If you have read my previous posts, I talk about a flash card program called Anki This program is a simple and easy to use flash card system. The algorithm used is a "spaced repetition system." A system like this is generally favored as the way to memorize chunks of information in a somewhat natural way. Words that you have difficulty learning/remembering, the system will test you more frequently on that word. Words that are much easier for you to remember/learn then the system will not test you on such words.You can choose a set number of cards to work on each day, or a time limit that you can work on as many cards as the day has allotted. I have mine set to a certain number of cards. Adding cards is easy, especially when I began with Rosetta stone. With Rosetta stone I created 3 columns in Google documents. One for the Japanese word, one for the "romaji" equivalent and one column for the English meaning. I saved this document as a comma separated value or a CSV document that can be opened in any spreadsheet software, and Anki. I'm sure CSV files can be opened by other flash card software. I haven't tried any, but Anki is a pretty powerful platform and I like the revised SRS algorithm that is uses.
So, within Anki, when you set up a new card "deck" you can simply import your CSV file. You can also add your own cards individually, but I find the Anki process is extremely tedious, and prefer to upload batches of words. Of course by now I am able to read the kana quite well so the new cards I add, I add them in the Japanese kana instead of romaji. At this point, Ive got 5 decks. My first deck, "J-Level 1" included every word taught in Rosetta stone, "J-Level 2" is going to contain every word and kanji not included in J-Level 1 that is on the JLPT N5. I have a "Phrases" deck of useful phrases I have heard or read. A deck for Childrens books as I am now starting to read Children's books in Hiragana. The 5th deck I add to sometimes, but I don't study just yet, it contains conjugations and Tenses.
The ability to separate out my levels and have different decks for different reasons, is where Anki shines. I probably do 50-100 cards a day. I like how each day Ive got a new set to work on and like clockwork I can slowly add to my elementary skill in the language. I highly recommend Anki. Another benefit is the ability to sync your decks online. This means that you can literally be anywhere in the world, and if you have Anki installed on your windows, mac, or Linux computer. Provided you have an Internet connection you can sync your current knowledge right away and never miss a day.
There is even an online website. If you didn't have your computer with you, you could jump onto the website and get your cards in for the day. Just great, I can be at home, at a coffee shop, at work, and be able to get to my cards with no hiccup in my progress. If you forget a day, that's fine, you just have more do to for the next day. I try not to let the cards build up because trying to clean out 200 cards can be a real bitch and a half, and wont get done in that day as I slowly work down to 0 cards for the day.
Also if you didn't feel like making flash cards for Japanese, you can download one of the many decks that are already online for free. You cant go wrong with that at all. So there you have it Anki Reviewed. Check out the downloads section for a link to download. Good luck
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