memtry
Reverse Span
Same trick as digit span, except you type the number backward. 3 1 7 becomes 7 1 3.
How to play
- Memorize the number while it shows
- Type the digits in reverse order
- Each success adds a digit
- You have 2 lives
What it trains
Working memory. Backward span is harder than forward span because you cannot just replay the sound of the digits; you have to hold them and reorder them, which is working memory doing actual work. Typical adult scores run about 2 digits below forward span. Clinicians use the gap between the two as a signal of executive load.
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, working memory index.
One honest tip
Picture the digits written on a line, then read the line right to left. Visual beats verbal here.