Chess for total beginners

Course Title: Chess for Total Beginners
Course Headline: From Learning the Moves, to Checkmating, to Tactics and Strategy

** Welcome to Your Chess Journey! **

Hey there, fellow chess enthusiast! 🚪 I'm Katie Kormanik, and I've been enthralled by the royal game since I first set foot in the world of kings, queens, rooks, bishops, knights, and pawns at the tender age of 4. By 7, I was competing in tournaments and soared to become one of the top 100 women chess players in the US with a rating of 1850 before I took a break in 2011. My passion for chess remains undimmed, and I'm thrilled to share it with you!

What You'll Learn:

• The Basics: We'll start at square one - learning how each piece moves, understanding the layout of the board, and mastering the rules of play. 🤓

• Strategic Foundations: As you get comfortable with the moves, we'll delve into basic strategy, helping you decide where to move your pieces for optimal positioning on the board. 🏰

• Improvement and Continued Learning: With a solid foundation in place, I'll guide you through practice positions and provide resources for deepening your chess knowledge beyond this course. 📚

Your Chess Toolkit:

• Engaging Videos: Each lesson comes with clear, concise video content that's designed to be both informative and engaging. 🎥

• Interactive Exercises: Apply what you learn with hands-on exercises that will reinforce your understanding and improve your skills. ♰️

• Expert Insights: Gain inspiration from interviews with professional women chess players, including WGM Jennifer Shahade and WIM Karina Vazirova, with more amazing voices to come! 🌟

Why This Course?

By the end of this course, you'll not only know how to play a game of chess but also be equipped with the knowledge to continue your learning journey. You'll be ready to take on opponents who are new to the game and have a solid base upon which to build your skills further. 🏆

Your Investment:

Make a one-time purchase, and you'll have lifetime access to all the new content we add to this course. This means your chess adventure is just a click away!

Embark on your chess odyssey today and transform from a beginner to a confident player with "Chess for Total Beginners." Let's make every move count! 🧙‍♀️✨

🌟 Course Review Summary 🌟

Overall, this course has received an impressive global rating of 4.85, with all recent reviews being positive. Below, you will find a detailed synthesis of the course's strengths and areas for improvement based on recent learner feedback.

Pros:

• Comprehensive Lesson Structure: The course content is organized well, covering essential chess concepts in a manner that is both clear and engaging, making it ideal for beginners or intermediate players looking to solidify their understanding of the game.

• Diverse Instructors: The inclusion of interviews with International Masters (IMs) and Grandmasters (GMs), especially taught by a female chess professional, adds valuable insights and diversity to the course.

• Real-World Application: The course inspires experienced players, such as those who have been playing chess for 60 years, to engage with new tools like chess notation and platforms like chess.com.

• Motivational Impact: It has a positive impact on learners' motivation, encouraging them to return to playing with real people after focusing primarily on computer chess.

Cons:

• Assumed Prior Knowledge: Some lessons may proceed at a pace that assumes the learner has prior knowledge of certain concepts, which could be challenging for true beginners unless they are willing to watch the videos multiple times or slow them down.

• Notation Clarity: A few learners pointed out that some notation used in the course could be confusing, particularly when it comes to explaining 'taking' and the movement of pieces like the bishop. More explicit details on these fundamentals would benefit beginners.

• Quiz Coordination: There is a disconnect between the information provided in the lessons and the accompanying quizzes. The course could be improved by ensuring that the quiz questions align more closely with the lesson content, especially the instructions for the quiz associated with course module #.

• Explicit Instructions Needed: Some learners felt that the explanations were not explicit enough, particularly when it comes to rules and basic movements, which could lead to misunderstandings or require additional research.

In summary, this course is highly recommended for its comprehensive approach to teaching chess, the depth of expertise provided by its instructors, and its ability to motivate and inspire learners at all levels. However, it would benefit from a slower pace in some lessons, clearer explanations of fundamental concepts, better alignment between lesson content and quizzes, and more explicit instructions for beginners. With these enhancements, the course could likely achieve an even higher level of satisfaction among its users.