A puzzle a day is the smallest chess habit that actually moves your game. Not an hour of videos, not a new opening to memorise. One position, five focused minutes, every morning. That is why Superior Chess Academy runs its week as a ladder. Monday and Tuesday are mate-in-1 puzzles, the kind our coaches hand to absolute beginners in their first month. Wednesday through Friday step up to mate-in-2, where you must see the opponent's forced reply, not just your own move. Saturday and Sunday are mate-in-3, a genuine test of calculating two moves deep. All seven positions below were composed for this page, so you will not find them in any book. Each is White to move, each has exactly one solution, and each answer sits hidden until you open it. Keep a weekly score out of seven and watch what changes in a month.
How the week works
The ritual is deliberately simple. Each morning you get one position. Early in the week the ideas are single patterns you can spot in seconds once you know them. The back-rank mate on Monday, for instance, is the first checkmating pattern our coaches teach, because beginners keep falling into it in real games. By midweek the puzzles ask for a forcing sequence: your move has to work against every reply, which is the actual skill of calculation. The weekend puzzles add one more layer, a defender that must be dragged off its square before the mate lands. If you miss a day, just solve it the next morning. The streak matters less than the honesty of solving without peeking.
This week's seven puzzles
Set each position up on a board or in your head from the FEN string. White moves first in all seven. When you think you have it, open the solution and compare.
Monday · Mate in 1 · Warm-up
The back rank
White to move and mate in 1.
6k1/5ppp/8/8/8/8/5PPP/4R1K1 w - - 0 1
Show the solution
1. Re8# The rook steps onto the back rank. The black king's own pawns on f7, g7 and h7 wall off every escape square, and the rook covers f8 and h8 along the eighth rank. This is the pattern to learn first, because it decides more beginner games than any other.
Tuesday · Mate in 1 · Warm-up
Capture on the back rank
White to move and mate in 1.
r5k1/5ppp/8/8/8/8/8/R5K1 w - - 0 1
Show the solution
1. Rxa8# White simply takes the black rook. Beginners sometimes hesitate to capture because it feels too easy, but the mate is the mate. Same wall of pawns, same trapped king, one move.
Wednesday · Mate in 2 · Forcing moves
The queen sacrifice
White to move and mate in 2.
6k1/4pppp/8/7Q/8/8/2B2PPP/6K1 w - - 0 1
Show the solution
1. Qxh7+! Kf8 (1...Kxh7 is illegal, the bishop on c2 guards h7; 1...Kh8 walks into the queen) 2. Qh8# The king is flushed to f8 and the queen follows it to the corner. Notice the bishop never moves. It does its work by standing still, which is a lesson in itself.
Thursday · Mate in 2 · Forcing moves
Break the pawn shield
White to move and mate in 2.
6k1/5ppp/8/7Q/8/8/6PP/5RK1 w - - 0 1
Show the solution
1. Qxf7+! Kh8 (1...Kxf7 is illegal, the rook on f1 guards f7; 1...Kf8 walks into the queen along the f-file) 2. Qf8# The pawn shield cracks, the king runs to the corner, and the queen lands on f8. Compare this with Wednesday: same sacrifice, different escape, different finish.
Friday · Mate in 2 · Deflection
Drag the defender away
White to move and mate in 2.
6k1/p4ppp/6n1/2B5/Q7/8/4P1PP/4R1K1 w - - 0 1
Show the solution
1. Qe8+! Nf8 (the knight must block; the king has no square) 2. Qxf8# The queen lures the knight onto f8 and then takes it. The bishop on c5 guards f8, so the king cannot capture back. When a defender sits on the square you need, make it move there on your terms.
Saturday · Mate in 3 · Deep calculation
The knight must block
White to move and mate in 3.
6k1/5ppp/4n3/7Q/8/8/6PP/5RK1 w - - 0 1
Show the solution
1. Qxf7+! Kh8 2. Qf8+! Nxf8 (forced; the king has no move) 3. Rxf8# The weekend puzzles punish impatience. After the sacrifice and the forced block, the quiet-looking rook on f1 delivers the mate on the back rank. Calculate to the end before playing the first move.
Sunday · Mate in 3 · Deep calculation
The bishop must block
White to move and mate in 3.
6k1/4bppp/8/7Q/8/8/6PP/5RK1 w - - 0 1
Show the solution
1. Qxf7+! Kh8 2. Qf8+! Bxf8 (forced) 3. Rxf8# The week's hardest position. Same idea as Saturday, but the defender is a bishop, and the geometry around f8 is slightly different. If you solved this without moving the pieces, your calculation is genuinely improving.
Why one a day beats ten on Sunday
Spaced practice is the unglamorous secret of every strong player our coaches have trained. Ten puzzles in one sitting teach you the tenth puzzle. One puzzle a day, slept on and returned to, teaches your brain to recognise the pattern cold, which is the only recognition that counts in a real game with a clock running. That is also why the week escalates instead of staying comfortable. Monday should feel easy by the third week. That feeling is the whole point.
When you are ready for more than one a day, the academy's free 100-puzzle tactics trainer is the natural next step. And if you want a coach to watch your calculation live, point out where it breaks down, and rebuild it properly, that is what the academy's small-group classes do every week. Students aged 5 and above start with a free trial class. Message WhatsApp +91 84015 33777 and mention the daily puzzle.
Daily puzzle questions
How does the daily chess puzzle week work?
Each week runs Monday to Sunday with rising difficulty: mate-in-1 on Monday and Tuesday, mate-in-2 on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, and mate-in-3 on Saturday and Sunday. Every position is White to move with exactly one forced solution, and answers stay hidden until you open them.
Are these puzzles taken from books or databases?
No. All seven starter positions were composed originally for Superior Chess Academy, so you will not find them in puzzle books or databases. They use elementary patterns like back-rank mates and simple queen mates that beginners meet in their first months of coaching.
How much time should a daily puzzle take?
About five focused minutes. Set the position up on a real board if you can, work it out without moving the pieces, write down your move, and only then open the solution. The habit matters more than the speed.
My child is a complete beginner. Where should they start?
Start with Monday's and Tuesday's mate-in-1 puzzles. The academy teaches students aged 5 and above, and its coaches begin beginners on exactly these back-rank patterns. A free trial class on WhatsApp at +91 84015 33777 is the easiest way to see how coaching works.
Is there a bigger free puzzle trainer?
Yes. The academy runs a free 100-puzzle tactics trainer at superiorchessacademy.com/puzzles.html, which pairs well with one-a-day solving here.
Superior Chess Academy, Bangalore, Karnataka, India — WhatsApp +91 84015 33777 — wa.me/918401533777
Keep solving: Free 100-Puzzle Trainer · Coaching FAQ · Chess Classes for Kids
Book a free trial chess class — tell us the student's age, country and current level.