Effective ways to learn vast vocabulary and retain it in Longterm Memory

[TaxiAsh]

3 hours ago, NanJingDongLu said:

 

This is like my notebook, but in paper form. I would like to do this...

 

Sorry, which site is this? Is this Anki? 

 

I hope not as I tried before, but couldn't get my head around it! Harder than the actual learning of Chinese itself! 

[NanJingDongLu]

44 minutes ago, TaxiAsh said:

Sorry, which site is this? Is this Anki?

This is the notes app on my phone. There are probably much better ways, but this is the way I did it.

 

As for flashcards I personally use Pleco, but I should probably give Anki a try because I've heard good things. I've also heard it's a lot of work to set up though, which is why I haven't bothered yet. I put a lot of time into getting Pleco working the way I want it...

[TaxiAsh]

1 minute ago, NanJingDongLu said:

This is the notes app on my phone. There are probably much better ways, but this is the way I did it.

 

As for flashcards I personally use Pleco, but I should probably give Anki a try because I've heard good things. I've also heard it's a lot of work to set up though, which is why I haven't bothered yet. I put a lot of time into getting Pleco working the way I want it...

Wow you notes app! I've never tried using it! 

I tend to write things down in notebooks.

I use TOFU for flashcards. I've saved too many words in Pleco, so the flashcards are virtually impossible.

 

Yes, I also hear nothing but praise for Anki, but I just didn't pursue this as it annoyed me how difficult it was, haha. Even watching youtubes, things change all the time so soon out of date!

[TaxiAsh]

7 minutes ago, NanJingDongLu said:

This is the notes app on my phone.

What is also interesting is how people categorise things. 

My main new notebook I have about 15-20 categories.

Similar ones to yours.

 

I wonder if other do this? I'd be interested to see other people categories so I can improve mine. I don't mind listing mine

[NanJingDongLu]

24 minutes ago, TaxiAsh said:

I've saved too many words in Pleco, so the flashcards are virtually impossible.

Have you downloaded the inbuilt HSK lists? You can do SRS flashcards and only select the HSK word lists (for example) without messing with your uncategorised words.

 

22 minutes ago, TaxiAsh said:

I wonder if other do this? I'd be interested to see other people categories so I can improve mine. I don't mind listing mine

Sounds good, but let's not derail this thread. I made a new thread. https://www.chinese-forums.com/forums/topic/61212-those-of-you-who-have-made-categorised-word-lists-what-are-your-categories/

[TaxiAsh]

1 minute ago, NanJingDongLu said:

Have you downloaded the inbuilt HSK lists? You can do SRS flashcards and only select the HSK word lists (for example) without messing with your uncategorised words.

Ok, Sorry. I'm good at derailing threads!

 

(p.s. I use HSK lists in TOFU) 

 

 

[Sreeni]

 

Please find the vocabulary, I learnt. For 5 words it is taking roughly ~ 45 min to collect the meaning and key in Anki.

 

1.毅 yì resolute, decisive, firm

毅力 yìlì will power

 

2. 侵 qīn to invade and plunder, encroach upon入侵 rùqīn to invade

 

3. 丂 kǎo breath or sigh component in chinese characters; 朽 xiǔ rotten, decayed

不朽 bùxiǔ immortal

 

4. 硕 shuò big, large

硕果 shuòguǒ big and ripe fruits; great achievements

 

5. 军 jūn army, military, soldiers: 军 jūn contains 车 “chariot” to indicate that the original meaning “military” has to do with chariots;

辉 huī brightness, splendour

皇 huáng royal, imperial

煌 huáng bright, brilliant

辉煌 huīhuáng brilliant, splendid, glorious

 

6. 告诫 gàojiè warn

诫 jiè warn, warning, admonish

 

7. 荒废 huāngfèi to lie waste, no longer cultivated,  get out of practice 

荒 huāng uncultivated land

废 fèi give up, abandon, terminate, discard

 

8. 勤能补拙 qínnéngbǔzhuō diligence cures clumsiness

勤 qín diligent, industrious, hardworking, attentive

拙 zhuō dull, clumsy, inelegant

 

9. 一帆风顺 yīfān-fēngshùn smooth sailing

帆 fān sail, boat

顺 shùn obey, submit to, go along with

 

10. 荆棘 jīngjí thistles and thorns

荆 jīng thorns, brambles

刑 xíng punishment, penalty, law

棘 jí jujube tree, thorns, brambles

 

11. 泥泞 nínìng mud, muddy, mire

泥 ní mud

泞 nìng mud, mire

宁 níng calm, peaceful, serene, healthy

 

12. 沼泽 zhǎozé marsh, swamp, bog

沼 zhǎo water pond, lake, fishpond

泽 zé pool, pond

 

13. 逆境 nìjìng adverse or unfavourable circumstances 

逆 nì disobey, rebel, contrary, opposite 

屰 nì disobedient 

境 jìng border; boundary

 

14.厄运 èyùn misfortune

厄 è adversity, difficulty, distress

运 yùn run, simplified form of luck, fortune, ship, transport

 

15. 打垮 dǎ//kuǎ to defeat, to strike down

垮 kuǎ collapse, fall, breakdown

夸 kuā luxurious, handsome 

亏 kuī lose, fail

 

16. 不屈不挠  bùqū-bùnáo unyielding

屈 bend, flex, bent, crooked, crouch

挠 náo scratch, disturb, bother, submit

 

17. 挑战 tiǎo//zhàn  challenge 

挑 tiǎo a load carried on the shoulders, to carry

战 zhàn war, fight, battle

 

18. 祖逖 zu tì (266 - 321) a senior general in the Jin Dynasty

 

19. 爱迪生 àidíshēng Thomas Alva Edison

 

20.韩愈 Hán Yù (768-824), Tang dynasty essayist and poet, advocate of the classical writing 古文运动 and neoclassical 复古 movements

 

21. 锋 fēng sharp point or cutting edge (of a knife, sword etc.)

夆 féng to go against, get into conflict with; resist

 

22.磨砺 mólì to sharpen on grindstone; to improve oneself by practise ; go through the mill; steel (or harden, discipline) oneself

磨 mó rub, grind, polish

砺 lì grind, sandstone

厉 lì whet stone, grind, sharpen, wet; strict, severe

 

23. 梅花 méihuā plum blossom (or flower)

梅 méi plums, prunes

 

24. 羚羊 língyáng antelope, gazelle

 

25. 繁殖 fánzhí to breed

繁 fán complicated, complex, difficult

殖 zhí breed, multiply

直 zhí straight, vertical

 

 

[NanJingDongLu]

All those words are bad choices for a ~HSK 3 student. You should get a different book.

 

If you saw a word list for english language learners, would you recommend they include the words immortal, out of practice, and smooth sailing?

 

Time spent learning this list is time you're not spending learning words like: language, forever, haircut, romance, whether or not, kilometre, understand, queue, for example, mistake, quantity, spoon, traffic, method, normally, misunderstand, roughly/close enough, children, kitchen, answer, polite.

 

What's more useful as a beginner?: "The military punishment for lacking the willpower to warn the royal chariot is to be banished to the uncultivated land of mud and thistles"

Or: "I wanted to go for a haircut 5km away but, because of the traffic and a misunderstanding with the taxi driver, I wasn't sure whether or not I would arrive on time." & "The children in the kitchen are very polite. Normally they will queue up to get their food and spoons."

[Sreeni]

5 hours ago, NanJingDongLu said:

All those words are bad choices for a ~HSK 3 student. You should get a different book.

 

That is Secondary School first semester text book, which I must use as a source. I am learning to help my kid. My goal is to learn all the vocabulary from the textbook and understand all comprehensions from examination test papers. Examinations use those words as base. from this lesson first 17 words you must learn and able to apply.

 

Composition wise my kid is doing well, so let it continue. Comprehension is the issue. if some vocabulary not known full marks were in danger some time.

 

most of the users in this forum here are preparing for HSK, but that is not goal for me.But if you feel some vocabulary is good provide 50 most suitable words from HSK, I will practise it 

[NanJingDongLu]

I'm sorry. I have no experience of trying to learn advanced vocabulary to help someone pass secondary school exams in a language I don't know basic & intermediate grammar for. I don't think I have any advice for you. I sympathise with your situation and wish you the best of luck. You seem dedicated so I'm sure you'll work it out.

[Sreeni]

12 hours ago, NanJingDongLu said:

You seem dedicated so I'm sure you'll work it out.

 

I had time to focus on chinese until now, but need to focus on other important things from now. @mungouk @OneEye @realmayo @Jan Finster @imron @somethingfunny @Woodford @Moshen @Apollys @roddy and few others posts have already inspired me and I think I can try 10 new words or more only on weekends.

[imron]

If you can find the time, 15 minutes a day will probably be better for your Chinese than 2 hours on the weekend, even though the latter involves more study time per time. 

[TaxiAsh]

On 5/11/2021 at 2:36 PM, Sreeni said:

That is Secondary School first semester text book, which I must use as a source. I am learning to help my kid. My goal is to learn all the vocabulary from the textbook and understand all comprehensions from examination test papers.

Sreeni, 

 

I saw your post, and wondered if you ever seen this youtube teacher I watch. This is my next lesson,

https://youtu.be/OZ4uY3g6MWw

 

He does all the grammar from all the HSK textbooks. 

He's not a big youtuber, I think because you have to get used to him and the style of lessons, rather than him not being good.

 

Once you get used to his style, it's almost like he's teaching you personally. One of the best channels I found for my grammar and HSK learning. 

 

It also helps vocab, as your kid may have seen flashcards, but these are the vocab in use. 

[suMMit]

12 hours ago, TaxiAsh said:

Once you get used to his style, it's almost like he's teaching you personally. One of the best channels I found for my grammar and HSK learning. 

 

I like the way he speaks (Chinese). However, I personally found all the English way too annoying. Seems like Hsk 4 shouldn't need all this English explanation of vocab. Other than that  it does seem like a nice series.

 

On 5/11/2021 at 9:36 PM, Sreeni said:

That is Secondary School first semester text book, which I must use as a source. I am learning to help my kid. My goal is to learn all the vocabulary from the textbook and understand all comprehensions from examination test papers. Examinations use those words as base. from this lesson first 17 words you must learn and able to apply.

 

Composition wise my kid is doing well, so let it continue. Comprehension is the issue. if some vocabulary not known full marks were in danger some time.

Have you ever considered hiring a Chinese native to tutor your kid?

 

On 5/11/2021 at 9:36 PM, Sreeni said:

most of the users in this forum here are preparing for HSK, but that is not goal for me.But if you feel some vocabulary is good provide 50 most suitable words from HSK, I will practise it 

I could give a toss about Hsk. I study Chinese to use it with family, friends, and out in the street in China. I agree what some others have said, you learning that list of words is pretty pointless. 

[Sreeni]

18 hours ago, imron said:

If you can find the time, 15 minutes a day will probably be better for your Chinese than 2 hours on the weekend, even though the latter involves more study time per time. 

 

Very valuable advise. next one month is very tight, but will spend 15 min. Thanks. After a month can spend 1 hr.

 

18 hours ago, TaxiAsh said:

saw your post, and wondered if you ever seen this youtube teacher I watch. This is my next lesson,

https://youtu.be/OZ4uY3g6MWw

 

Very good video. it is for HSK. Still very good for Comprehension. I subscribed will definitely watch.

 

5 hours ago, suMMit said:

Have you ever considered hiring a Chinese native to tutor your kid?

 

Yes, in Singapore until 2020-Apr. the tuition teachers were teaching comprehension techniques like how to answer, they will explain, but no focus on retaining the vocabulary (at that time was not using Anki).

 

5 hours ago, suMMit said:

I could give a toss about Hsk. I study Chinese to use it with family, friends, and out in the street in China. I agree what some others have said, you learning that list of words is pretty pointless. 

 

Can you check his lesson from Singapore Secondary 3 (class/std 9) Chinese textbook.  I gave below part of the lesson. No choice must learn and retain the above vocabulary. The curriculum wants him to remember that vocabulary. Can you compare below vocabulary difficulty  with HSK Vocabulary? 

 

第七课走上美好的人生路

 

每个人都有自己的人生之路，只有把握时间，勤于奋斗，不畏艰辛的人才能走好这条路。要走好人生之路，首先要懂得珍惜时间。中国古代有一个人，名叫祖邀。他年轻时就立志要报效祖国。为了早日练好本领，他和朋友约定，每天一听到鸡叫声，就立刻起床练剑。他分秒必争，终于凭着顽强的毅力练就一身好本领。后来，在外敌入侵时，他挺身而出，保家卫国，立下不朽的功劳。同样，美国发明家爱迪生之所以能够取得累累硕果，获得辉煌的成就，原因之一就在于他懂得珍惜时间。在79岁生日时，他说：“按常人的工作量计算，我已经135 岁了。

 

Google Translation:

 

Lesson 7 Embarking on a beautiful life path.

 

Everyone has their own path in life, and only those who grasp the time, work hard, and are not afraid of hardships can take this path well.  To follow the road of life, we must first know how to cherish time.  There was a man in ancient China named Zu Wan.  When he was young, he was determined to serve his motherland.  In order to practice his skills as soon as possible, he and his friend agreed that he would get up and practice swords as soon as he heard the cock cry every day.  He counts against every second, and finally develops a good skill with tenacious perseverance.  Later, when foreign enemies invaded, he stepped forward to defend his home and the country and made immortal contributions.  Similarly, one of the reasons why the American inventor Edison was able to achieve fruitful and brilliant achievements was that he knew how to cherish time.  On his 79th birthday, he said: "According to the workload of ordinary people, I am 135 years old. 

 

 

[Apollys]

On 5/9/2021 at 7:59 AM, Sreeni said:

Coming back to evidence, can you try to remember the following colors in order. and confirm, how you remember?

 

• Green
• Orange
• Purple
• Blue
• White
• Black
• Pink
• Brown
• Yellow

 

I did it with a picture of a sunset.

 

Not sure the context of the question but in case it helps, there you go.  Took about 30 seconds from when I read your post to paint the picture in my mind, and then I waited a little bit and recalled it correctly.

[Sreeni]

7 hours ago, Apollys said:

I did it with a picture of a sunset.

 

How you related sunset picture to remember the above 9 colors in order ? I appreciate very much your skill. Could you elaborate your method the steps, it will help all of us to improve our thinking process?

 

[Apollys]

I start by looking at the green grass in front of me, then look up to the horizon where the sun is setting in orange hues.  Then I look further up, where the sky is more normal looking - blue.  But as the sky goes from orange to blue, there is another color in between: purple (note purple is between orange and blue on the color wheel).  Then I see some clouds in the sky: white.  From here, I simply remember white is paired with its opposite, black (especially easy to remember as sunset is a transition from day to night, white to black).  Black signifies a transition forward in time, we are later in the sunset and the sky is now dominated by those deep beautiful pinks you see late in the sunset.  This thought morphs the picture in my mind into a sunset I've seen thousands of times as a child, driving home in the evening with the deep orange and pink sunlight shining on the rolling hills covered with dried grass all around me: brown (color of the hills).  And finally, the sun being the central icon to our imagery, we end with the color yellow.

[Sreeni]

@Apollys good. Creating your own story is always better.

 

If any one can not, then go with whatever story given in the link, and practice to create on your own. 

• The story given in the link is like this…

Mommy and Cory went out to play in the greengrass. All of a sudden, they saw a huge orange and beside it was a purple eggplant. Both of these foods together looked like the number ten. Then we looked in the sky and saw a Blue Jay bird flying in the sky. The Blue Jay landed on a large white flower and beside it came a black fly. Then we heard a pink pig running and he happened to be hungry. The pig found and then ate a brown chocolate bar. Afterwards he became thirsty and drank yellow lemonade.

[imron]

These techniques are a great way to remember random sequences of unconnected things, but a poor way to learn a language because a language is not a random sequence of unconnected things.

 

The way I memorised the colours is a big green frog ate an orange and then in turn got eaten by barney the purple dinosaur who got eaten by a blue whale that got squashed by a giant white swan, which got in a fight with a black swan which swam past pink flamingos standing in brown water that led up to yellow sand.

 

Doing this works great and I'll probably be able to remember this sequence of colours for a long time - however if I want to retrieve this information I need to walk through my story - I can't just recite these colours in order without walking the story.

 

This is different from the needs of language usage where you just want instant ability to use words or language without needing to walk through mental steps in your mind before being able to use the words you want.  Language already encodes meaning, adding layers to that ends up slowing things down.