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Kanji – this word is enough to put even the most diligent students off studying for quite some time! It is true, these pictographs are a challenge and take years to master.
As some of you may know, Japanese has three distinct writing systems: hiragana, katakana and kanji. It is virtually impossible to study the language without these. Hiragana and katakana are phonetic and, though tricky, can be mastered in a relatively short period of time; kanji, on the other hand, is a different story altogether.There is a great number of ways of learning these characters. Some are more effective than others; some may be more suited to your way of learning than others. Today we would like to introduce you to a fantastic resource of learning kanji: Wani Kani.
As some of you may know, Japanese has three distinct writing systems: hiragana, katakana and kanji. It is virtually impossible to study the language without these. Hiragana and katakana are phonetic and, though tricky, can be mastered in a relatively short period of time; kanji, on the other hand, is a different story altogether.There is a great number of ways of learning these characters. Some are more effective than others; some may be more suited to your way of learning than others. Today we would like to introduce you to a fantastic resource of learning kanji: Wani Kani.
It is a brainchild of a Japanese language and culture web site called Tofugu. What makes Wani Kani different from other SRS (Spaced Repetition System) resources, is that it provides you with helpful and, most of the time, very silly mnemonics to help you create a story of the kanji character and connect to it on an emotional level. The app/web site also forces you to write your answers as well in both Japanese and English (available in English only at the moment) which is a more involved way of recalling the meaning and reading of the character.
The list of kanji characters in Wani Kani is vast and will teach you most characters needed in your everyday life in Japan. There are 60 levels to complete so by gamifying your progress it is way easier to keep motivated! It may take years to complete, but it is a journey worth taking, and Wani Kani is an excellent guide to have in your arsenal of learning materials!
Visit them here: Wani Kani
