Frustrations & doubts about my wanikani progress so far

Japanese Language
21

FWIW, I definitely did this the long way around, and I’m still working on it (I definitely can’t read comfortably everything I would like to yet).

I hate memorization just for the sake of memorization, and I’m really not good with flashcards or any sort of repeated habit (keep taking month-long breaks from WK because I just can’t force myself to review daily).

What I did instead, because it was easier and more comfortable for me:

  1. Watch anime, movies, TV shows, or play fully voiced video games with Japanese subtitles (basically someone else doing “reading”) for things I’m interested in but pay attention to the text and pause/rewind if you don’t know the kanji or vocab and look it up.
  2. Sign up for a Japanese classroom course that focuses on reading (I found some offered online via the New York Japan Society but there are many other options out there). A group course is nice because you take turns with the other students and it takes the pressure off you. But obviously you’ll have less choice of the material covered (most tend to focus on news articles).
  3. Try to read with a book club (at least a few are always running on WK, and some have read-aloud sessions)
  4. Try to read with a tutor (I found a tutor through iTalki who I meet with occasionally and we just pick out interesting articles or short stories for me to read aloud and she’ll correct me if I say the wrong pronunciation or answer my questions about grammar)

Another option if it fits your level and any of the content interests you is Satori Reader which has good-quality audio voiceovers for the stories, options to set kanji you should know and notes on grammar throughout. It can definitely feel like a bit of a crutch vs. having to do all the lookups yourself but sometimes that’s nice to have something easier.

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22

Yes, absolutely. I happen to like reading so it’s what I do most of, but I think the general point I’d make is that this kind of ‘intermediate’ level is where you want to start trying to use the language for whatever it is you want or find it fun to use it for. SRS apps and desk study are useful but they need to start being the tools that support you in using the language, not your only point of contact with the language.

8 Likes
23

Instead of setting deadlines, I’d recommend setting daily tasks that will move you towards your end goal. “Do my WK reviews and add 5 lessons every day, or every other day” for instance. If you can find daily tasks you can accomplish you will steadily move towards your goal, continuously.

The risk with deadline based goals like the one you mentioned above is that it’s easy to set the bar quite high when we are full of enthusiasm, and when you don’t meet them even though you put in a bunch of effort and achieved a lot, it feels like a failure instead of celebrating everything you actually did do. (Speaking from experience here)

I used to have goals like “read 5 mangas in a month” for instance, but that did 2 things. 1, Japanese started feeling like a job and not enjoyable so I ended up not reading. And 2, If I read four volumes, I felt like I’d failed. Swapping it to “read 1 page atleast every day” has made it a lot more enjoyable and I end up reading a lot more most of the time.

It’s a more positive approach and I end up achieving a lot more as well.

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