In addition: purchase Alterman's the Gambit Guide for White. It avoid exactly what S_F warns against: offering a complete repertoire, but does what you need - presents tons of interesting tactical games.
(I'm not happy with the sections about the Morra Gambit and the French for various reasons)

Three more...from the same tournament.. A half year ago! 







All I can say is that I know this boy, his parents and his trainer very well. 
And nowadays he's way better.. 

@MNb

I hadn't thought of the Cochrane; that's definitely a good line for teaching gambit play and both long-term and short-term compensation. 4.Nf3 Ne4 5.Nc3 is quite simple but definitely not as exciting 

@Vass

The Four Knights doesn't have to be closed; White can play 4.d4, the Scotch Four Knights, with an open position almost by force, as I mentioned in a previous post. I think that 'too much theory' is a poor argument against teaching a young child the Scotch Game - most of the time the most played moves are the best. The Scotch Game leads to open positions but the ideas of the Scotch Gambit (for example) are a fair bit simpler. I disagree with your reason for rejecting 4.Ng5 - at a low level White only needs to know a small number of lines to be successful, but a better reason is that it requires White to defend quite accurately in most lines - while being able to defend is just as important as being able to attack, this is a much more advanced skill, and at all levels but especially when one is starting out it is much easier to attack than defend. 

Actually 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 could be a good alternative to the Scotch Gambit for a beginner, intending to meet 3...Nf6 with 4.d4 (which in fact transposes after 4...exd4), and 3...Bc5 with 4.b4 as the Evans is a good opening for teaching the basics of gambit play, rapid development and playing with the initiative. But the child only needs one good line to 1...e5 and if he's happy with the Scotch Gambit I'd definitely stick with that for now. 

@Smyslov_Fan

For most children I would be reluctant to have them play the King's Gambit because it could train the bad habit of them playing dubious, 'trappy' lines. However teaching them the basic ideas can only be good for their tactical vision and feel for gambit play. There is one small issue though - how do you explain to an inexperienced player that after 2...exf4, 3.Be2 is the only move that draws, and that after 3.Nf3 only 3...d6 4.Bc4 g5 5.d4 h6 wins and the main line 3...g5 4.h4! is a draw? Of course it's possible to oversimplify things and say that 3.Nf3 and 3.Bc4 are the main moves, but I don't like lying to people I teach. 

As an aside, I think Vass overestimates the theoretical knowledge of his child's opponents. It's rare that you find someone below 2000 with a very solid knowledge of theory, and those who possess it tend to struggle OTB once the game leaves their book. Around 1400 level you'll see a lot of people meet 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 ed4 4.Bc4 with 4...h6 or 4...Bb4, for instance. 

Smyslov_Fan wrote on 04/03/12 at 07:11:54:

Well, I thought about that, too.. 
1.e4 e5 2.f4 exf4 3.Bc4 (a good move to explain to a small boy) but then 3...Qh4+ and how to explain him we break at once the common rules for development not making a 0-0? 
1.e4 e5 2.f4 exf4 3.Nf3 g5 4.h4 - a move with a flank pawn before a piece development 4...g4 5.Ne5 - a move with a developped piece...and so on...
The King's Gambit is too complex for him I think. At least, for now.. Maybe on a later stage in his development?!   

So, Scotch Gambit after all.. 
Meaning...Four Knights - too closed; Spanish - too complex; Scotch Game - too much theory (4...Bc5; 4...Nf6; 4...Bb4; even 4...Qh4); Italian with 4.d3 - too closed; Two Knights with 4.Ng5 combined with Gioco Piano - too much to remember for a small kid...and so on..
Move order: 2.d4 eliminates pure Petroff and Philidor <-> against the classic one with 2.Nf3..  Well, the boy can vary in the future. 

TN wrote on 04/02/12 at 23:00:34:

After rereading I feel I have expressed myself too dogmatically. You're right.
I might add that against the Petrov also the Cochrane Gambit should be a fun choice.
Like JediKnight wrote: on that level players are quite bad defenders. Aggressive openings full of tactics, based on active piece play should net lots of points.
Most kids love that.

Quote:


Actually most lines of the Phillidor (with an 1...e5 move order) lead to an open position if White chooses: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 ed4 4.Nd4 or 3...Nf6 4.de5 Ne4 5.Qd5. You're right that 3...Nd7 is difficult to get an open position against, but then after 4.Bc4 Black has to play 4...c6, and even then 5.0-0 Ngf6 6.de5 leads to a semi-open position with the bishop pair. If Black doesn't play 4...c6 then there will be a lot of fun tactics for the child to see and hopefully play!   

Like Vass said it's possible for the child to play both move orders - there's certainly nothing wrong with a bit of variety.

@Gilchrist is a legend

I think in most cases the Ruy Lopez as White is a bit too advanced for a player just starting out in tournaments. Showing some general ideas in the Ruy can be very useful for improving a child's positional understanding but Black has a large number of different options and many lines lead to a closed position without any immediate tactics. The Four Knights is an interesting suggestion since White can pretty much guarantee that an open position will arise after 4.d4. Another useful trick is 4.Bc4!?, since most kids who know of the Fork Trick believe 4...Ne4 5.Ne4 d5 6.Bd3 de4 7.Be4 Bd6 to be better for Black, but in fact White has a small edge in this position. The chances of the opponent playing the best move 6...Nb4! are quite small. However 4...Bc5 then leads to a very quiet position, so I'd still recommend the Four Knights Scotch over this 'trap'.