What a great memory workout! Your brain keeps saving what you learned while you rest and play.
Grown-up chat
For grown-ups
Kiya & Friends is a set of short, playful memory games for kids aged 4 and up. Each game is designed around what child memory research shows actually helps young children remember: recalling things, coming back to them later, saying them out loud and talking about them together.
What your child practises
Kiya's Hide & SeekRemembering where things are. This is visual and spatial memory, used for finding toys, learning routes and later for reading and maths layouts.
Finny's Snack TimeHolding a short list in mind and recalling it, like following "get your shoes, hat and bag". Finny also asks about earlier days, which builds longer-lasting memory.
Copycat SongRemembering a sequence of sounds and colours. This supports listening, attention and following instructions step by step.
Leo's Sorting GameSorting things into groups, then remembering each group. Grouping is a strategy older children and adults use to remember more, and it builds early thinking about categories.
Scoop's Copycat MovesRemembering a short dance of actions, then doing it with the body. Acting things out is one of the best ways to remember them, and it builds the skill of following step-by-step instructions.
Daisy's Photo PairsRemembering where each card is and saying its name out loud. With your own photos of toys, pets and family, it uses the things your child knows best, which makes them easier to remember.
Max's TowerRemembering things in order and rebuilding them. Order memory helps with counting, the alphabet, stories and daily routines.
Along the way your child also practises paying attention, waiting for a turn, naming colours, foods and animals, and trying again calmly after a mistake.
Progress this week
Minutes played each day
Dinner-time questions
Ask these later today or tomorrow. Remembering after a gap, and talking about it together, makes memories stronger. Answers are in brackets for you.
Why it works
Remembering, not re-looking. Every round hides things and asks your child to bring them back. Recalling is what strengthens memory.
Coming back later, with growing gaps. Each game asks a "Remember?" question about an earlier session, then asks about it again after 1, 3 and 7 days. Spaced, expanding recall is one of the best-proven ways to make memories last.
Praising the trick. When your child remembers using a strategy, the characters name it ("you said them in your head, what a clever trick!"), so they learn which habits work.
Acting it out. Scoop's Copycat Moves turns memory into movement. Doing an action helps children remember it better than just seeing it.
Putting the story in order. After each game your child puts picture cards of what happened back in order, then retells the story to you.
Things they know. Add your own photos for Daisy's Photo Pairs. Familiar, meaningful things are remembered best.
Less help over time. As your child improves, "say it with me" becomes "say it to yourself", so they learn to rehearse on their own.
Grouping. Leo's game practises sorting before remembering, which helps children hold more in mind.
Short sessions. After about 10 minutes the game suggests a break.
Saying it out loud. The "say it with me" step teaches rehearsal, a strategy kids this age rarely use on their own.
Talking it over. After each game, ask your child to tell you what happened. Chatting about memories is one of the best-supported ways to grow them.
Remembering order. Max's tower asks your child to rebuild colours in the same order, which practises step-by-step memory. Try it afterwards with real blocks.
No timers or losing. Mistakes just get another try, and after two misses the game gently shows the answer.
Harder means remembering order. At higher levels Finny wants his snacks in the same order, moving from "what" to "what, and in which order".
Playing together. Turn on "We're playing together" below for chat questions between rounds, and use the dinner-time questions above later in the day.
For the best results
Play 5 to 10 minutes a day. Short, regular play works better than one long session.
Play together when you can, and cheer the effort as well as the answer.
Play earlier in the day. Sleep, including naps, helps lock in what was learned.
Use the "grown-up chat" question at the end of each game at dinner or bedtime.
These games practise memory skills and good remembering habits. They work best alongside everyday play, talking and reading together. No game can promise to raise IQ, and this one doesn't claim to.
Questions parents ask
What age are these memory games for?
Kiya & Friends is made for children aged 4 and up. Every game adjusts its level as your child plays, so it stays easy enough to enjoy and hard enough to grow.
How do memory games help kids?
They give children regular practice at holding things in mind and recalling them later: where things are, lists, sequences and groups. These games also build good memory habits such as saying things out loud, grouping and retelling, which children can use in everyday life.
How long should my child play?
About 5 to 10 minutes a day is ideal. Short, regular sessions work better than long ones, and the game suggests a break after about 10 minutes.
Does it work on a tablet or phone?
Yes. It plays in the web browser on tablets, phones and computers, with nothing to install. Progress is saved on your device.
Are there ads or sign-ups?
No. There are no ads, no accounts and no timers. Mistakes simply get another try.
Settings
Add photos of your child's toys, pets or family (up to 12) and give each one a name. They become cards in Daisy's Photo Pairs, and saying the names out loud helps memory. Photos are shrunk and stay on this device only.
These are the voices built into this device. On iPhone, iPad and Mac you can download nicer "Enhanced" voices in Settings → Accessibility → Spoken Content → Voices.
This device has no built-in voices, so the game shows the words on screen instead.
Current levels
Levels move up after two perfect rounds in a row and step down after a tricky round, so play stays around the sweet spot where most answers are right.
Reset all levels, stars and progress back to the start?
Done! All games are back to level 1, stars are at 0 and progress is cleared.