Curriculum
All P1 lessons grouped by phase. The session orchestrator picks from this; you can also try a drill out-of-session here.
Phase 0: baseline (Week 1)
- Forward digit spanDrillstrongReady
Maintain a growing list of digits in serial order.
- Reverse digit spanDrillstrongReady
Maintain digits and reverse their order before recall — pure manipulation.
- Letter spanDrillstrongReady
Verbal STM without digit-specific chunking shortcuts.
- Corsi block-tap spanDrillmoderateReady
Reproduce a spatial sequence of taps in order.
- Backward CorsiDrillmoderateReady
Spatial sequence + manipulation: reproduce in reverse order.
- AX-CPT (proactive vs reactive control)DrillstrongReady
Maintain context: respond to X only after an A. AY/BX error pattern reveals proactive vs reactive control.
- SART (Sustained Attention to Response Task)DrillmoderateReady
Respond fast on frequent Go trials; withhold on rare No-Go trials. Catches sustained-attention lapses.
- PVT-B (Brief Psychomotor Vigilance Task)DrillstrongReady
Press as fast as possible when a counter appears. Median RT + lapse count are the metrics — fatigue-sensitive.
- Stroop interferenceDrillmoderateReady
Name the ink color while resisting the printed word — interference resolution.
- Eriksen FlankerDrillmoderateReady
Identify the central stimulus while flanking distractors push toward the wrong response.
- Go/No-GoDrillmoderateReady
Press on Go, withhold on No-Go. Commission errors signal impulsive responding.
- Baseline + weekly diagnostic + monthly composite systemSystemstrong
Core measurement spine: 4-session Week-1 baseline, weekly 20-25 min diagnostic, monthly composite roll-up.
Phase 1: foundations + measurement (Weeks 2-3)
- Working-memory architectureConceptstrong
Distinguish storage vs control vs manipulation, and know why it matters.
- Executive attention and the central executiveConceptstrong
Recognize when failure is goal-maintenance or conflict-resolution, not storage capacity.
- Phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, episodic bufferConceptstrong
Tell verbal-storage failures apart from spatial-storage failures.
- Maintenance vs updating vs manipulationConceptstrong
Different failure modes need different drills.
- Chunking and encoding qualityDrillmoderate
Restructure inputs into chunks so effective load drops.
- Interference control and dual-task costConceptstrong
Resist distraction while holding a target — name the conflict, don't just slow down.
- Cognitive load and automaticityConceptmoderate
Automation reduces control demand on subroutines — but it isn't 'more capacity'.
- Reliability and validityConceptstrong
If the measurement is noisy, every downstream claim is noisy. Know which tasks lie to you.
- Practice effects, expectancy, active controlsConceptstrong
Posttest gains can be format-learning or belief, not trait change. Plan to avoid fooling yourself.
- Composite scores, MDC, confidence intervalsConceptstrong
One score is fragile. A composite + CI band is the smallest defensible dashboard primitive.
- Speed-accuracy, d′, hits/misses/false alarms, lapsesConceptstrong
Raw accuracy hides response-policy shifts. d′ + RT + lapses together don't.
- Running spanDrillmoderateReady
Pure updating pressure — recall only the last N items from a list of unknown length.
- Active learning + deliberate practice + adaptive difficultyConceptmoderate
Predict before each block, tag errors after — turn drills from zombie repetition into learning loops.
Phase 2: core training rotation (Weeks 4-7)
- Operation span (O-Span)DrillstrongReady
Maintain a verbal sequence while solving short math distractors between items.
- Reading spanDrillstrongReady
Maintain target words while judging sentence sensibility — language-loaded complex span.
- Symmetry spanDrillstrongReady
Maintain spatial positions while judging grid-symmetry — visuospatial complex span.
- 2-backDrillmoderateReady
Respond when the current stimulus matches the one two trials back — continuous updating + monitoring.
- 3-backDrillmoderateReady
Increase the updating load — match against the stimulus three trials back.
- Change detectionDrillmoderateReady
Detect whether a probe stimulus changed from a held memory set.
- Sternberg memory scanningDrillmoderateReady
Hold a set, decide whether a probe was in it — RT slope reveals search cost.
- Adaptive WM training rotationSystemmoderate
Run a 3-track rotation: controlled maintenance × updating × attention/control.
- Spaced review + interleaving + calibrationConceptmoderate
Schedule review, rotate tasks, calibrate confidence — prevent cramming and the illusion of mastery.
Phase 4: real-world transfer (Weeks 10-11)
- Dense reading + note-free summarizationCriterionmoderate
Read 2-3 paragraphs, reconstruct the argument without notes. Idea-unit recall is the metric.
- Mental math chainCriterionmoderate
Multi-step head calculations. Error-free chain length and state-loss frequency are the metrics.
- Code trace / variable trackingCriterionmoderate
Mentally execute 5-15 line functions. Predict variable state at line N without re-reading.
- Planning hold + instruction-followingCriterionmoderate
Hold a 4-5 step plan mentally before executing or externalizing. Tower-of-Hanoi variant + verbal-routine recall.
Ongoing: lifestyle + state
- Lifestyle interventions as cognitive interventionsSystemstrong
Sleep + exercise + distraction-control deserve at least as much attention as drills.
- Sleep duration, quality, circadian timingHabitstrong
Don't train through sleep debt. The dashboard knows when to recommend recovery, not adaptation.
- Exercise, hydration, nutrition basics, caffeine timingHabitmoderate
Zone-2 cardio + resistance training present each week. Caffeine before noon if sensitive.
- Stress, clinical confounds, distraction controlHabitmoderate
Notice when WM complaints are state-driven or clinical, not training-deficient. Audit distractions.