Level 1 User

[RavenX51]

Tips for Level 1 please.

[Rowena]

Hello and welcome!

Tips: First, read the official welcome post here, including links. Read it more than once, because that is a lot of info.
Second, you may then want to have a look at this unofficial guide written by someone who has finished Wanikani - it includes tips about userscripts and other stuff outside the official app (you need to scroll down to the second post in the thread for the guide).

[Helix]

The first thing you might want to know as a level 1 user is that WaniKani is going to be slow at first. But it speeds up, fast.

[Edibleghost]

Be diligent about doing your reviews and try to do at least a few lessons a day once things start really moving. It will seem slow at first but in a month or two you will be in full swing and it’s nice to set a good pace early.

Remember that even if you don’t have a good grasp on the kanji for a level yet you’ll remember easier once you start seeing them in vocab as well so keep pushing forward even if you feel like you’re struggling a bit with what’s on your plate already.

Don’t be afraid to make a new mnemonic if the stock one really isn’t working for you.

Have fun. You will eventually be trying to learn and retain lots of information but don’t let it feel like a chore. Read, listen and use what you learn; those moments when a sentence clicks or you realize you understood a line in a song are some of the most fulfilling experiences you can have.

[skipsoar]

Look into the userscripts! They’re really very simple to install and you don’t need to go crazy, but they are helpful.

My favorite is the timeline, because it lets me see how many reviews I should expect at what times. I find that this keeps me on track with doing my reviews promptly and I know when to expect the larger ones. It also helps in the beginning when things feel slow, to know when to expect more.

My other favorites are the “ignore” button that lets you ignore a wrong answer (helps alleviate that “doh!” feeling on foolish typos and the level-up celebration script (it’s a little thing, but I like it!).

The WaniStats site is also a big motivator for me to get through my lessons and keep my pace up. The older I get, the faster time goes, and it’s very exciting to think that I can expect to hit level 60 in only about a year from now!

In general, I think anything that keeps your motivation high is helpful! Wanikani will kindly spoonfeed you everything else (the vocab, the pace, the practice, etc) but what you need to bring to the table all by yourself is the motivation to keep up with it. For me, having eyes on the horizon helps a bit, but the step-by-step, daily things are the biggest factor (and also where you stumble, if you let yourself), so I try not to think about level 60 as much as the next level, because a week is easier to digest than a year, but 52 weeks will eventually add up to a year!

[Omun]

Hello hello, welcome!

My tip would be to really understand the SRS and its intervals. WK is a long commitment, and the way you do your lessons will have consequences six months down the road for your review load.

While everyone has different preferences, I personally recommend a set amount of lessons every day, and not doing all lessons whenever they are available.

Doing this kept my amount of daily reviews incredibly steady throughout. I didn’t hit a time of 300+ reviews in a day until I doubled my daily lesson load during the fast levels that show up beyond level 40.

Also: routine > motivation. Motivation waxes and wanes. Force yourself mercilessly to do reviews every single day, and after a month or two it’s a routine, which is incredibly important to have.

Good luck on your kanji journey!

[RavenX51]

Thank you everyone!! I’ve been nerding WaniKani!