Mia & Leo: detective mystery games for kids

How does a Mia & Leo mystery work?

Each case has four steps: Watch, Clues, Solve and Reveal. In Watch, a short story sets up the puzzle. In Clues, your child taps spots on photos to look closer; real clues go into Mia's notebook, and some things, like a plate of cookies, are not clues at all. In Solve, they answer by tapping the right spot on a picture, and Reveal shows how it happened.

What are the Mia & Leo cases about?

In The Impossible Train Trick, Mia and Leo are at a model railway show. A toy astronaut rides into a mountain tunnel behind a shiny red engine, and the wagon comes out the other side empty. Mia thinks aliens took him; Leo says to check the clues first. In The Ghost in the Reading Room, a giant ghost appears on the library's story screen during a spooky stories night, and nobody is behind the screen. The ghost case opens after the train case is solved.

What do kids practice in a detective game?

A Mia & Leo case asks kids to look closely, sort clues from things that only look interesting, keep notes, and check an idea against the evidence before answering. The story models it too: when Mia jumps to aliens, Leo opens his sketchbook and says, "Let's check the clues first." Each solve question offers at least four things to pick from, so a guess rarely works and looking does.

Why does a mystery always start fresh?

A mystery is a puzzle you solve once, so every case opens at the start with an empty notebook, even after it is solved. Reopening a case never lands on the answer. A solved case shows a "Solved" badge on the case board, and a Start over button begins it again at any time. Solving a case a second time pays no new stars, and the game says so kindly: "You already cracked this case!"

How do mystery stars turn into real rewards?

Games, chores and real rewards all run on the same stars. Stars from solving a case go into the same balance as math, spelling and the missions you set at home. Your child spends them at the Prize Counter on rewards you chose and priced. Every request waits for your approval, and nothing is handed out until you say yes.

How it works

1. 1Your child picks a case on Mia & Leo's case board.
2. 2Watch the story, find every clue, then pause the mystery.
3. 3Solve it by tapping the answer; a first solve pays stars.
4. 4Your child asks for a reward at the Prize Counter.
5. 5You approve it and give the reward in real life.

What you control as a parent

• You choose the rewards on the Prize Counter and what each one costs.
• You set the daily limit on stars from games, from 10 to 60 a day.
• You approve every reward request before it is real.

Questions parents ask