Retrieval Practice:The Most Underrated Strategy in ACT Prep
How the Science of Learning Actually Improves ACT Scores
A student finishes an ACT practice session feeling confident.
The questions looked familiar.
The explanations made sense.
Nothing felt hard.
Then the test day arrives.
The clock starts. The passages feel longer. The answers aren’t as obvious.
They reread. They hesitate. Time slips away.
Afterward, they say, “I’ve seen those questions so many times before, but I just couldn’t figure it out.”
And they have.
Most ACT prep builds familiarity, but the test demands decisions under pressure.
How do I know this? Because I used to be a prep teacher like this. I would have my students do practice after practice. We would score them. I would tell them the right answers. Then we would start on another. Wash, rinse, repeat. I was shocked when they did so well on their practice tests (that I tracked diligently), and then would go into the test and get a significantly different outcome.
I wasn’t creating learning, I was creating familiarity.
Recognition fades when the clock starts. Retrieval is what holds.
What Retrieval Practice Actually Is
Retrieval practice means forcing the brain to retrieve information from memory without help. Not rereading notes, or watching someone on YouTube work through the exam, or reading through the answer explanations in the back of the big red book. If the answer is in front of the student, retrieval isn’t happening.
To understand why retrieval practice is so effective, it helps to look at how memory functions. I won’t get too far in the weeds, but come on, this is fascinating stuff!
Memory is divided into three main stages:
Encoding – The process of taking in new information.
Storage – The maintenance of that information over time.
Retrieval – The act of recalling stored information when needed.
Traditional studying often focuses on encoding—reading notes, highlighting, or listening to lectures. However, retrieval practice strengthens the retrieval stage, which is crucial for long-term learning. When you recall information, you’re not just pulling it out of storage; you’re rebuilding it, reinforcing the neural pathways that make it easier to access later.
Retrieval occurs when students must remember first, even if they get it wrong.
What Retrieval Practice Is NOT (and Why That Matters)
Many students think they’re “studying” when they’re actually just recognizing information. This passive review simply puts information back into the brain, which is not effective for long-term retention.
This is what studying usually looks like.
You reread grammar rules and think, okay, I remember this.
You watch ACT solution videos and nod along because it all makes sense.
You highlight passages (maybe a little too much) because it feels like you’re doing something.
You do the same type of question again and again, but only with your notes open… just in case.
The problem? None of that is retrieval. You might be more familiar with the information, but that’s pretend learning. Familiarity feels good in the moment, but familiarity disappears under time pressure. Students must step out of their comfort zones and feel the struggle to engage fully in learning.
Why Retrieval Practice Works (The Brain Science, Plainly)
Each time a student pulls a strategy from memory:
The memory pathway strengthens
Recall becomes faster
The strategy becomes more automatic.
When students pull strategies from memory, the brain strengthens the neural pathways associated with that knowledge, making it easier to recall in the future.
Consider a path in the woods. That worn groove in the dirt wasn’t there at first. It only exists because someone walked it again and again. At first, someone simply pushed aside the shrubs and grass. Over time, the grass stopped growing back, and the path became obvious.
Retrieval practice works the same way. Each time we pull information from memory, we walk that path again, deepening the grooves in our brain. Eventually, accessing that information becomes easier and faster. At that point, the information is no longer just familiar. It’s known.
Just like creating that path may not have been easy, struggle during retrieval is not a sign of failure. When the struggle happens, the learning happens.
How to Use Retrieval Practice in ACT Prep
(Step-by-Step, Not Theoretical)
Retrieval practice doesn’t require more time, but it does require changing the order of instruction.
Step 1: Ask Before You Teach
Before explaining a strategy, ask students to retrieve it.
Examples:
“Write down everything you remember about comma rules.”
“How do you approach a main idea question?
“What’s your plan when a math problem looks unfamiliar?”
This activates prior knowledge, even if it’s incomplete.
Step 2: Delay Help
Resist the urge to immediately rescue students.
Let them attempt it, be uncomfortable, and commit to an answer with a full understanding of why they think it’s correct.
Even a wrong attempt strengthens future recall more than an immediate explanation.
Step 3: Correct and Refine
After retrieval:
Clarify misconceptions for the next retrieval attempt
Add missing pieces
Strengthen the rule
Now the correction sticks because the brain has something to attach it to. (Teachers, this is formative assessment at its finest!)
Concrete Retrieval Practice Examples by ACT Section
ACT English
Instead of reviewing grammar rules, do the following:
Retrieval prompts:
“Write the rule for subject-verb agreement from memory.”
“What punctuation would never follow a dependent clause?” (You may even need to start here with what a dependent clause is.)
“What does concise & precise mean?”
Then:
Apply the retrieved rule to a timed passage
Reflect briefly: Did my recall hold up under time pressure? (Reflection is ESSENTIAL in this process to strengthen retrieval in the future.)
ACT Math
Instead of re-teaching formulas, do the following:
Retrieval prompts:
“Write all the area formulas you remember.”
“What’s your first step when variables are in the denominator?”
“How do you know when to plug in numbers?”
Then:
Solve mixed problems without notes
Identify which strategies were automatic and which were shaky.
Teachers: Occasionally, take the formula sheets away from students. Even better, give them formula tests! Studies show that testing on material leads to better long-term retention than simply restudying it. Each retrieval attempt acts like a workout for your brain, strengthening the “memory muscle.”
ACT Reading
Instead of rereading strategy lists, do the following:
Retrieval prompts:
“What elements should guide your reading for each passage?”
“What makes an answer choice too extreme?”
“What’s your plan if you’re behind on time?”
Then:
Read one passage
Apply strategies consciously
Check whether the strategy was recalled quickly or slowly.
ACT Science
Instead of reviewing content:
Retrieval prompts:
“What are the three things to look for in graphs?”
“How do you answer without reading everything?”
“What is the difference between a control and a variable?”
Then:
Do a short science set
Focus on strategy recall, not content mastery.
Why Retrieval Practice Is Perfect for the ACT
The ACT:
Is fast
Is cumulative
Punishes hesitation
Retrieval practice builds:
Speed
Automaticity
Confidence that holds under pressure
Students stop saying: “I knew this… I just couldn’t remember,: and start saying, “I knew exactly what to do.”
What Retrieval-Based ACT Prep Looks Like Over Time
Short. Frequent. Intentional.
Examples:
5-minute strategy recall at the start of every session
Weekly cumulative quizzes with no notes
Old strategies resurfacing even after “mastery.” (A MUST!)
Working this way feels harder and works better.
Bottom Line
The ACT doesn’t reward those who studied the longest. It rewards those who can retrieve the fastest.
Retrieval practice turns:
Knowledge into action
Strategies into habits
Practice into performance
Students need to forget to remember.
In the next post, we’ll build on this by showing how mixing subjects and skills (interleaving) further strengthens retrieval.
