It depends on the individual. Talks are going on to introduce National, Asian and World Chess Championships for kids below 6 years of age. With that in view, we believe that the ideal age to start chess is between 5 to 6, provided the child shows some interest towards the game. 

A strong chess player is moulded by the cumulative efforts of the player himself/herself, parents, trainers, sponsors, school and so on. But primarily, a child looks up to his/her parents for material resources and emotional needs. 

As a parent you can… 

• play with your child and develop the interest and confidence in the game.

• be a mentor and motivate your child by narrating insipiring stories and events.

• purchase chess material for individual practice at home.

• instil the importance of learning the right things well.

• prevent your child from racing towards victory through shortcuts and instead encourage him/her to earn it through hard work and commitment.

• plan everything to balance the time between academics, training and tournaments.

• identify the right trainer for individual training when your child reaches a certain level.

• identify the tournaments to participate and plan intense training sessions for preparation before a tournament.

• persuade the school to support your child’s chess ventures.

• teach them the importance of individual practice at home.

• help your child handle expected and unexpected results in a balanced way. Chess is a sport, so winning and losing is completely normal.

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Yes I think 30 minutes per day is a good start, if you are consistent. You can definitely make it to 1700 in this way, but don't expect to improve too fast. Improving in Chess takes a lot of time. And 30 minutes studying alone wouldn't get you to 1700 without tournament practise.

A good trainer can motivate the child in the right way, teach the essential basics of the game, set the right attitude, kindle the interest in learning and working individually at home. The trainer should incline your child more towards learning so that victories come automatically but not the other way round. 

According to a school of thought, it takes roughly 20 hours per week of practice to become a successful professional in any discipline. It would be ideal if a child, aspiring to become a Grand Master, can practice chess 2 hours a day during weekdays/schooldays and around 4 hours on weekends. Chess being an individual sport, a player should learn to think for himself/herself and take tough decisions all by himself/herself. Regular individual work will help improve these qualities greatly! The importance of home work in chess cannot be emphasized enough. 

Regular fun puzzles in Quiz Time & Puzzle Time are uploaded in the chess learning corner page wherein they can independently practise the moves they have learnt in the sessions. The fun puzzles are then discussed in the upcoming session. We also conduct mock tournaments once a month ( 4th Saturdays). In these tournaments learners get a chance to play with other learners of the same age group and evaluate their game play.