Speedanki

*This is a post for those interested in learning Kanji for studying Japanese, if you have no interest in such things, this post may be boring*

Recently I have had a lot of downtime, both at work and in my 'free' time. In order to curb my boredom and try to make use of the free time I am given, besides drinking coffee, watching movies, TV, video games and long naps (which are all great btw) I decided to tackle the 2000 some required Kanji (Chinese characters) used in the Japanese Alphabet.

Since I am pretty lazy, as reflected in my day to day hobbies mentioned above, my previous efforts to make my own 2000 some kanji cards have been pretty...bad.

While bored at work one day (happens a lot) I decided to search for a web based kanji flash card site. While stumbling across a few, I came across http://www.speedanki.com/ which seems to serve its purpose.

Now it seems no system is perfect, especially a free one, but this one seems pretty good. It separates the required 2000-ish kanji into four levels that correspond to the JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Test).

The site gives it's own recommendation on how to study but I found that it doesn't incorporate a very good way to learn how to write the kanji. So I will share how I have been using the site for those interested. (You must have already mastered the Japanese kana alphabets to use this site to full potential)

Within each of the 4 levels that the kanji are separated in, you can sub-categorize the kanji into "Unread," "Read," "Familiar," "Mastered," and "Review."

The "Unread" folder is for Kanji that I have no idea what it is. I can't even read it.

The "Read" folder is for Kanji that I can read and can somewhat grasp the meaning.

The "Familiar" folder is for Kanji that I know the meaning, reading, and somewhat how to write.

*I practice writing by just reading the hiragana and simply writing the kanji in a notebook*

Once I can write the kanji, know its meaning and read it somewhat confidently I put it in the "Mastered" folder.

I then practice some other kanji, sorting them through these folders. After a few days I look at the "Mastered" folder and move what I know to the "Review" folder. When all kanji from one of the four levels is in the "Mastered" and/or "Review" folder I move to the next level (for example 3-kyu). I repeat this process, and then will try to test myself after some time with the previous levels, moving the kanji I don't know back to appropriate folders.

Like I said this system isn't perfect though. It doesn't actually teach you how to write the kanji (stroke order) or the kanji "on" and "kun" readings. But what it does do is let you learn kanji compounds and vocabulary while learning kanji, which in my opinion might even be better than learning the abstract sounds that each kanji make since you will be able to learn and recognize new words.

I think this is a good alternative or support to flash cards such as those made by White Rabbit Press, especially since you don't actually have to keep track of real cards.