ja・ミニマル

I.B.2. Vocabulary

As you learn kanji, periodically select batches of “mature” or well-learned kanji. At the moment it may be easiest to create a filtered deck that contains only “prop:ivl>=X” cards (where X can be from 7-21 [days] in our usage) from its home kanji deck, and export its notes to .txt. If you use this add-on, you can filter by the “learned” tag instead.

Find vocabulary words that contain only those kanji with cb4960’s Kanji Word Association Tool (KWAT). Use the above export file as your source file, selecting the column # that matches the kanji field. Set the look-ahead range to “dynamic” and R to 99999.

• You can also customize KWAT to find words from custom dictionaries, such as based on subtitles, morphological families, or compiled from Core sentences (sections I.C. and II.B.2.). If you learned from shows, or the Core kanji in I.B.1., you’ll then have an added boost.

With these words, you will learn the pronunciations for their kanji. At the same time, the kanji, which represent meanings to form those words, will have those meanings fleshed out while in turn acting as mnemonic aids.

Kanji and meaning is the key for Japanese, as opposed to sound. If you wish to supplement the incidental learning of pronunciations through words, which happens easily with the below layout, try this phonetic component deck.

More importantly—perhaps most importantly, for kanji compounds, which make up the bulk of Japanese vocabulary words, use Japanese word formation principles as your primary mnemonic method. The handful of principles are listed here (.pdf), and are extremely productive, thus more efficient than improvised mnemonics. I made a deck out of them here*.

Example:

• 漢字 - This is a “modifier + modified” compound. The first character, “China,” modifies the second, “Character.” “China” + “Character” = “Chinese characters” or “kanji.”

Once you’re aware of these, you have an easy, meaningful way to learn words based on how their kanji combine. Here are more usage tips.

Use multiple senses (e.g. sound, pictures), and definitions in the language you know best. This makes learning rich, transfer-appropriate, and clear.

ja-minimal promotes two often overlooked aspects of language learning: fluency practice and comprehensible output. Fluency refers to your ability to fluidly use what you’ve learned, however basic, not to how much Japanese you know overall. Output refers to your ability to actively use what you’ve learned—again, however basic.

For vocabulary words in this phase, this primarily takes the form of using filtered decks to review Production cards only when Recognition cards are mature, “m+N:0” as determined by Morph Man. Or as tagged mature with the aforelinked add-on.

Ideal card layout:

• Recognition Front: Audio, kanji version of the word, kana version of the word, and optionally an image - The cue is multisensory yet uninformative. Sound is the least important aspect of written Japanese, and used passively here for incidental learning. Recommended: Kanji meanings as hint field.

• Recognition Back: L1 or English definition and an optional example sentence for context.

• For Production cards, reverse the above, but leave the example sentence on the back. Also consider enabling “type in the answer,” as typing is an underdeveloped skill. Optionally, leave the audio/kana version of the word on the front, continuing the primary emphasis of kanji word forms.

Fail production cards if you can recall neither written (kanji and spelling) nor spoken forms; grade ‘difficult’ if only one form.

Write out words a few times when you learn them, and for reviews if you feel fuzzy on them. This is NOT to give you pretty handwriting. Of course we mostly type, these days. It’s because motor memory helps you recognize and remember.

I advocate CriteriEN and these add-ons for learning and relearning Anki cards.

*I updated the word formation principle deck to make it easier to learn kanji and vocabulary at the same time.