and can even claim to know how to play it. However, now you must learn how to master the game. That involves knowing advanced tactics like a windmill, trapping pieces, outposts, etc. Another thing you must learn at this level is various advanced critical positions and how to play them, including different middle games. By this point, players must also master various end-game tactics so that they can make the most of their material in competitively equal games. Given the complex nature of this level, the players can take different amounts of time to master the game. Thus, it may take a good amount of time for the lessons you have mastered at this stage.
Additionally, having theoretical knowledge of these things is not enough. You must learn how to apply them to your games and use your knowledge to generate more powerful moves.
Don’t let what you have read dishearten you. Learning chess can be a long and hard yet fun journey. It can be made much smoother if you go for online chess coaching for beginners, intermediate and advanced players from chessbrainz, which takes a very organized approach to teaching the game.