Parents' Guide to

N-back Suite

By Erin Wilkey Oh, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 10+

Tough memory exercises require self-motivation.

App iPhone , iPod Touch , iPad Health & Fitness
N-back Suite Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this app.

  • N-back Suite App: Screenshot #1
  • N-back Suite App: Screenshot #2
  • N-back Suite App: Screenshot #3

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What’s It About?

In this set of mental exercises, players see or hear a sequence of stimuli and attempt to remember the nth back in the series. Players can choose to practice with colors, images, 3x3 squares, letters, and sounds. For example, if players set the n-back to four and colors, they must remember the color they saw four times before the current color. If it is the same as the one they currently see, they tap the screen. Players can also choose to follow one sequence or two at once (called double n-back). Times and scores are recorded in the app.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

Most of the n-back apps we've found aren't designed with engagement in mind, making them pretty dry. N-BACK SUITE is no exception. Though researchers and psychologists feel that n-back tasks are good exercises for our working memory, expert opinions are unlikely to motivate a 10-year-old. N-back apps seem to be designed more for adults, who are self-motivated to keep their mental facilities sharp.

To its credit, N-back Suite offers more customization than similar apps, which makes it accessible to kids -- at least at the easiest levels. And when players answer incorrectly, their scores lower but the round continues, making gameplay last a bit longer than in other versions we've seen. Data recording for each variation of the task lets players compare their performance using the different stimuli, which can give them some insight into their mental strengths and weaknesses.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Some researchers say n-back tasks can help kids improve working memory. Challenge your kids to play a few minutes each day and keep track of their progress.

  • Help your kids identify strengths and weaknesses as they play. Knowledge of their mental processing strengths can be a starting point for developing learning strategies.

App Details

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