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White to move: you're the blue teamWhat is mate in one?
Checkmate is the goal of a chess game: the king is in check and no move can save it. In a mate-in-one puzzle there is exactly one move that does it, and the child's job is to find it.
It is one of the first kinds of puzzle chess coaches give children, because it teaches them to look at the whole board: where the king could run, which squares each piece guards, and which piece can close the last door.
The puzzles here are for ages 5 to 12. Most are easy, and some take a little more thought. A new one is waiting every day, and after solving it your child can carry on with extra puzzles.
Solving with your child or class
- Before touching a piece, look for every check you can give. The mate is always one of them.
- For each check, ask: where can the king run? Can the check be blocked? Can the checking piece be captured?
- Younger children can solve together with an adult: point at the squares the king could go to, one at a time.
- In class, put the puzzle on the screen at the start of the lesson and let the students suggest moves.
- A wrong move is fine: the piece goes back, and your child can try as many times as they like.