For years, we have used the phrase “rich and varied practice” in reading instruction, but often without a clear definition. While explicit, direct instruction is the cornerstone of the Science of Reading, it is through systematic practice that students consolidate and generalize their learning to become truly fluent readers. As my friend Dr. Carolyn Strom and I discussed in our latest webinar, instruction is the work we do as teachers, but practice is the work students do to make that learning stick.

If you’ve seen students who pass their phonics checks but still struggle to read a social studies textbook, you know that instruction alone isn’t always enough. We need to look at the Science of Learning to understand how the brain moves from a novice state to an “automatized” expert state. To get there, we must move beyond simple repetition and embrace a structured approach to practice that incorporates the principles of memory and retrieval.

The Role of Interleaving

One of the most powerful ways to strengthen neural pathways is through interleaving. It sounds like a complex term, but it really just means “mixing it up”. In many classrooms, we tend to use “blocked” practice, which focuses on one skill until it’s mastered before moving to the next. However, the brain actually learns more effectively when we shift between different skills.

You can see this in action with a simple game of I Spy or I Hear with My Little Ear. You might ask a student to find something that starts with the letter C to focus on the letter, and then immediately shift to finding something that starts with the sound /k/ to focus on the phoneme. By weaving these different skills together, we’re forcing the brain to work harder, which makes the learning more durable.

Reviewing Through Elaboration

Another key to bridging the gap is reviewing through elaboration. This is about making decoding a “deep” activity rather than a shallow one. We want students to build a rich network of meaning around the words they are learning.

A wonderful way to do this is through Turtle Talk:

• Segment and Blend: Start by stretching out the sounds in words like pool or spoon.
• Make Connections: Don’t stop at the sounds. Ask if the word has multiple meanings—like a “pool” you swim in versus a “pool” noodle.
• Invite Student Voice: When a student connects the word ranch to the dressing at a restaurant, they are elaborating on their learning. This shared conversation helps the whole class remember the difference between a ranch and a wrench.

Finding the “Just Right” Challenge

Finally, we must control the levels of difficulty. In cognitive science, this is often called desirable difficulty or productive difficulty. If a task is too easy, the student goes on autopilot; if it’s too hard, they give up.

This is where a digital bridge like WordFlight becomes a valuable partner. It provides immediate and personalized feedback that a teacher simply can’t give to thirty students at once. When a student makes a mistake, the program adapts—perhaps reducing the number of choices or providing a “Turtle Talk” prompt to help them hear the word’s parts. This keeps the student in that “just right” zone where real learning happens.

Dignity and Opportunity

Every time we help a student move from effortful, frustrated reading to automaticity, we are giving them back their dignity and opportunity. When reading becomes smooth and automatic, the door to comprehension—and a lifetime of learning—finally swings open.
Instruction is the foundation, but rich and varied practice is the bridge that gets our students to the other side.

I’d love to hear from you: How are you using interleaving or “Turtle Talk” to bring more “thrill” to the skill-building in your classroom?

This article is based on a webinar that Dr. Carolyn Strom and Dr. Carolyn Brown gave on building reading fluency, with a focus on the role of rich and varied practice. You can watch that webinar on demand here.