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Online spatial thinking trainers

4 spatial thinking exercises: rotate a shape in your mind, guide an invisible token along the arrows, find the way out of a maze and count the corners of shapes. A round lasts one to two minutes. You can play 10 minutes a day without signing up.

4 trainers 1–2 minutes per round 10 minutes a day free
Start with “Shape Rotation”

Shape and rotation

Shape RotationIs the shape on the right the same one rotated, or its mirror image? Rotate it in your head. Count the CornersA few polygons appear on the screen. Count their corners in total and pick the answer. The number of shapes grows, and i...

Route and orientation

Follow the ArrowsA token sits on the board, and arrows show one by one where it steps. Tap the cell where the token ends up. MazeGuide the dot from the entrance to the green exit. Every maze is new and one cell bigger than the last. The bigger the m...
Why

What is spatial thinking

Spatial thinking helps you picture how things are arranged and how they would look from another side. It’s at work when you read a map and know where to turn, assemble a wardrobe from a diagram, back into a parking space or figure out whether the couch will fit into the alcove. For some people it comes easily, for others it’s a struggle, but it’s a skill, and it can be trained.

The section has four different tasks. Shape Rotation is mental rotation: is it the same shape or its mirror image? In Follow the Arrows the token is invisible, and you have to track its path along the arrows in your mind. Maze teaches you to scan the board first and spot the dead ends, and Count the Corners trains you to make out a shape quickly, including irregular and concave ones.

Where to start

Start with Shape Rotation and Follow the Arrows: they cover the two main sides of spatial thinking, rotating an image and holding a route in your head. Maze makes a good calm warm-up between them: everything is visible on screen, so you can focus on planning your path.

How to practice

  • In Shape Rotation, look for a reference detail, a bump or a corner, and watch where it goes when the shape turns. That makes it easier to tell a rotation from a mirror image.
  • In Follow the Arrows, say the steps to yourself: “up, up, right”. Words help you hold the route when the arrows pile up.
  • Train the skill off screen too: plan your route on a map before leaving home, assemble furniture from the diagram, and rearrange things in a room in your mind before you move them.
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Questions

Frequently asked questions

How much time should I spend on spatial thinking?

5–10 minutes a day is enough: a round each of two or three exercises in the section. The tasks here are of different types, so mixing them is more useful than playing the same one over and over.

Will it get easier to find my way around and read diagrams?

In the trainers you will definitely get better at similar tasks: rotating shapes in your mind, holding a route, spotting dead ends. How much that carries over to maps, diagrams and parking varies from person to person. It’s more noticeable if in real life you also picture the route or the assembly in your mind first and then check.

Are the exercises suitable for kids and people over 60?

Shape Rotation and Follow the Arrows are included in the “Kids” collection from age 6. The section’s exercises aren’t in the “60+” collection, but you can still try them: difficulty starts simple and only grows as you answer correctly.

Where should I start if picturing shapes in my mind is hard?

With Maze: everything is visible on screen and you only need to plan your path. Then Follow the Arrows, where you already have to track the route in your mind, and only after that Shape Rotation, a task of pure imagination.

Is it free?

Yes, every exercise in the section is available without signing up: 10 minutes of play a day for free. A free account saves your results and progress chart. Paid plans are coming soon; for now you can keep playing after the free 10 minutes.

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