Halfway there! - My experience through the first 30 levels

WaniKani Tips & Tricks
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I’ve finally hit level 31, effectively finishing the first half of the WaniKani course!

halfway

I don’t wanna look like I think too high of myself, but I guess even my humble experience through this first half might be of some value for folks that recently started, and maybe others already deep in but looking for some comparison of study styles.

  1. When did I start:
    I’ve been serving the Crabigator since March 22, 2019, according to my profile page. So, I’ve hit level 31 after a little more than 10 months of continuous study.

  2. This is how my current items are divided:

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  3. How do I tackle my lessons:
    I study them in batches of five items. After the first review of these items, if I managed to get at least three of them right, I take a new batch. If not, I wait until they’re gone from the Critical Condition list to study anything new. Also, if these items are all Radicals, I usually study another batch, since Radicals do not have readings and are thus simpler to memorize.

  4. How do I tackle my reviews:
    My daily routine allows me to do reviews four times per day: after breakfast, after lunch, after dinner and before going to bed. If there’s enough time, I review all items during each session.

  5. What was my background in japanese, before WaniKani?
    I fully studied katakana and hiragana before starting my quest here, mostly using this site. When I started WaniKani I had zero knowledge of grammar, so I started studying a little of the N5 content found here. For now I’m not worried about learning conversation and listening, since my main goal is to read competently.

  6. What do I do beyond WaniKani
    I’ve been using the KameSame app almost from the start, and I highly recommend it. Also, since level 11 I try to read news headlines in NHK News Web Easy at least once per day. Since then I got better at it and now I can even read the news content, with some hiccup here and there.

I guess that’s about it. I may have forgotten some good pieces of information and might be relevant, so if there’s anything you might wanna ask, I’ll be here to answer!

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How long do you level up?

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You mean, how much time do I take to get to a new level? Normally, 10 to 12 days.

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4

Nice work. I’m hoping to get to level 39 by mid-August.

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5

Awesome! What’s your study schedule?

6

Really useful tips. Thanks for sharing!

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If I remember correctly, it is said that by level 30, you have covered roughly 88% of some kanji group (forgot which), so how much kanji do you recognize when reading? Roughly speaking, how much would you say is know and unknown?

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Glad it was useful to you! Also, welcome to the forums!

9

In NHK News Web Easy, I think I can read most of them. 80% at the very least. Sometimes I find words I don’t know, but made of kanji I know. Whenever I come by something I don’t know the meaning, I search it using Tanoshii web dictionary.

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I try to go as fast as possible. I have the mobile app so I pick away at it throughout the day and get reviews done ASAP.

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As long as you recognize the Kanji used, words will be easier to learn, especially if you see it repeated a number of times.

12

Thanks for this resource! I just downloaded it and can’t wait to get into it. It looks like an excellent source of information.

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Indeed it is! Have a good time in your studies!

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