To set up a chess board, turn it so each player has a light square in the bottom-right corner. Put the pawns on the second row in front of you. On the back row, place the pieces from the corners inward: rook, knight, bishop, then the queen on the square of her own colour and the king next to her. White's queen goes on a light square, Black's queen on a dark square, and the two queens face each other.

That is the whole answer in one breath. Now let us go slowly, one step at a time, so your child can do it alone before the next game at home or at school.

Step 1: Turn the board the right way

A chess board has 64 squares in 8 rows and 8 columns. The squares are light and dark, one after the other. Before you put a single piece down, look at the corner square nearest your right hand. It must be a light square. If it is dark, simply turn the board a quarter.

Many boards have letters a to h along one edge and numbers 1 to 8 along the other. If your board has them, the letters should run from left to right in front of the White player, and row 1 should be closest to White. These letters and numbers give every square a name, like e4 or d1. You can learn more about them in our guide to chess notation for beginners.

Step 2: Line up the pawns

Each player has 8 pawns, the small pieces with round heads. White puts all 8 on the second row from White's side (row 2). Black puts all 8 on the second row from Black's side (row 7). The pawns make a wall in front of the bigger pieces.

Step 3: Rooks, knights and bishops

Now fill the back row, starting from the corners and working toward the middle.

  1. Rooks (they look like castle towers) go in the two corners.
  2. Knights (the horses) go right next to the rooks.
  3. Bishops (the pieces with a pointed hat and a small cut) go next to the knights.

After this, each player has two empty squares left in the middle of the back row. Those belong to the queen and the king.

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Look along the back rows: rook in the corner, then knight, then bishop on both sides. The four highlighted empty squares in the middle are waiting for the queens and kings.

Step 4: The queen goes on her own colour

This is the step that most beginners get wrong. The queen is the tall piece with a crown of small points (only the king is taller). She always starts on the square that matches her colour. The white queen goes on the light middle square (d1). The black queen goes on the dark middle square (d8). When you do this correctly, the two queens stand on the same column, looking straight at each other.

The king, the tallest piece with a small cross on top, takes the last empty square, right next to his queen. The two kings also face each other on the same column (e1 and e8).

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The finished starting position. Check the highlighted squares: the white queen sits on a light square (d1), the black queen on a dark square (d8), and h1 in White's right corner is light.

Step 5: Check your set-up

Before the first move, take five seconds to check. Ask these questions:

  • Is there a light square in my right-hand corner?
  • Are all 8 pawns on my second row?
  • Do I have rook, knight, bishop on both sides, in that order from the corner?
  • Is my queen on her own colour, facing the other queen?
  • Is my king next to my queen, facing the other king?

If all five answers are yes, you are ready. White always moves first. In a family game, many people let the younger player choose a colour, or hide a white pawn in one hand and a black pawn in the other and let the other player pick a hand.

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Your turn: this is the correct starting position, with White to move. Try a few first moves, such as pushing the e-pawn two squares or bringing out a knight, then reset and try another.

Your turn: move the pieces on the board.

Tap a piece, then tap where it should go, or drag it.

Common set-up mistakes

  • Board turned the wrong way. With a dark square on the right, the king and queen end up on the wrong squares. Always check the corner first.
  • King and queen swapped. If the queens are not facing each other, one side has mixed them up. Remember: queen on her own colour.
  • Knights and bishops swapped. The horse goes next to the tower, then the bishop.
  • A missing pawn. Count all 8 pawns on each side. It sounds simple, but it happens.

Once your pieces are in place, the next step is learning how each one moves. A good place to start is how the pawn moves, because pawns are the first pieces you will touch in almost every game.

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Why does a good set-up matter? Here White has made two weak pawn moves that open a diagonal to the white king. You are Black. Find the queen move that ends the game at once.

Black to move. Make your move on the board.

Tap a piece, then tap where it should go, or drag it.

That position shows why every piece needs to start on the right square: the black queen on d8 can reach h4 in one move. When you feel ready, practise with today's free puzzle.

Questions parents and kids ask

Which way does a chess board go?

Turn the board so that each player has a light square in the bottom-right corner. The easy rule is light on the right.

Does the queen go on the left or the right of the king?

It depends on the colour. The queen always starts on her own colour: the white queen on the light square d1, the black queen on the dark square d8. For White the queen ends up to the left of the king; for Black, from Black's side, she is to the right.

Where do the knights and bishops go?

From each corner going inward: rook, knight, bishop. So the knights stand next to the rooks, and the bishops stand next to the knights.

Who moves first in chess?

White always makes the first move. After that, the players take turns, one move each.