Kotoeri

ことえり is the Japanese language input software that came with my Mac. I know nothing of the software used for other operating systems, so I stick to detailing what I know about Kotoeri.

To enable Kotoeri, simply visit the System Preference panel. Next click Language and Text, select Input Sources and scroll to find Kotoeri. I suggest checking the boxes for Hiragana, Katakana and Romaji. Finally, save your changes by exiting the System Preference. In the menu bar on the desk top, click on the flag and a menu will extending offering input options. Choose the one you need and you can type in Japanese to your heart's content. The interface takes some adjustments. I highly suggest learning the keyboard short cuts, which make switching from one input source to the next very simple. Personally, I type the majority of my English in under the Romaji input because there neither exists, nor have I been able to create a short cut back to the English input. I have yet to encounter a problem with using this interface to type English.

There are no truly useful directions for Kotoeri. The help menu is of little help and what I have learned was mostly though trial and error. There are a few details that may be useful to know:

• General typing appears in which ever Kana you have chosen.
• Pressing the space bar or any punctuation enables Kotoeri to perform best guess kanji placement. Pressing the space bar once will open a dialog box with additional kanji and transliteration options.
• Under the Kotoeri menu, open Type Using Kana Table at your connivence.

Some of the Kana is not self explanatory in terms of typing any must be located by circuitous methods. For example:

• を　is typed: wo
• ん　is typed: nn
• づ　is typed: du
• つ　can be typed: tsu or tu
• ち　can be typed: chi or ti
• 「 ＆ 」is typed: Shift + [ & Shift + ]
• 待って　double consents are typed: motte

These are only a few examples. More will become apparent as you play with the inputs.

My Flashcards

As mentioned in the previous post, I employ flash cards in two different study methods. The Flashcard Exchange, a digital study community, and hand written index flash cards, have both aided in my memorization of the kanji. In the book, Heisig suggests a method for creating the flashcards. But, due the fact that he waited until his readers were a couple of lessons into the book before providing the details, I had already devised my preferred flash card set up. The following is an example of my flash cards:

The Flashcard Exchange

Flashcards are one of the best study methods, however, all those little pieces of paper can become troublesome. A few months into my use of Rosetta Stone, I decided it would be a good idea to go through and make flash cards for all of the vocabulary. As mentioned in a previous post, I made flashcards for the kana. This time, I thought a digital alternative might be a better option for the kanji which I had no clue how to draw correctly. A quick search in cyberspace led me to the Flashcard Exchange. On the site, a user can create an unlimited number of flashcards without installing any software on their end. I made digital flashcards for almost all of the first 2 levels of Rosetta Stone. They are currently available for anyone to access here along with the first 56 lessons of the Heisig Method made by other users. Search through all 4 pages to access all the content. Recently, I have found these specific cards to be an indispensable resource. Reinforcing Heisig's point that I should practice writing rather than recognizing the Kanji, I allow Flashcard Exchange to provide me with 25 or 50 random key words. I write each corresponding kanji out by hand and check it immediately with a single click. In using the Flash Card Exchange, I hope to lessen my chances of diminishing returns as I continuously learn new kanji each day while my ability to effectively review decreases

I will continue to make flashcards by hand for the Heisig Method because I personally learn best by taking the time to write the information out. Also, I often edit the stories Heisig offers to fit my memory. Nevertheless, The Flashcard Exchange represents a valuable study tool.

Revised Daily Study Routine

Due to the suggestions made by Heisig in Lesson 11 of the book, I have decided to revise my daily study routine. As he states, simply learning to recognize the kanji and remember their meaning is not sufficient. I must also be capable of producing the kanji handwritten with only the key word and no other reference.

1. As soon as I wake, between 6:30 and 7:00 am, I wash my face, brush my teeth and sit at my desk to make the day's flash cards. When they are complete, I run through them, looking at the kanji and reciting the key word and the short story.
2. Around noon, I attempt to draw the kanji by hand with only the key word as a reference. Any kanji done incorrectly, will be reshuffled and reattempted.
3. Around 5:00 pm, I run through the cards once more.
4. Around 8:00pm, I visit the Flash Card Exchange (This website will be detailed in depth in my next blog post). There I test myself with 50 cards from the current week's relevant lessons.

|Interestingly enough, this revised daily study routine is subject to revision|

The Heisig Study Method Is Not A "Crutch"

Short cuts are not the answer. Heisig makes this point clear from the start of Lesson 11. If I study from the key word to the kanji, the reverse will take care of itself. The following are the steps Heisig outlines which should be followed when confronting each new frame along with a few variations, additions and negations of my own:

1. Read the key word and take note of the particular connotation. Consider that most words have multiple meanings and associations. Think on that particular connotation and repeat it (aloud if needed, you may be surprized at how useful hearing your own voice can be to the learning process). Keep an online dictionary readily accessible.
2. Read the story related to the key work (aloud) and allow it to establish a clear picture in your head.
3. Close your eyes. Focus on the images that the story brings to mind, along with the key word and the primitive elements and let go of the controls. Allow your imagination time to do its job. You will know your work is done when you have succeeded in creating a memorable image that is both succinct and complete, faithful to the key word. Remember! At all times the key word should remain fixed. This is important because you do not wish to change a key word to fit your version of the kanji's definition, only to discover in lessons down the road that Heisig has already used that key word in another, more suitable definition. However, it is perfectly acceptable to change the story to fit you. I often find many of Heisig's references out dated and irrelevant in terms of my cultural references. In such cases, I always opt for simplification of all stories, but I always maintain the key word and include a reference to all relevant elements.
4. Open your eyes and repeat the key word and primitive elements, keeping the image in your mind. Clear away the fog and give it all time to stick in your mind.
5. Juxtapose the elements relative to one another in line with your image or the way they normally appear in the characters.
6. Take a pencil and write the characters once, retelling the story as you go.
7. Finally, create the flash card.

The most important thing in this review is not really to see whether you are remembering the characters, but to learn how to locate problems and deal with them. If you are having trouble remembering the locations of elements within a kanji, look for clues in the story. If there are none, revise the story until it works for you. If you are confusing one kanji for another, return to the key word and re-clarify one single connotation for that key word.

One final note, once you start making exceptions for the characters you "know" or "have no trouble with" or "do not need to run through all the steps with", you are headed for frustration that will take a great deal of trouble to dig yourself out of. In other words, if you start using the method as a "crutch" to help you only with the kanji you have trouble with, you will quickly be limping along worse than ever. What Heisig is offering here is not a crutch, but a different way of walking.