Been crazy busy and trying to get back on the kanji grind, current got 865 reviews and 168 lessons (im mostly worried about the reviews, not the lessons). im tyring to get back to normal reviews of about 50 to 100 max per day until i get them under control but i worry i am forgetting the ones i have already burned to this point. not sure if i should restart wanikani or not because i would hate to lose the progress but i also want to use this tool well and actaully learn kanji. any advice would be beneficial.
Im working on learning Japanese to a fluent level (i would like to eventually be as good as my native tongue of English eventually) and have been learning for about 2 and half years so far. i think to get this kanji to stick, i should probably try to join one of the book clubs on here but i worry about my comprehension and memory retention of japanese grammar and vocab. i worry that seeing new words as i read them once or twice is not good enough for me to actually try to remember them but i am not sure if anki/flash cards is actually helping me long term either and i bore from doing flash cards and never using them. i try to apply stuff but i only get to speak Japanese a few times a week with some of my international friends. i only ever read japanese manga sometimes but i worry its not helping me learn as much as i would like.
i want my big focus to be on reading and speaking/listeneing as those are the skills i think are most useful for me. i really have no interest at this point in learning to write kanji but i can do hiragana pretty well. it all seems overwhealming as i want to learn new words but i struggle to fit them into an actual conversation and i like new grammar points (stuff like how to make sentences like "pizza id better than pasta or stuff like âi like red things but not blue thingsâ) but end up learning them, using them once or twice, and then forgetting them when i want to use them in conversation. then i just end up starting at my notes and trying to get them into my head.
has anyone felt similar on their language journey? if so, any advice would be appreciated, for either wanikani or japanese learning in general. currently the most fun i tend to have is trying to speak (if im not too nervous of messing up) or watching anime or reading manga (first in japanese and them in english to check and see how much i understood).
For now you should just do reviews for a while until youâre ok with your apprentice items and number of reviews start to go down. Donât worry about forgetting, thatâs what the SRS is for.
Unless you were gone for months or a year, resetting wonât really do much for you. Just donât do lessons for a while, while you get stuff under control again.
WK wonât make you fluent, so donât worry about it so much. It can really only help you with reading.
This is a common experience for all language learners⊠It usually is not enough to study a language point (grammar or vocab, etc.) just once or twice. In fact, it typically takes around 6 context-rich experiences/touches, probably more but maybe less if youâre lucky.
What would possibly be helpful for you to do is to do a search, either in a textbook, or online (search engine/youtube) for points that you need a refresher and more practice. Youâve mentioned comparatives and the ăăăăăăźă»ăăăăăă§ă structure. Itâs a fun structure that you can start to use to review lots of ideas.
As far as your goals towards fluency, keep going. Please know that it takes a long time⊠Depending on your age and life circumstances, âas native as Englishâ might a tad high, but you can definitely get super strong if you keep at itâŠ
You could review your burned items (in the Extra Study section) and for any that you did not recall, resurrect them (send them back down). You do not need to do them all once, you could just do a few each day and gradually work your way through them.
Try expanding the scope of what you consume/read. Generally it is more effective if you read about things you are interested in. Follow a few things on X/Twitter (or Instagram or Facebook or whatever) that you like. Chime in once in a while to practice outputting. Find a reddit or two on a subject you are interested in. Check out a news site once in a while and read an article that looks interesting. Check out NHK easy news (short versions of some top news stories written for the target audience of grade schoolers, but great reading practice resource for those learning Japanese).
For example, I am an ice hockey fan. I follow the Facebook and X/Twitter accounts for my favourite pro team here in Japan (Go Grits!!!) as well as the league accounts. I get reading practice when there are posts, which I am more inclined to read and try to understand because I am interested, plus I get to stay up to date with my team and the league (something i want to do anyway). I do the same thing with a couple of other hobbies/interests as well.