## 2 Assessment of Item and Serial Order Memory  
Verbal memory is typically assessed through repetition of a series of presented items (usually letters or digits) in the same or reversed order, i.e., forward and backward memory span. There is evidence that the type of verbal material used in the span tasks may lead to significant differences in individuals' spans. In particular, the effects typically described in STM tasks have to do with stimulus length (\"length effect\": [47]), phonological similarity, and lexicality [48]. Similarly, visual short-term memory is measured through tasks that require the subject to recognize and retain a small amount of visual information (letters, shapes, colours, etc.) over a short period of time. Tasks generally used to measure STM are serial recall or serial reconstruction, in which the items in the sequence are simultaneously represented in a random arrangement and the participant must sort them back into their presentation order. When the task of recalling items in a visual presentation is accompanied by articulatory suppression, performance becomes more difficult [49; 50]. The effect of articulatory suppression [49] hampers the possibility of recoding visual material in a phonological form. Therefore, articulatory suppression is widely interpreted as disrupting the translation into the verbal form of visually presented items for temporary memory prior to recall. In other terms, it can be considered as a means to obtain information on purely visual memory functions. Order information (i.e., the sequential order in which the items are presented) and item information (i.e., the items, such as words/nonwords, digits, and objects presentedorally or visually, to be recalled after presentation) are typically not separated in STM assessment tasks, but, as discussed above, they may provide important information on which processes have an impact on learning abilities in children [51]. Summing up, the scientific literature provides sufficient evidence suggesting that measuring several different components of memory may be important since each one is related to different but equally relevant aspects of cognitive functioning and learning. In order to design and develop a digital application that would allow for the assessment of the relevant STM variables, we analysed the assessment tools that were already available, both at the international and national levels. The focus of the analysis was the possibility of assessing different components of memory and the accuracy with which differences among components could be highlighted. Several tools have been designed to measure memory functions. The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children Fifth Edition [52] has increased the breadth of construct coverage by including a visual working memory subset. Within the Working Memory Index (WMI), the Picture Span (PS) subtest requires one to memorize one or more pictures presented on a stimulus page and then identify the correct pictures (in sequential order, if possible) from a series of options on a response page. The discrepancy scores on the Digit Span and the Picture Span subtests can be clinically meaningful [53] and inform the interpretation of the WMI. Ancillary index scores such as the Auditory Working Memory Index (AWMI--derived from Digit Span and Letter-Number Sequencing subtests) are also provided. A revision (TOMAL-2 Second Edition, published by PRO-ED 2007) of the Test of Memory and Learning (TOMAL; [54]) is regarded as the single most comprehensive memory battery available for a wide range of ages (ages 5 to 59). The TOMAL-2 [54] assesses memory verbal and nonverbal memory functions. As acknowledged in the manual, the assessment of memory takes place following various theoretical approaches [55]. The Digits Forward subtest is a traditional digit recall subset; however, unlike most digit recall subtests (which typically assign a point for each correctly recalled series), a point is awarded for the correct recall of each digit within the series where it was presented.