Eat, sleep, practice, repeat!

landrew3
2 days ago
4 min read

Let's talk about the impact of repeated practice and how to plan it well.

Think of a time you were learning something new - maybe be a new language, dance routine, computer game, musical instrument, how to drive...

What did you have to do to get proficient at it? You would have needed to understand it and then to practice - probably practice a lot!

We don't need to look at models of learning and the long term memory (although they can be helpful) to know that practice is key to learning and that sometimes practice is needed for an extended period of time.

We need to recall knew knowledge in the form of repeated practice for this new knowledge to be stored in our long term memory. Then it can be used effectively by our working memory during recall.

This process enables automatic recall of GPCs.

We need to repeat new skills in the form of repeated practice to master them. If we practice a skill enough times a new synapse will form. This skill is then some what mastered and will feel automatic. We need to master reading skills such as blending and automaticity.

So we could say that...

repeated practice = automatic recall + automatic skill

Plus we know that the skill influences the will and visa versa.

The more we practice something, often the more we choose to do it and attend to it because we feel confident and we like to be successful.

Let's look at repeated practice for phonics specifically

Repeated practice within daily phonics lessons

All SSP programmes will have review elements planned into your daily phonics lessons. This is where you are reviewing or practicing previously taught learning. Remember this is just as important as the new learning.

Top tips:

Adapt your review sections of your phonics lessons based on your assessment for learning. If you know from watching the children that they need to practice a particular GPC or word type more then add this in.

Once a day isn't enough for most children - more practice is needed.

Whole class additional repeated practice

Class teachers have the power to build into your classroom daily routines. The more class teachers do this the more progress their children will make.

Top tips:

Whole class repeated practice is based on analysis of your whole class data. Look at the common gaps in GPCs and in word types. This will be your focus for whole class repeated practice.
Timetable repeated practice sessions into your daily timetable. Make this routine. Repeated practice can be in the form of very short focused sessions. For example:
- 1 minute practicing 10 focus GPCs
- 5 minutes practicing oral blending or embedding oral blending practice throughout the day e.g. I need a p-e-n, children practice saying p-e-n pen.
- 2 minutes practicing blending 6 words with 4 sounds
- 3 minutes building speed with 6 common words
- GPC passwords on the classroom door
If you are a phonics leader it's worth modelling how easy whole class repeated practice can be. Then going back to see it in action the following week.

Some children struggle to focus in group or whole class practice - individual practice is needed.

Individual repeated practice

If a child is still struggling to retain GPCs and blend accurately individual repeated practice is needed. Class teachers, reading leads and SENCOs all have the power to build this into a child's daily routine. The more you do this the more progress that child will make and the more confident they will feel. Plus as soon as a child starts to feel confident, they are more likely to start focusing more in lessons as they can access the learning. The will influences the skills and visa versa!

Top tips:

Individual repeated practice is based on analysis of an individuals assessment data. Look at the specific gaps in GPCs and in word types. This will be your focus for this child's repeated practice.
Children with dyslexia or with barriers to working memory are going to need additional repeated practice for GPCs and words to go into the long term memory or orthographic store. We need to prioritise repeated practice for these children.
Timetable repeated practice sessions into this child's daily timetable. Make this routine. For example:
- 2 minutes practicing 10 focus GPCs with a teaching assistant (this could be done with multiple children in 10 minutes).
- 2 minutes partner practice. The focus child is paired up with a confident child who supports the practice. It works really well training up KS2 children and giving them this responsibility. You will need to monitor this, but it's really wonderful to see this in action.
- 5 minutes 1:1 or small group additional blending practice
- GPCs, word cards or videos for children to access repeated practice at home.