Why Repetition Is a Struggling Reader’s Best Friend

By Laura Webb, Educational Therapist

Last week a student looked up at me during a reading session and said, “But I already did this page.” And they were right. We practiced it. We traced it, tapped it, read it in a book, and even turned it into a silly sentence.

But here’s the part kids don’t always see yet: their brain is still building the bridge.

So I smiled and said, “Yes… and today we are going to do the same thing but in a NEW FUN way!”

So many of the children I work with are bright, creative, curious humans — and also exhausted by reading. They try hard. They care. And still, words slip away. Parents often tell me, “We practiced this. Why doesn’t it stick?”

You’ve probably heard the phrase “practice makes perfect.” But for reading, a kinder and more accurate version is: practice makes permanent—a term popularized by educator Dr. Anita Archer.

Each time a struggling reader successfully reads a word, the brain gets another chance to hold onto it. Little by little, that word becomes more familiar, more automatic, and eventually… permanent.

If you’re supporting a child who stumbles over simple words, avoids books, or tires quickly during reading, you’re not doing anything wrong. For many children, especially those with dyslexia, learning to read simply takes more time, more support, and more repetition.

The good news? Repetition doesn’t have to feel boring or discouraging. With the right structure and a little creativity, repeated practice becomes confidence-building instead of exhausting. It turns “I can’t” into “I’m getting it.”

Why Repetition Matters Even More for Struggling Readers

Children with dyslexia often struggle with phonological processing—the ability to hear, recognize, and play with the sounds in spoken language. When that system is shaky, decoding, spelling, and reading fluency become much harder.

You might notice a child who forgets words they just read, needs constant reminders of phonics patterns, or misreads the same high-frequency words again and again.

This isn’t about effort or motivation. It’s about how the brain learns. While many children may need only 4–12 meaningful exposures to remember a new word, students with reading difficulties often need 20, 30, or even more before that word sticks in long-term memory (Kilpatrick, 2015).

So when a child seems to “forget,” what they’re really saying is: my brain just needs more chances.

Instead of guessing or memorizing, students learn to analyze and decode—which leads to true independence in reading.

The Science Behind Repetition

Repetition supports something called orthographic mapping (Ehri, 2014). That’s the process where the brain connects the sounds in a word (phonemes) with how the word looks in print (spelling).

When those connections become strong, children stop sounding out every letter and begin recognizing words instantly. Reading becomes smoother, faster, and far less tiring.

Researcher David Kilpatrick explains that orthographic mapping is essential for building a large sight-word vocabulary—and repetition is how the brain makes those connections stick. Practice isn’t busy work. It’s brain-building.

Activities That Make Repetition Work (Without the Tears)

Here are five ways to build repeated exposure while keeping kids engaged and confident:

● Multisensory Repetition

Children learn best when they use more than one pathway at a time—seeing, saying, hearing, and writing. For example, a child might trace a word in sand while saying each sound aloud. This kind of multisensory input can accelerate learning for students with dyslexia (Shaywitz, 2020).

● Repeated Reading

Rereading the same short passage builds fluency and reinforces word recognition. Each round gives the brain another chance to strengthen connections.

To keep it playful, try different voices: robot voice, whisper voice, pirate voice. When reading feels like a game, repetition feels safe instead of stressful.

● Spaced Review

Instead of cramming, revisit words across days and weeks. Spaced practice leads to stronger long-term memory. Programs like Nessy use this approach because it works—learning sticks better when the brain gets multiple chances over time.

● Echo Reading

An adult reads a sentence first, then the child echoes it back. This gives clear modeling, supports expression, and builds confidence through supported repetition.

● Word Sorts and Pattern Hunts

Have children group words by spelling patterns (light, night, fight) or hunt for them in books and around the room. Seeing patterns repeated in meaningful ways helps the brain organize and remember them.

If you’re a parent reading this and quietly wondering, “Am I doing enough?” — I want you to pause right there.

Supporting a struggling reader isn’t about finding the perfect program or pushing harder. It’s about creating safe, repeated opportunities to practice in ways that feel manageable, playful, and encouraging. It’s about reminding your child, again and again, that their brain isn’t broken — it’s just building.

Start small.

Reread a favorite page.

Play with words in silly voices.

Celebrate effort, not speed.

And if you’d like support, you don’t have to figure it out alone. At Learning Beyond Letters, I work with families to build routines, confidence, and strategies that fit real life — not just worksheets.

Your child doesn’t need perfection. They need patience, repetition, and someone who believes their progress is possible. We can set up a free meeting where we can go over the struggles you are having with your little reader at https://www.learningbeyondletters.com/free-consultation

References:  Ehri, L. C. (2014). Orthographic mapping in the acquisition of sight word reading, spelling memory, and vocabulary learning. Scientific Studies of Reading, 18(1), 5-21.  Kilpatrick, D. A. (2015). Essentials of Assessing, Preventing, and Overcoming Reading Difficulties. Wiley. Shaywitz, S. E. (2020). Overcoming Dyslexia (2nd ed.). Vintage