That forced cycle of forgetting and retrieving is only half the explanation for the power of spaced learning. As the authors of Make It Stick explain, the time that intervenes between spaced learning sessions also allows our minds to better organize and solidify what we are studying: Embedding new learning in long-term memory requires a process of consolidation, in which memory traces (the brain's representations of new learning) are strengthened, given meaning, and connected to prior knowledge—a process that unfolds over hours and may take several days. Rapid-fire practice leans on short-term
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