Orthographic processing is the ability to visually recognize and remember written words and parts of words. It includes the ability to immediately recognize letter sequences and patterns and to spell phonetically irregular words. Successful readers and spellers have well-developed orthographic processing, which allows them to retain the way words look in print so they can read fluently. Orthographic processing is necessary for reading fluency and is related to dyslexia.

Orthographic processing is believed to be located in the fusiform gyrus, an area that overlaps the temporal, parietal, and occipital lobes in the lower part of the cortex in both hemispheres. There are several standardized tests that can be used to assess orthographic processing, including spelling tests. The most comprehensive test is the Test of Orthographic Competence.

Weaknesses in orthographic processing can lead to difficulty retaining sight words, spelling words as they sound rather than as they should look, guessing on simple words, reversing letters, reversing the order of letters, and sounding out every word, even irregular sight words. There are no clear research-based procedures that are known to improve orthographic processing, but structured approaches to spelling with an emphasis on conventional spelling rules, common letter sequences, and orthographic rules can be helpful. Explicitly teaching syllable division patterns and rules for contractions, possessives, plurals, and abbreviations can also be beneficial. One program that can be helpful for orthographic processing is Seeing Stars by Nanci Bell.