ok, so i started about 10 days ago. The 1st few days went great. But now I read a chapter or two, writing the kanji as i go along, and when i test new cards added, im down to 14% remembered or less for a new chapter. i have forgotten 200 out of the 475 cards i have so far. Im having real trouble distinguishing between key words that are conceptually similar, and with making stories from such obscure things. Even if i remember a keyword, i don't remember the story to go with it cos half the time the stories seem pretty illogical to me (i.e. the same story could equally describe another keyword).

But, when i study sentences, i find it really easy to remember Kanji. I know that i dont know them well enough to write them, and possibly without a context, i would get some of the harder ones wrong. But when im reading in context, i rarely have trouble. To me, the sound of the word comes with the understanding it seems, once i know at least one reading of a kanji, and have used heard it used in context, i naturally remember it.

um... so what do you think, should i give up heisig and just learn them in context? or will i hit problems by doing that? and how can i improve how many im remembering without writing them all out a million times?

let the srs do its job

most people i think find there retention drops on new chapters learnt. and after a few reviews the retention goes back up. the problem i think with learning them as a bunch is that they do kinda of meld together as they use similar primitives.
but after a few reviews you will start to get more and more right.

Don't be discouraged. Just keep at it, don't worry about retention rates. they will naturally sort themselves out. the R stands for repetition after all, your not expected to get them all right first time.

I know i and probably many others have had days when it seems you get everything wrong and you want to cry it off. but just fight through it. trust me. it will be worth it in the end.

My columns sit at 0 , 17 , 89 , 1936 and i had many a mental block and stop start doing it, but here i am. finished and working on sentances.

keep at it mon amigo. all it takes is for that one day you get 100% retention and you'll feel like your king of the world

It sounds like you need to rethink the way you make up your stories. Try to create a vivid image the first time around, and also make sure to create a strong connection to the keyword itself. As for keywords similar in meaning, I have found that it sometimes works to play around with the language a bit, using puns or such.

Also, you may want to start out at a slower pace until you get the hang of the method. 475 cards in 10 days sounds reasonable toward the end of the journey, but when you're just getting started, I would suggest 10-20 kanji per day.

Give Heisig a few more weeks. If you simply can't get it to work, try looking into the Movie Method och such. I don't know a whole lot about it, myself, but several forum members seem to have used it with good results.

Edit: As for learning kanji as you come across them in sentences, it could certainly work, but as you say, you may get the "hard" ones wrong. With RtK or a similar method, there are no hard kanji. Definitely use something to ease memorization, even if it turns out to be something else than Heisig's method.

It's a bit unusual. Maybe you're not spending enough time on each story, visualizing it? Try increasing the time spent on each one until you increase your retention rate to 80%+. Reviewing should then get you higher from there.

I have/had similar problems with not connecting story and keyword, but that's the method, not your fault. You have to come up with a solution like: think of a story that connects better or just repeat it over and over until you do...? Or find another keyword.

IceCream Wrote:thanks guys... you've really cheered me up!

i had totally forgotten that the srs was part of the learning, and not just a test. I'l take it easier & just try to catch up a bit now, just carry on til it (eventually) sticks .
and if it never does, well, i'l come across the kanji at some point in context and remember it after that.　even 14% is better than 0!

thanksthanks 頑張りよ。

I hit a wall around 700 that sounds very similar to what you are getting now. But now I'm hitting that wall again at 1350 You can do it! Keep trying different ways to make your story stick the first time in your head when you visualize it and eventually you'll find a few that seem to work OK.

I noticed for myself I always had a "sophomore slump". But then the SRS does sort it out as they say. I also got snagged by confusing key words. One thing to do is change the stories, or come up with a multiple stories/mental strategies when problem kanji persist. Using other peoples stories from here can be good. If you review here, when you go to clear the fail pile, you can look down the line at all the stories. Try 'em out. Even try two or three at once, they're quick, easy and free! If somethings not working after a few reviews, go in a new direction again. Something will stick.

I "finished" a few weeks ago, but I'm still adapting new strategies to fix certain kanji. But in the long run the SRS is really cool, you just can't quite get a great feel for it early on. It evolves over time. Wahtever you do, if you stick with it, things will certainly improve, and you WILL find a rhythm!