diff --git a/src/lib/components/CompletionSparkline.svelte b/src/lib/components/CompletionSparkline.svelte
index ca72bdc..264ae42 100644
--- a/src/lib/components/CompletionSparkline.svelte
+++ b/src/lib/components/CompletionSparkline.svelte
@@ -3,6 +3,13 @@
   // Zero-days render as a 1 px baseline stub (never a gap, never zero
   // height). The component self-hides when all bars are zero. Caller
   // still guards on the user's settings toggle.
+  //
+  // Phase 9 polish: friendlier aria-label (sentence-form summary, not a
+  // numeric list), per-bar <title> tooltips with absolute date + count,
+  // and a 30 ms-stagger entrance animation that respects
+  // prefers-reduced-motion. Tabindex deliberately omitted: SVGs with
+  // role="img" are reachable by screen-reader graphic navigation
+  // without being part of the keyboard-tab order.
   import type { DailyCompletionCount } from "$lib/types/app";
 
   interface Props {
@@ -22,10 +29,12 @@
     (width - BAR_GAP * Math.max(0, data.length - 1)) / Math.max(1, data.length),
   );
 
+  let total = $derived(data.reduce((sum, d) => sum + d.count, 0));
+  let today = $derived(data.at(-1)?.count ?? 0);
+
   let ariaLabel = $derived.by(() => {
     if (data.length === 0) return "";
-    const nums = data.map((d) => d.count).join(", ");
-    return `Tasks completed over the last ${data.length} days: ${nums}`;
+    return `${today} completed today. ${total} total over the last ${data.length} days.`;
   });
 
   let hasAnyCompletion = $derived(data.some((d) => d.count > 0));
@@ -53,7 +62,31 @@
         fill="currentColor"
         opacity={d.count === 0 ? 0.35 : 0.85}
         rx="1"
-      />
+        class="bar"
+        style={`--bar-delay: ${i * 30}ms`}
+      >
+        <title>{d.day}: {d.count} {d.count === 1 ? "task" : "tasks"}</title>
+      </rect>
     {/each}
   </svg>
 {/if}
+
+<style>
+  .bar {
+    transform-origin: bottom;
+    animation: bar-in 240ms ease var(--bar-delay, 0ms) both;
+  }
+  @media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
+    .bar {
+      animation: none;
+    }
+  }
+  @keyframes bar-in {
+    from {
+      transform: scaleY(0);
+    }
+    to {
+      transform: scaleY(1);
+    }
+  }
+</style>
diff --git a/src/lib/pages/TasksPage.svelte b/src/lib/pages/TasksPage.svelte
index d2a4eb6..e6e7eda 100644
--- a/src/lib/pages/TasksPage.svelte
+++ b/src/lib/pages/TasksPage.svelte
@@ -298,7 +298,7 @@
         >
           {#if todayCount() > 0}
             <span
-              class="text-[11px] text-text-tertiary"
+              class="text-[11px] text-text-tertiary badge-today"
               aria-label={`${todayCount()} ${todayCount() === 1 ? "task" : "tasks"} completed today`}
             >
               {todayCount()} today
@@ -689,3 +689,27 @@
     </div>
   </div>
 </div>
+
+<style>
+  /* Phase 9 polish: gentle entrance animation when the today-count
+     badge mounts (it is conditionally rendered, so each new render
+     re-fires the animation). prefers-reduced-motion disables. */
+  :global(.badge-today) {
+    animation: badge-pop 180ms ease both;
+  }
+  @media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
+    :global(.badge-today) {
+      animation: none;
+    }
+  }
+  @keyframes badge-pop {
+    from {
+      opacity: 0;
+      transform: translateY(2px);
+    }
+    to {
+      opacity: 1;
+      transform: translateY(0);
+    }
+  }
+</style>