diff --git a/js/feedEngine/index.js b/js/feedEngine/index.js
index 2f087cd8..ff59d344 100644
--- a/js/feedEngine/index.js
+++ b/js/feedEngine/index.js
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ export {
   createResolvePostedAtStage,
 } from "./stages.js";
 export { createExploreScorerStage } from "./exploreScoring.js";
+export { createKidsScorerStage } from "./kidsScoring.js";
 export { createKidsAudienceFilterStage } from "./kidsAudienceFilterStage.js";
 export {
   createChronologicalSorter,
diff --git a/js/feedEngine/kidsScoring.js b/js/feedEngine/kidsScoring.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..3fcc4a4e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/js/feedEngine/kidsScoring.js
@@ -0,0 +1,391 @@
+// js/feedEngine/kidsScoring.js
+
+import { normalizeHashtag } from "../utils/hashtagNormalization.js";
+import { isPlainObject, toSet } from "./utils.js";
+
+const DEFAULT_WEIGHTS = Object.freeze({
+  w_age: 0.35,
+  w_edu: 0.25,
+  w_author: 0.15,
+  w_pop: 0.1,
+  w_fresh: 0.1,
+  w_risk: 0.6,
+});
+
+const DEFAULT_FRESHNESS_HALF_LIFE_DAYS = 14;
+
+const AGE_GROUP_DEFAULTS = Object.freeze({
+  toddler: {
+    maxDurationSeconds: 5 * 60,
+    preferredTags: ["toddler", "baby", "nursery", "colors", "shapes", "lullaby"],
+    educationalTags: ["abc", "numbers", "counting", "learning", "alphabet"],
+  },
+  preschool: {
+    maxDurationSeconds: 10 * 60,
+    preferredTags: ["preschool", "kindergarten", "storytime", "letters", "phonics"],
+    educationalTags: ["counting", "alphabet", "reading", "learning", "math"],
+  },
+  early: {
+    maxDurationSeconds: 15 * 60,
+    preferredTags: ["early", "kids", "reading", "science", "animals", "art"],
+    educationalTags: ["science", "math", "reading", "history", "geography"],
+  },
+  older: {
+    maxDurationSeconds: 20 * 60,
+    preferredTags: ["tween", "teens", "tutorial", "stem", "coding", "music"],
+    educationalTags: ["stem", "coding", "history", "geography", "tutorial"],
+  },
+});
+
+function clamp01(value) {
+  if (!Number.isFinite(value)) {
+    return 0;
+  }
+  if (value <= 0) {
+    return 0;
+  }
+  if (value >= 1) {
+    return 1;
+  }
+  return value;
+}
+
+function normalizeTagSetFromVideo(video) {
+  const normalized = new Set();
+  if (!video || typeof video !== "object") {
+    return normalized;
+  }
+
+  const addTag = (rawTag) => {
+    if (typeof rawTag !== "string") {
+      return;
+    }
+    const tag = normalizeHashtag(rawTag);
+    if (tag) {
+      normalized.add(tag);
+    }
+  };
+
+  if (Array.isArray(video.tags)) {
+    for (const tag of video.tags) {
+      if (Array.isArray(tag) && tag[0] === "t") {
+        addTag(tag[1]);
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  if (Array.isArray(video.nip71?.hashtags)) {
+    for (const tag of video.nip71.hashtags) {
+      addTag(tag);
+    }
+  }
+
+  return normalized;
+}
+
+function normalizeTagSet(values) {
+  const normalized = new Set();
+  if (!values) {
+    return normalized;
+  }
+
+  for (const value of toSet(values)) {
+    if (typeof value !== "string") {
+      continue;
+    }
+    const tag = normalizeHashtag(value);
+    if (tag) {
+      normalized.add(tag);
+    }
+  }
+
+  return normalized;
+}
+
+function resolveAgeProfile(ageGroup) {
+  const key = typeof ageGroup === "string" ? ageGroup.trim().toLowerCase() : "";
+  return AGE_GROUP_DEFAULTS[key] || AGE_GROUP_DEFAULTS.preschool;
+}
+
+function resolveDuration(video) {
+  const candidates = [video?.duration, video?.metadata?.duration];
+  for (const candidate of candidates) {
+    const value = Number(candidate);
+    if (Number.isFinite(value) && value > 0) {
+      return value;
+    }
+  }
+  return null;
+}
+
+function resolveWeights(options, context) {
+  const weights = { ...DEFAULT_WEIGHTS };
+  const overrides = [options?.weights, context?.runtime?.kidsWeights];
+  for (const candidate of overrides) {
+    if (!isPlainObject(candidate)) {
+      continue;
+    }
+    for (const key of Object.keys(weights)) {
+      if (Number.isFinite(candidate[key])) {
+        weights[key] = candidate[key];
+      }
+    }
+  }
+  return weights;
+}
+
+function resolveFreshnessHalfLife(options, context) {
+  const candidates = [options?.freshnessHalfLifeDays, context?.runtime?.kidsFreshnessHalfLifeDays];
+  for (const candidate of candidates) {
+    const value = Number(candidate);
+    if (Number.isFinite(value) && value > 0) {
+      return value;
+    }
+  }
+  return DEFAULT_FRESHNESS_HALF_LIFE_DAYS;
+}
+
+function resolvePopularityMax(options, context) {
+  const candidates = [
+    options?.popularityMax,
+    context?.runtime?.kidsPopularityMax,
+    context?.runtime?.explorePopularityMax,
+  ];
+  for (const candidate of candidates) {
+    const value = Number(candidate);
+    if (Number.isFinite(value) && value > 0) {
+      return value;
+    }
+  }
+  return 0;
+}
+
+function resolveNow(context) {
+  const candidate = Number(context?.runtime?.now);
+  if (Number.isFinite(candidate) && candidate > 0) {
+    return Math.floor(candidate);
+  }
+  return Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000);
+}
+
+function resolveKidsPopularityValue(video, item) {
+  const candidates = [
+    video?.kidsViews,
+    video?.stats?.kidsViews,
+    video?.metrics?.kidsViews,
+    item?.metadata?.kidsViews,
+  ];
+
+  for (const candidate of candidates) {
+    const value = Number(candidate);
+    if (Number.isFinite(value) && value >= 0) {
+      return value;
+    }
+  }
+
+  return null;
+}
+
+function resolveGlobalPopularityValue(video, item) {
+  const candidates = [
+    video?.viewCount,
+    video?.views,
+    video?.stats?.views,
+    video?.stats?.viewCount,
+    video?.metrics?.views,
+    item?.metadata?.viewCount,
+  ];
+
+  for (const candidate of candidates) {
+    const value = Number(candidate);
+    if (Number.isFinite(value) && value >= 0) {
+      return value;
+    }
+  }
+
+  return 0;
+}
+
+function resolveSafetyScore(item) {
+  const moderation = item?.metadata?.moderation || item?.video?.moderation || {};
+  if (moderation.hidden === true) {
+    return 0;
+  }
+
+  const trustedMuted = moderation.trustedMuted === true;
+  const trustedCount = Number(moderation.trustedCount ?? moderation.trustedReportCount);
+  let penalty = 0;
+
+  if (Number.isFinite(trustedCount) && trustedCount > 0) {
+    penalty = Math.min(1, trustedCount / 3) * 0.7;
+  }
+
+  if (trustedMuted) {
+    penalty = Math.max(penalty, 0.9);
+  }
+
+  return clamp01(1 - penalty);
+}
+
+function computeTagMatchScore(tags, preferredTags) {
+  if (!tags || tags.size === 0 || preferredTags.size === 0) {
+    return 0.4;
+  }
+
+  let matches = 0;
+  for (const tag of preferredTags) {
+    if (tags.has(tag)) {
+      matches += 1;
+    }
+  }
+
+  const divisor = Math.min(3, preferredTags.size);
+  return clamp01(matches / divisor);
+}
+
+export function createKidsScorerStage({
+  stageName = "kids-scorer",
+  ageGroup = "preschool",
+  educationalTags,
+  weights,
+  ...options
+} = {}) {
+  return async function kidsScorerStage(items = [], context = {}) {
+    if (!Array.isArray(items) || items.length === 0) {
+      return items;
+    }
+
+    const ageProfile = resolveAgeProfile(ageGroup);
+    const preferredTags = normalizeTagSet(ageProfile.preferredTags);
+    const defaultEducationalTags = normalizeTagSet(ageProfile.educationalTags);
+    const educationalTagSet = educationalTags ? normalizeTagSet(educationalTags) : defaultEducationalTags;
+    const resolvedWeights = resolveWeights({ weights, ...options }, context);
+    const freshnessHalfLifeDays = resolveFreshnessHalfLife(options, context);
+    const popularityMax = resolvePopularityMax(options, context);
+    const now = resolveNow(context);
+
+    const trustedAuthors = toSet(context?.runtime?.trustedAuthors);
+    const trustedAuthorSet = new Set();
+    for (const author of trustedAuthors) {
+      if (typeof author === "string") {
+        trustedAuthorSet.add(author.toLowerCase());
+      }
+    }
+
+    for (const item of items) {
+      if (!item || typeof item !== "object") {
+        continue;
+      }
+
+      const video = item.video;
+      if (!video || typeof video !== "object") {
+        continue;
+      }
+
+      const tags = normalizeTagSetFromVideo(video);
+      const duration = resolveDuration(video);
+      let durationScore = 0.5;
+      if (Number.isFinite(duration) && duration > 0) {
+        const ratio = duration / ageProfile.maxDurationSeconds;
+        durationScore = ratio <= 1 ? 1 : clamp01(1 / ratio);
+      }
+
+      const tagScore = computeTagMatchScore(tags, preferredTags);
+      const ageAppropriateness = clamp01(0.6 * durationScore + 0.4 * tagScore);
+
+      let educationalBoost = 0;
+      if (educationalTagSet.size > 0 && tags.size > 0) {
+        let matches = 0;
+        for (const tag of educationalTagSet) {
+          if (tags.has(tag)) {
+            matches += 1;
+          }
+        }
+        const divisor = Math.min(3, educationalTagSet.size);
+        educationalBoost = clamp01(matches / divisor);
+      }
+
+      let authorTrust = 0;
+      if (trustedAuthorSet.size > 0 && typeof video.pubkey === "string") {
+        authorTrust = trustedAuthorSet.has(video.pubkey.toLowerCase()) ? 1 : 0;
+      }
+
+      let popularityWithinKids = 0;
+      const kidsViews = resolveKidsPopularityValue(video, item);
+      const popularityValue = kidsViews === null ? resolveGlobalPopularityValue(video, item) : kidsViews;
+      if (popularityMax > 0) {
+        const normalized = Math.log1p(popularityValue) / Math.log1p(popularityMax);
+        popularityWithinKids = clamp01(normalized);
+      } else if (popularityValue > 0) {
+        popularityWithinKids = clamp01(Math.log1p(popularityValue) / Math.log1p(popularityValue + 100));
+      }
+
+      let freshness = 0;
+      const createdAt = Number(video?.rootCreatedAt ?? video?.nip71Source?.created_at ?? video?.created_at);
+      if (Number.isFinite(createdAt) && createdAt > 0 && freshnessHalfLifeDays > 0) {
+        const ageSeconds = Math.max(0, now - Math.floor(createdAt));
+        const ageDays = ageSeconds / 86400;
+        const decay = Math.exp(-ageDays / freshnessHalfLifeDays);
+        freshness = clamp01(decay);
+      }
+
+      const safetyScore = resolveSafetyScore(item);
+
+      const baseScore =
+        resolvedWeights.w_age * ageAppropriateness +
+        resolvedWeights.w_edu * educationalBoost +
+        resolvedWeights.w_author * authorTrust +
+        resolvedWeights.w_pop * popularityWithinKids +
+        resolvedWeights.w_fresh * freshness;
+
+      const riskMultiplier = clamp01(1 - resolvedWeights.w_risk * (1 - safetyScore));
+      const kidsScore = clamp01(baseScore * riskMultiplier);
+
+      if (!isPlainObject(item.metadata)) {
+        item.metadata = {};
+      }
+
+      item.metadata.kidsScore = kidsScore;
+      item.metadata.kidsScoreComponents = {
+        ageAppropriateness,
+        educationalBoost,
+        authorTrust,
+        popularityWithinKids,
+        freshness,
+        safetyScore,
+      };
+
+      const videoId = typeof video.id === "string" ? video.id : null;
+      const pubkey = typeof video.pubkey === "string" ? video.pubkey : null;
+
+      const positiveComponents = [
+        { key: "age-appropriateness", value: ageAppropriateness },
+        { key: "educational-boost", value: educationalBoost },
+        { key: "author-trust", value: authorTrust },
+        { key: "popularity", value: popularityWithinKids },
+        { key: "freshness", value: freshness },
+      ];
+
+      let dominantPositive = positiveComponents[0];
+      for (const component of positiveComponents) {
+        if (component.value > dominantPositive.value) {
+          dominantPositive = component;
+        }
+      }
+
+      if (dominantPositive.value > 0) {
+        context?.addWhy?.({
+          stage: stageName,
+          type: "score",
+          reason: dominantPositive.key,
+          value: dominantPositive.value,
+          score: kidsScore,
+          videoId,
+          pubkey,
+        });
+      }
+    }
+
+    return items;
+  };
+}