Teacher Process
This Webquest is offered in small task modules. Task #1 is about a 40-minute module. Task #2 research would take about one hour per sub-section, altogether about 3 hours (depending on the student's interest and how well they understand and follow the directions). The physical reports may take another hour to complete.
Task #3 could be completed in one hour, but the hope is that students will want to research the different websites to find an approach that they are most comfortable with, allowing them to complete the chart easily. I would estimate another hour for students who are really sparked by the game.
The critique section depends entirely on the student. If the student is reflective, this could take more than an hour to complete. Some students, on the other hand, will spend much less time on the evaluation portion of the Webquest.
It would be appropriate to make the longer tasks (Task #2: History, Popularity and Type of Game) smaller as needed for time constraints. A modification would be to concentrate only on one facet (for instance, the popularity of the game) and have a shortened assessment for that section.
You could even, if needed, just concentrate on the Basic Rules of Chess portion of this Webquest, to allow students to jump right in to the mechanics of the game. Rules can be learned in under an hour; a beginner's first game can be played in the second hour.
If students show interest in learning more, focus on tactics, then on basic strategies. The best route is for students to play the game often. They learn from their mistakes - that's the kind of game this is!
Having a chess board set up in class may be appropriate, even if you can only show one basic strategy each day (a five minute exercise).
A local chess club may be willing to send a speaker to your class to answer more technical chess questions from students who do play regularly. Or, perhaps a field trip to the local chess club may be in order.
Again, my belief is that an introduction to chess meets my expectations. If the student wants to pursue it, that is wonderful. If not, at least they are aware of the popularity of the game, the basic rules, and they had the opportunity to play one game.