the proven system to learn foreign language vocabulary and ...words+stick... · the proven system...

The proven system to learn foreign language vocabulary and not forget it

IWillTeachYouALanguage.com

O L L Y R I C H A R D S

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distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including

photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods,

without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the

case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other

noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

About . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

CHAPTER 1

Key Success Principles for Learning Vocabulary with Spaced Repetition . . . . 13

SECTION 1

What is Spaced Repetition? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

SECTION 2

Getting Started with Spaced Repetition Flashcards . . . . . . . 18

SECTION 3

Integrating Flashcards into Your Language Learning . . . . . 22

SECTION 4

Working with Vocabulary in Full Sentences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

SECTION 5

How to Study with Flashcards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

SECTION 6

Consistency – The Key to Success. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

SECTION 7

Making Vocabulary Accessible in Conversations . . . . . . . . 40

SECTION 8

Q&A – Studying with Flashcards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

CHAPTER 2

Quickstart Guide: Setting Up Your Flashcards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53

SECTION 1

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

SECTION 2

Which Software is Best? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

SECTION 3

Step-By-Step: Setting Up Your Flashcards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

SECTION 4

Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Language Learning Foundations Course . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Contents

About . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

CHAPTER 1

Key Success Principles for Learning Vocabulary with Spaced Repetition . . . . 13

SECTION 1

What is Spaced Repetition? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

SECTION 2

Getting Started with Spaced Repetition Flashcards . . . . . . . 18

SECTION 3

Integrating Flashcards into Your Language Learning . . . . . 22

SECTION 4

Working with Vocabulary in Full Sentences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

SECTION 5

How to Study with Flashcards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

SECTION 6

Consistency – The Key to Success. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

SECTION 7

Making Vocabulary Accessible in Conversations . . . . . . . . 40

SECTION 8

Q&A – Studying with Flashcards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

CHAPTER 2

Quickstart Guide: Setting Up Your Flashcards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53

SECTION 1

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

SECTION 2

Which Software is Best? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

SECTION 3

Step-By-Step: Setting Up Your Flashcards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

SECTION 4

Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Language Learning Foundations Course . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Contents

76 OLLY RICHARDSMAKE WORDS STICK

Hi, I’m Olly Richards and I’m the creator of the I Will Teach You A Lan-

guage blog.

When I was 19, I went to live in Paris. There was one small problem,

though. I didn’t speak French. Not one to back down from a challenge,

I decided to learn it. Within six months, and after a lot of trial and error,

and ups and downs, I was conversationally fluent.

I had caught the language bug!

I went back to London, and continued to learn new languages. Since

then, I’ve become fluent in seven of them, including some of the world’s

hardest languages, like Japanese, Cantonese and Arabic.

One day, I decided to start writing about how I do it, and started a blog.

These days, I continue to learn new languages and spend my time

producing the highest-quality educational material out there to help

others replicate my success.

With hundreds of students, and more than a smattering of success

stories, I’ve discovered that anybody can become fluent in another

language with the right guidance.

To find out more about me, why not visit the blog, or check out this

interview with me, filmed in Cairo, Egypt!

Best wishes,

Anybody can become fluent in another language with the right guidance.

Hi, I’m Olly Richards and I’m the creator of the I Will Teach You A Lan-

guage blog.

When I was 19, I went to live in Paris. There was one small problem,

though. I didn’t speak French. Not one to back down from a challenge,

I decided to learn it. Within six months, and after a lot of trial and error,

and ups and downs, I was conversationally fluent.

I had caught the language bug!

I went back to London, and continued to learn new languages. Since

then, I’ve become fluent in seven of them, including some of the world’s

hardest languages, like Japanese, Cantonese and Arabic.

One day, I decided to start writing about how I do it, and started a blog.

These days, I continue to learn new languages and spend my time

producing the highest-quality educational material out there to help

others replicate my success.

With hundreds of students, and more than a smattering of success

stories, I’ve discovered that anybody can become fluent in another

language with the right guidance.

To find out more about me, why not visit the blog, or check out this

interview with me, filmed in Cairo, Egypt!

Best wishes,

Anybody can become fluent in another language with the right guidance.

Of all the challenges facing you in a new language, learning enough vocabulary is probably the biggest of them all.

It’s disarmingly simple, when you think about it.

Whatever else you do, whatever else you learn, however else you study,

often your ability to understand someone, or to make yourself under-

stood, depends on one simple thing: Do you know enough words?

For me, there are two important implications of this. Firstly, learning

new vocabulary must be your number one priority when taking on a

new language. Secondly, you need an efficient system for learning

that vocabulary.

You often hear people talking about the importance of enjoying the

learning process and having fun with the language, and this is abso-

lutely true. However, it’s also true that a certain amount of heavy lifting

is needed if you’re to get anywhere with the language.

Given that we’re all busy people, often with limited time for language

learning in-amongst other commitments, any heavy lifting that we

decide to do has to count!

This guide is all about how to do that heavy lifting. It’s about how to learn foreign language vocabulary quickly, and not forget it.

If you’re looking for an easy-going, relaxing, pencil-and-paper method

for learning vocabulary, look elsewhere. The flashcard system that I

describe in this guide does not claim to be particularly fun. However,

it does claim to be effective.

Introduction

Learning vocabulary is the most important element of making quick progress in a new language

In order to do this you need an efficient system for learning

Flashcards with spaced repetition are

one such system and

are extremely effective

for learning vocabulary

Of all the challenges facing you in a new language, learning enough vocabulary is probably the biggest of them all.

It’s disarmingly simple, when you think about it.

Whatever else you do, whatever else you learn, however else you study,

often your ability to understand someone, or to make yourself under-

stood, depends on one simple thing: Do you know enough words?

For me, there are two important implications of this. Firstly, learning

new vocabulary must be your number one priority when taking on a

new language. Secondly, you need an efficient system for learning

that vocabulary.

You often hear people talking about the importance of enjoying the

learning process and having fun with the language, and this is abso-

lutely true. However, it’s also true that a certain amount of heavy lifting

is needed if you’re to get anywhere with the language.

Given that we’re all busy people, often with limited time for language

learning in-amongst other commitments, any heavy lifting that we

decide to do has to count!

This guide is all about how to do that heavy lifting. It’s about how to learn foreign language vocabulary quickly, and not forget it.

If you’re looking for an easy-going, relaxing, pencil-and-paper method

for learning vocabulary, look elsewhere. The flashcard system that I

describe in this guide does not claim to be particularly fun. However,

it does claim to be effective.

Introduction

Learning vocabulary is the most important element of making quick progress in a new language

In order to do this you need an efficient system for learning

Flashcards with spaced repetition are

one such system and

are extremely effective

for learning vocabulary

By the end of the guide you will know exactly how to use spaced

repetition technology to memorise vocabulary, how to make sure you

don’t forget it, and even better, how you can learn in such a way that

you have all that vocabulary ready on the tip of your tongue when you

come to speak with someone.

It’s a bold promise. But after learning seven foreign languages myself,

it’s the most effective and efficient way I know to grow a solid vo-

cabulary core quickly, and to start speaking fluently in months rather

than years.

It is nonetheless true that some

people do find flashcards bor-

ing and dislike using technology.

Rather than simply saying: This

is not for you, however, I want-

ed to offer a solution to people

who feel this way, such that they

can still benefit from the huge

advantages of spaced repetition

technology.

If you fall into this category, you

should pay particular attention

to the advice in Section 5 and

Section 6. Although the basic

study methodology will be the

same, by being highly selective

about the vocabulary you attempt to memorise you can drastically

reduce the amount of study time required every day.

By keeping your study time to bite-sized chunks, you can benefit from

spaced repetition to help you learn the most important vocabulary of

all quickly, whilst still leaving you time to study in other ways and do

the things you enjoy the most.

Lastly, this guide has been kept

deliberately short.

I’m a huge proponent of the

80/20 rule, which states that

80% of your gains will come

from only 20% of the things

you do. Learning vocabulary with

flashcards is no exception.

I could have easily included five

times the amount information,

such as more advanced learning

strategies, or tips on adjusting

flashcard settings, for example,

that, whilst very interesting, are not particularly important in the grand

scheme of things.

80% of your success in using

this method for learning vocab-

ulary will come from following a

few simple principles properly,

and it’s these principles that are

covered in this guide.

Good luck, and if you have any

questions or feedback for me,

you can reach me any time at

olly@iwillteachyoualanguage.

By being highly selective about the vocabulary you attempt to memorise you can drastically reduce the amount of study time required every day.

80% of your success in using this method for learning vocabulary will come from following a few simple principles properly, and it’s these principles that are covered in this guide.

It’s the most effective and efficient way I know to grow a solid vocabulary core quickly, and to start speaking fluently in months rather than years.

By the end of the guide you will know exactly how to use spaced

repetition technology to memorise vocabulary, how to make sure you

don’t forget it, and even better, how you can learn in such a way that

you have all that vocabulary ready on the tip of your tongue when you

come to speak with someone.

It’s a bold promise. But after learning seven foreign languages myself,

it’s the most effective and efficient way I know to grow a solid vo-

cabulary core quickly, and to start speaking fluently in months rather

than years.

It is nonetheless true that some

people do find flashcards bor-

ing and dislike using technology.

Rather than simply saying: This

is not for you, however, I want-

ed to offer a solution to people

who feel this way, such that they

can still benefit from the huge

advantages of spaced repetition

technology.

If you fall into this category, you

should pay particular attention

to the advice in Section 5 and

Section 6. Although the basic

study methodology will be the

same, by being highly selective

about the vocabulary you attempt to memorise you can drastically

reduce the amount of study time required every day.

By keeping your study time to bite-sized chunks, you can benefit from

spaced repetition to help you learn the most important vocabulary of

all quickly, whilst still leaving you time to study in other ways and do

the things you enjoy the most.

Lastly, this guide has been kept

deliberately short.

I’m a huge proponent of the

80/20 rule, which states that

80% of your gains will come

from only 20% of the things

you do. Learning vocabulary with

flashcards is no exception.

I could have easily included five

times the amount information,

such as more advanced learning

strategies, or tips on adjusting

flashcard settings, for example,

that, whilst very interesting, are not particularly important in the grand

scheme of things.

80% of your success in using

this method for learning vocab-

ulary will come from following a

few simple principles properly,

and it’s these principles that are

covered in this guide.

Good luck, and if you have any

questions or feedback for me,

you can reach me any time at

olly@iwillteachyoualanguage.

By being highly selective about the vocabulary you attempt to memorise you can drastically reduce the amount of study time required every day.

80% of your success in using this method for learning vocabulary will come from following a few simple principles properly, and it’s these principles that are covered in this guide.

It’s the most effective and efficient way I know to grow a solid vocabulary core quickly, and to start speaking fluently in months rather than years.

CHAPTER 1

Key Success Principles for Learning Vocabulary with Spaced Repetition

Spaced repetition is a system for learning information based on our understanding of human memory.

CHAPTER 1

Key Success Principles for Learning Vocabulary with Spaced Repetition

Spaced repetition is a system for learning information based on our understanding of human memory.

SECTION 1

What is Spaced Repetition?Spaced repetition is a system for learning information based on our understanding of human memory. It is often used by flashcard software, to make the learning process more efficient.

Let’s imagine you’re trying to learn ten new words. After inputting them

into your flashcard software, you will indicate how well you know each

At the beginning, each new word will be shown to you quite often, so

that you have plenty of opportunities to memorise it. As you study,

you will naturally start to remember two or three of the words, and you

will tell the software which ones. Those two or three words will then be

shown to you less frequently.

The better you know the words, the less frequently you will see them,

until it gets to the point where you might only see some words every

6 months in order to keep them ticking over.

Certain words, however, you will find harder to learn. You will keep telling

the software that you don’t know them yet, and you will see them more

often – as much as every five minutes!

This is controlled by the spaced repetition algorithm of the software,

which knows, based on the forgetting curve how often you need to see

a word for it to enter into the long-term memory.

This system, then, is similar to the paper flashcards that you might

have used in school to remember geography facts or dates in history.

The big difference, though, is efficiency.

Spaced repetition is a system for learning information based on our understanding of human memory

By studying in this way, you spend more of your time studying vocabulary that you don’t yet know well, thereby making learning extremely efficient

You input new vocabulary into flashcard software and indicate how well you know each word

Vocabulary is then shown

to you at strategic intervals

(unknown words more

often) so it enters quickly

into your long-term memory

and you don’t forget it

SECTION 1

What is Spaced Repetition?Spaced repetition is a system for learning information based on our understanding of human memory. It is often used by flashcard software, to make the learning process more efficient.

Let’s imagine you’re trying to learn ten new words. After inputting them

into your flashcard software, you will indicate how well you know each

At the beginning, each new word will be shown to you quite often, so

that you have plenty of opportunities to memorise it. As you study,

you will naturally start to remember two or three of the words, and you

will tell the software which ones. Those two or three words will then be

shown to you less frequently.

The better you know the words, the less frequently you will see them,

until it gets to the point where you might only see some words every

6 months in order to keep them ticking over.

Certain words, however, you will find harder to learn. You will keep telling

the software that you don’t know them yet, and you will see them more

often – as much as every five minutes!

This is controlled by the spaced repetition algorithm of the software,

which knows, based on the forgetting curve how often you need to see

a word for it to enter into the long-term memory.

This system, then, is similar to the paper flashcards that you might

have used in school to remember geography facts or dates in history.

The big difference, though, is efficiency.

Spaced repetition is a system for learning information based on our understanding of human memory

By studying in this way, you spend more of your time studying vocabulary that you don’t yet know well, thereby making learning extremely efficient

You input new vocabulary into flashcard software and indicate how well you know each word

Vocabulary is then shown

to you at strategic intervals

(unknown words more

often) so it enters quickly

into your long-term memory

and you don’t forget it

With paper flashcards, there is no system. You waste huge amounts of

time reviewing cards that you already know, at the expense of unknown

cards that you really need to see more often.

With spaced repetition, however, you automatically spend more time

on things you don’t know, and less time on things you do. The result,

when applied to learning foreign languages, is that you can learn new

vocabulary many times quicker, by a two-step process:

1. Seeing unknown vocabulary more often, so you learn it

quicker

2. Reviewing vocabulary that you know better at strategic

intervals so that they enter quickly into your long-term

memory

As long as you keep using this

system to study over the long

term, all vocabulary (howev-

er well you know it) will be

brought back automatically

for you to revise at key inter-

vals, meaning that you never

forget it.

It’s no wonder, then, that

spaced repetition has become

such a huge part of learning

foreign languages. It’s an ex-

ample of a situation in which

technology has been a genuine gamechanger, and made the dream

of become fluent that much easier.

By this point, hopefully you are sold on the potential of spaced rep-

etition as a language learning tool. If you’re like me and you want to

dive right in, you might like to go straight to Chapter 2, download my

recommended software, play around a bit, and then come back to the

rest of this chapter later.

If it’s your first time using flashcards, familiarising yourself with the

software first might help you make more sense of what’s to come.

Otherwise, we’re going to get stuck into the nuts and bolts of exactly

how to use spaced repetition flashcards to learn foreign language

vocabulary effectively.

With spaced repetition you automatically spend more time on things you don’t know, and less time on things you do.

With paper flashcards, there is no system. You waste huge amounts of

time reviewing cards that you already know, at the expense of unknown

cards that you really need to see more often.

With spaced repetition, however, you automatically spend more time

on things you don’t know, and less time on things you do. The result,

when applied to learning foreign languages, is that you can learn new

vocabulary many times quicker, by a two-step process:

1. Seeing unknown vocabulary more often, so you learn it

quicker

2. Reviewing vocabulary that you know better at strategic

intervals so that they enter quickly into your long-term

memory

As long as you keep using this

system to study over the long

term, all vocabulary (howev-

er well you know it) will be

brought back automatically

for you to revise at key inter-

vals, meaning that you never

forget it.

It’s no wonder, then, that

spaced repetition has become

such a huge part of learning

foreign languages. It’s an ex-

ample of a situation in which

technology has been a genuine gamechanger, and made the dream

of become fluent that much easier.

By this point, hopefully you are sold on the potential of spaced rep-

etition as a language learning tool. If you’re like me and you want to

dive right in, you might like to go straight to Chapter 2, download my

recommended software, play around a bit, and then come back to the

rest of this chapter later.

If it’s your first time using flashcards, familiarising yourself with the

software first might help you make more sense of what’s to come.

Otherwise, we’re going to get stuck into the nuts and bolts of exactly

how to use spaced repetition flashcards to learn foreign language

vocabulary effectively.

With spaced repetition you automatically spend more time on things you don’t know, and less time on things you do.

Making flashcards is easy – simply write word or phrase in the target language on one side, and the equivalent in English (or your mother tongue) on the other

You should use your flashcard software as the one place where you store all your new vocabulary – no more old notebooks! By doing this, the software can keep track of all your new vocabulary, make sure you keep reviewing it, and that none of it gets forgotten about

SECTION 2

Getting Started with Spaced Repetition Flashcards

In order for any system of learning vocabulary to work, it can’t involve too much extra work. This is especially true of a system involving technology. After all, technology is supposed to make our lives easier, not more complicated!

Now, the main principle in any

system of learning vocabulary

is this: You need a place to

store new words and phrases.

In order to memorise new vo-

cabulary, you need to go back

to it over and over again. If all

the new vocabulary you want

to learn is scattered around in

different places (notebooks,

random bits of paper, Skype

chat boxes, etc), you’ve built

your foundation on chaos.

What you’re going to do

from this point on is simplify

everything.

Here’s what the inside of my

flashcard app looks like, and

what you’re looking at are dif-

ferent decks of cards.

Inside each deck are a lot of cards. What they represent is all of the

vocabulary that I’ve set about learning over the last year. (Naturally,

Making flashcards is easy – simply write word or phrase in the target language on one side, and the equivalent in English (or your mother tongue) on the other

You should use your flashcard software as the one place where you store all your new vocabulary – no more old notebooks! By doing this, the software can keep track of all your new vocabulary, make sure you keep reviewing it, and that none of it gets forgotten about

SECTION 2

Getting Started with Spaced Repetition Flashcards

In order for any system of learning vocabulary to work, it can’t involve too much extra work. This is especially true of a system involving technology. After all, technology is supposed to make our lives easier, not more complicated!

Now, the main principle in any

system of learning vocabulary

is this: You need a place to

store new words and phrases.

In order to memorise new vo-

cabulary, you need to go back

to it over and over again. If all

the new vocabulary you want

to learn is scattered around in

different places (notebooks,

random bits of paper, Skype

chat boxes, etc), you’ve built

your foundation on chaos.

What you’re going to do

from this point on is simplify

everything.

Here’s what the inside of my

flashcard app looks like, and

what you’re looking at are dif-

ferent decks of cards.

Inside each deck are a lot of cards. What they represent is all of the

vocabulary that I’ve set about learning over the last year. (Naturally,

This flashcard app becomes my one place for organising all new vo-

cabulary that I have any intention of trying to learn.

It’s all in one place.

No more scraps of paper and random notes on my iPhone... I have

one centralised place where all my new vocabulary goes. As a result,

two things happen:

1. I can use the search function to immediately find any word

I’m trying to remember

2. All my new words and phrases take their turn in the spaced

repetition system, so the software does all the work of

deciding when I need to review them next

Can you see how, by organising your learning in this way, the task of

actually learning vocabulary is reduced to one simple job?

Simply open the app and review your flashcards each day.

You don’t need to worry about which method you’re using, you don’t

need to fret about words that you wrote down somewhere and might

forget about, you don’t need to worry about that notebook you filled

up 6 months ago and is somewhere on the shelf...it’s all there under

one roof.

This is the first and most important part of simplifying your language

learning (80/20) – simply remove all the unnecessary parts and focus

on doing what matters – memorising the vocabulary.

there is other vocabulary that I’ve learnt incidentally, but everything in

these decks is something I’ve intentionally tried to learn.)

Now, here’s the important bit.

After having a language exchange, after reading a book, after watching a

movie, after hearing something new on the street, I transfer new words

and phrases that I want to learn immediately into a flashcard deck.

I put the target language on one side of the card and English (my

mother tongue) on the other.

This flashcard app becomes my one place for organising all new vo-

cabulary that I have any intention of trying to learn.

It’s all in one place.

No more scraps of paper and random notes on my iPhone... I have

one centralised place where all my new vocabulary goes. As a result,

two things happen:

1. I can use the search function to immediately find any word

I’m trying to remember

2. All my new words and phrases take their turn in the spaced

repetition system, so the software does all the work of

deciding when I need to review them next

Can you see how, by organising your learning in this way, the task of

actually learning vocabulary is reduced to one simple job?

Simply open the app and review your flashcards each day.

You don’t need to worry about which method you’re using, you don’t

need to fret about words that you wrote down somewhere and might

forget about, you don’t need to worry about that notebook you filled

up 6 months ago and is somewhere on the shelf...it’s all there under

one roof.

This is the first and most important part of simplifying your language

learning (80/20) – simply remove all the unnecessary parts and focus

on doing what matters – memorising the vocabulary.

there is other vocabulary that I’ve learnt incidentally, but everything in

these decks is something I’ve intentionally tried to learn.)

Now, here’s the important bit.

After having a language exchange, after reading a book, after watching a

movie, after hearing something new on the street, I transfer new words

and phrases that I want to learn immediately into a flashcard deck.

I put the target language on one side of the card and English (my

mother tongue) on the other.

In the last section, I gave you an overview of the flashcard system that I use. Hopefully it seems pretty straightforward and manageable, because that is the aim – simplicity. However, having showed you what the system is, I want to talk a bit about what it is not.

Using flashcards in this way is not a stand-alone language learning

system. The idea is not to cram in every word you can get your hands

on until you know them all!

As you will quickly discover when you start to experiment with flash-

cards in a spaced repetition system, your decks of cards can easily

become bloated, unwieldy, and get right out of hand if you don’t have

a system for selecting what goes into them.

Flashcards should be used primarily as an add-on to a good, all-round

language learning approach. If you make flashcard study your sole

focus, you may well learn a lot of words, but you won’t know how to

use them.

So the thing to do is to use small amounts of flashcards in addition to

other things to quickly learn key vocabulary.

Don’t try to learn every new

word you come across.

Instead, be selective and

choose a small number of

words and phrases that you

think would be really useful

for you to learn right now.

Learning vocabulary with flashcards is not a stand-alone language learning system

Then, use flashcards to focus only on these. By limiting what you try to learn, you ensure it has maximum impact and doesn’t become overwhelming.

It should be seen as

a supplement to a

good, well-rounded

language learning

approach

SECTION 3

Integrating Flashcards into Your Language Learning

Flashcards should be used primarily as an add-on to a good, all-round language learning approach.

In the last section, I gave you an overview of the flashcard system that I use. Hopefully it seems pretty straightforward and manageable, because that is the aim – simplicity. However, having showed you what the system is, I want to talk a bit about what it is not.

Using flashcards in this way is not a stand-alone language learning

system. The idea is not to cram in every word you can get your hands

on until you know them all!

As you will quickly discover when you start to experiment with flash-

cards in a spaced repetition system, your decks of cards can easily

become bloated, unwieldy, and get right out of hand if you don’t have

a system for selecting what goes into them.

Flashcards should be used primarily as an add-on to a good, all-round

language learning approach. If you make flashcard study your sole

focus, you may well learn a lot of words, but you won’t know how to

use them.

So the thing to do is to use small amounts of flashcards in addition to

other things to quickly learn key vocabulary.

Don’t try to learn every new

word you come across.

Instead, be selective and

choose a small number of

words and phrases that you

think would be really useful

for you to learn right now.

Learning vocabulary with flashcards is not a stand-alone language learning system

Then, use flashcards to focus only on these. By limiting what you try to learn, you ensure it has maximum impact and doesn’t become overwhelming.

It should be seen as

a supplement to a

good, well-rounded

language learning

approach

SECTION 3

Integrating Flashcards into Your Language Learning

Flashcards should be used primarily as an add-on to a good, all-round language learning approach.

Here’s how I’d best describe what I’m suggesting:

1. Your main strategy should be to learn your target language

by getting as much quality input as possible. This

means: using good textbooks, reading interesting material,

listening to natural language through TV or music, having

conversations with native speakers, and so on. This is real

language, and there will never be any substitute for that.

2. From all that reading, listening and studying that you’re

doing, there will be certain words and phrases that you’ll

want to memorise above all. This is where flashcards come

in. You can take this important vocabulary that you really

want to learn, store it in your flashcards, and use the power

of spaced repetition to review it every day until you

have it memorised.

It’s like saying: In amongst everything I’m learning, there’s some vo-

cabulary that I absolutely must learn. I know the flashcard system

works, so I’m going to use it for the vocabulary that really counts to

make sure I remember it!

As I’ve hinted at above, the most important mindset of all is not to do

so much of it that it bores you, but to do small, targeted amounts of

flashcard study in order to learn the most important stuff as quickly

and effectively as possible.

The most important mindset of all is not to do so much of it that it bores you, but to do small, targeted amounts of flashcard study.

Here’s how I’d best describe what I’m suggesting:

1. Your main strategy should be to learn your target language

by getting as much quality input as possible. This

means: using good textbooks, reading interesting material,

listening to natural language through TV or music, having

conversations with native speakers, and so on. This is real

language, and there will never be any substitute for that.

2. From all that reading, listening and studying that you’re

doing, there will be certain words and phrases that you’ll

want to memorise above all. This is where flashcards come

in. You can take this important vocabulary that you really

want to learn, store it in your flashcards, and use the power

of spaced repetition to review it every day until you

have it memorised.

It’s like saying: In amongst everything I’m learning, there’s some vo-

cabulary that I absolutely must learn. I know the flashcard system

works, so I’m going to use it for the vocabulary that really counts to

make sure I remember it!

As I’ve hinted at above, the most important mindset of all is not to do

so much of it that it bores you, but to do small, targeted amounts of

flashcard study in order to learn the most important stuff as quickly

and effectively as possible.

The most important mindset of all is not to do so much of it that it bores you, but to do small, targeted amounts of flashcard study.

Learning whole phrases is not usually much more difficult than learning single words, but it is considerably more effective, as words in context are much more memorable

Don’t try to learn single

words on their own.

Instead, learn the

complete phrase that

the new word came in

Studying whole phrases

gives you much more

exposure to the target

language (as opposed

to single words)

Put complete phrases into your flashcards (not single words)

Keeping your vocabulary in context also teaches you how to use your new words

SECTION 4

Working with Vocabulary in Full Sentences

The biggest mistake I see people making is trying to learn single words, where complete phrases are much more beneficial.

Let’s look at an example. Imagine you heard the following phrase from

your teacher in your target language: I have some time in-between

lessons, and that the word in-between was new for you.

You might be tempted to write down the word in-between in your

notebook and try to learn it.

The approach I recommend is different. In this situation, I recommend

writing down the whole phrase: I have some time in-between lessons,

which, of course, includes your new word right there in the middle.

What you’ll do later is transfer your paper notes into your flashcards.

When you come to make your flashcards, it is the whole sentence that

goes on to your flashcards, not the single word alone.

It doesn’t much matter where these phrases come from:

• From your textbook dialogues

• From your environment (eg. train station, TV, movies,

street signs)

• From your teacher/tutor/exchange partner (e.g. on my

favourite tutoring service iTalki)

• Proactively thinking what you want to learn and asking

someone how to say it

Learning whole phrases is not usually much more difficult than learning single words, but it is considerably more effective, as words in context are much more memorable

Don’t try to learn single

words on their own.

Instead, learn the

complete phrase that

the new word came in

Studying whole phrases

gives you much more

exposure to the target

language (as opposed

to single words)

Put complete phrases into your flashcards (not single words)

Keeping your vocabulary in context also teaches you how to use your new words

SECTION 4

Working with Vocabulary in Full Sentences

The biggest mistake I see people making is trying to learn single words, where complete phrases are much more beneficial.

Let’s look at an example. Imagine you heard the following phrase from

your teacher in your target language: I have some time in-between

lessons, and that the word in-between was new for you.

You might be tempted to write down the word in-between in your

notebook and try to learn it.

The approach I recommend is different. In this situation, I recommend

writing down the whole phrase: I have some time in-between lessons,

which, of course, includes your new word right there in the middle.

What you’ll do later is transfer your paper notes into your flashcards.

When you come to make your flashcards, it is the whole sentence that

goes on to your flashcards, not the single word alone.

It doesn’t much matter where these phrases come from:

• From your textbook dialogues

• From your environment (eg. train station, TV, movies,

street signs)

• From your teacher/tutor/exchange partner (e.g. on my

favourite tutoring service iTalki)

• Proactively thinking what you want to learn and asking

someone how to say it

Pretty much any time you hear or read something in your target lan-

guage there’s plenty of new vocabulary for you to learn.

Let’s talk about why I recommend doing things this way. Why avoid

learning single words? Well, clearly, if it’s a choice between learning a

single word or nothing, then learning a single word is fine.

However, if you focus all your

learning on single words, then

you will end up thinking (and

therefore speaking) in single

words.

But, of course, language

doesn’t function in groups of

single words. Language is spo-

ken in chunks – set phrases,

if you like – such as: How are

you?, Do you think you could...,

If I were you, I would...

All words exist in context with other words, and so when you learn

them you have to keep that context. By treating them as single

words, you are depriving yourself of much of the meaning and usage

of those words.

This is why the phrase context is king is often repeated.

At this stage, you may be thinking: But how can I memorise entire

phrases? Surely that’s much more difficult!

If you focus all your learning on single words, then you will end up thinking (and therefore speaking) in single words.

That may be the case if every word in the phrase is new to you, but

in all likelihood, unless you’re an absolute beginner, you will probably

know many of the other words.

As such, it’s usually not much more difficult to learn an entire phrase

than it is a single word. This sounds counter-intuitive, but give it a try!

The reason is that other words in

the phrase give you something

to anchor the new word onto –

something to help you remember

what it is.

Trying to recall a single word that

you’re struggling to remember

can be very difficult. But if you’ve

learnt is as part of a phrase, it’s

much easier to recall because

you’ve got multiple points of ref-

erence – other words in the phrase that act as a kind of memory trigger.

For example, I’ve recently been trying to remember the Egyptian Ar-

abic word for change, as in small change. I struggled and struggled

to remember the word. Every time I needed to use it in a shop or in a

taxi, I would draw a blank.

However, one day, I went into my local shop with a friend, and he asked

the shopkeeper: Can you give me some change?

I never forgot the word after that. The reason is simply that the phrase

as a whole was much more meaningful than the word change on

its own. By learning words in context, you are much more likely to

remember them.

It’s usually not much more difficult to learn an entire phrase than it is a single word.

Pretty much any time you hear or read something in your target lan-

guage there’s plenty of new vocabulary for you to learn.

Let’s talk about why I recommend doing things this way. Why avoid

learning single words? Well, clearly, if it’s a choice between learning a

single word or nothing, then learning a single word is fine.

However, if you focus all your

learning on single words, then

you will end up thinking (and

therefore speaking) in single

words.

But, of course, language

doesn’t function in groups of

single words. Language is spo-

ken in chunks – set phrases,

if you like – such as: How are

you?, Do you think you could...,

If I were you, I would...

All words exist in context with other words, and so when you learn

them you have to keep that context. By treating them as single

words, you are depriving yourself of much of the meaning and usage

of those words.

This is why the phrase context is king is often repeated.

At this stage, you may be thinking: But how can I memorise entire

phrases? Surely that’s much more difficult!

If you focus all your learning on single words, then you will end up thinking (and therefore speaking) in single words.

That may be the case if every word in the phrase is new to you, but

in all likelihood, unless you’re an absolute beginner, you will probably

know many of the other words.

As such, it’s usually not much more difficult to learn an entire phrase

than it is a single word. This sounds counter-intuitive, but give it a try!

The reason is that other words in

the phrase give you something

to anchor the new word onto –

something to help you remember

what it is.

Trying to recall a single word that

you’re struggling to remember

can be very difficult. But if you’ve

learnt is as part of a phrase, it’s

much easier to recall because

you’ve got multiple points of ref-

erence – other words in the phrase that act as a kind of memory trigger.

For example, I’ve recently been trying to remember the Egyptian Ar-

abic word for change, as in small change. I struggled and struggled

to remember the word. Every time I needed to use it in a shop or in a

taxi, I would draw a blank.

However, one day, I went into my local shop with a friend, and he asked

the shopkeeper: Can you give me some change?

I never forgot the word after that. The reason is simply that the phrase

as a whole was much more meaningful than the word change on

its own. By learning words in context, you are much more likely to

remember them.

It’s usually not much more difficult to learn an entire phrase than it is a single word.

The broader point to remember here is that, if you are constantly dealing

in phrases rather than single words, you increase your exposure to

your target language by 4-5x or more.

Think about it. There are usually at least four or five words in a sen-

tence (often many more). If you’re always looking at sentences, you’ll

be looking at 4-5x more of your target language than if you were just

looking at single words.

Thats one thing. The other (more important) point is that you learn

to use new words much more naturally because you get to see how

to use them in context.

This is a big deal.

If you follow my whole flashcard

strategy from this guide but only

implement it with single words, you

will find it much harder to grow your

vocabulary.

As I said, it can sound counter-in-

tuitive and much more work to

memorise phrases rather than the

words alone, but please give it a go

and see for yourself!

For a video showing you an example of working with complete phrases,

visit http://youtu.be/wkddc5gubf4

By learning words in context, you are much more likely to remember them.

If you’ve learnt a word as part of a phrase, it’s much easier to recall it because you’ve got multiple points of reference – other words in the phrase that act as a kind of memory trigger.

The broader point to remember here is that, if you are constantly dealing

in phrases rather than single words, you increase your exposure to

your target language by 4-5x or more.

Think about it. There are usually at least four or five words in a sen-

tence (often many more). If you’re always looking at sentences, you’ll

be looking at 4-5x more of your target language than if you were just

looking at single words.

Thats one thing. The other (more important) point is that you learn

to use new words much more naturally because you get to see how

to use them in context.

This is a big deal.

If you follow my whole flashcard

strategy from this guide but only

implement it with single words, you

will find it much harder to grow your

vocabulary.

As I said, it can sound counter-in-

tuitive and much more work to

memorise phrases rather than the

words alone, but please give it a go

and see for yourself!

For a video showing you an example of working with complete phrases,

visit http://youtu.be/wkddc5gubf4

By learning words in context, you are much more likely to remember them.

If you’ve learnt a word as part of a phrase, it’s much easier to recall it because you’ve got multiple points of reference – other words in the phrase that act as a kind of memory trigger.

It is crucial to keep to manageable amounts of study. 20-30 new flashcards per week is a good place to start.

5 minutes is a short-enough amount of time to trick your brain into getting started, but you will almost always do more once you get started.

Aim for five minutes

of study per day.

If you make too many

flashcards you will end

up with a large backlog

that is impossible to get

through.

SECTION 5

How to Study with Flashcards

The single most important thing to remember about studying with flashcards is that you must keep to manageable amounts of study.

The spaced repetition system brings back unknown cards on a regular

basis – five minutes, 1 hour, 2 days, 1 week, 6 months.

Cards become due for study at

these points. If you make too

many flashcards and don’t keep

on top of them, you will quick

amass a huge backlog that you

won’t be able to clear.

This also means that you will nev-

er reach the latest cards you put

into your deck because you’ll be

too busy clearing the old ones.

By contrast, if keep it to manage-

able amounts, and stay on top of

studying the due cards, then you will avoid getting caught in the backlog,

learn the cards more thoroughly, and also be able to revise the more

recent cards that you add to your deck.

As a starting point, I suggest adding no more than 20-30 new cards

per week, and studying them for five minutes a day.

This may seem like a small amount, but 20-30 new items of vocabulary

per week, thoroughly learnt, can be very powerful.

I suggest adding no more than 20-30 new cards per week, and studying them for five minutes a day.

It is crucial to keep to manageable amounts of study. 20-30 new flashcards per week is a good place to start.

5 minutes is a short-enough amount of time to trick your brain into getting started, but you will almost always do more once you get started.

Aim for five minutes

of study per day.

If you make too many

flashcards you will end

up with a large backlog

that is impossible to get

through.

SECTION 5

How to Study with Flashcards

The single most important thing to remember about studying with flashcards is that you must keep to manageable amounts of study.

The spaced repetition system brings back unknown cards on a regular

basis – five minutes, 1 hour, 2 days, 1 week, 6 months.

Cards become due for study at

these points. If you make too

many flashcards and don’t keep

on top of them, you will quick

amass a huge backlog that you

won’t be able to clear.

This also means that you will nev-

er reach the latest cards you put

into your deck because you’ll be

too busy clearing the old ones.

By contrast, if keep it to manage-

able amounts, and stay on top of

studying the due cards, then you will avoid getting caught in the backlog,

learn the cards more thoroughly, and also be able to revise the more

recent cards that you add to your deck.

As a starting point, I suggest adding no more than 20-30 new cards

per week, and studying them for five minutes a day.

This may seem like a small amount, but 20-30 new items of vocabulary

per week, thoroughly learnt, can be very powerful.

I suggest adding no more than 20-30 new cards per week, and studying them for five minutes a day.

Is five minutes enough?

Try it and see. You’ll be amazed how much progress you can make.

Now, in all likelihood, you will do far more than five minutes.

The hardest part is getting started,

and so finding a way to get started

is your top priority.

Once fire up the flashcard app on

your phone, review a few cards, and

feel the enjoyment that comes from

learning, you’ll find it hard to quit

after only five minutes.

The 5-minute rule is a strategy I’ve

been using for a long time to make

a lot of progress in my languages.

If you’re anything like me and have

trouble getting motivated to work, try out this simple trick to fool your

brain into getting going.

Only five minutes? Sure I can do that, then we’ll get back to the TV!

30 minutes later, you’re still going!

The hardest part is getting started, and so finding a way to get started is your top priority. The 5-minute rule is

a strategy I’ve been using for a long time to make a lot of progress in my languages.

Is five minutes enough?

Try it and see. You’ll be amazed how much progress you can make.

Now, in all likelihood, you will do far more than five minutes.

The hardest part is getting started,

and so finding a way to get started

is your top priority.

Once fire up the flashcard app on

your phone, review a few cards, and

feel the enjoyment that comes from

learning, you’ll find it hard to quit

after only five minutes.

The 5-minute rule is a strategy I’ve

been using for a long time to make

a lot of progress in my languages.

If you’re anything like me and have

trouble getting motivated to work, try out this simple trick to fool your

brain into getting going.

Only five minutes? Sure I can do that, then we’ll get back to the TV!

30 minutes later, you’re still going!

The hardest part is getting started, and so finding a way to get started is your top priority. The 5-minute rule is

a strategy I’ve been using for a long time to make a lot of progress in my languages.

If you find this hard, aim for short bursts of 1 minute each

SECTION 6

Consistency – The Key to Success

You’ll almost certainly do more once you get started

It is more effective to study a few times throughout the day than to do one longer session

Your daily study target is five minutes

The most flexible and convenient way to study flashcards is on your smartphone

Five minutes is one half of the equation, but daily study is the other. Whatever language learning strategy you’re talking about, 80% of your gains come from the fact of studying a little bit every day.

I can’t underestimate the importance of this. Commit to doing five

minutes of flashcards at least once a day, but preferably at regular

intervals throughout the day, keep it up every day for a couple of weeks

and you’ll be amazed at the pro-

gress you’re making.

Some people find it easy to make

resolutions like this and stick to

them, but others don’t. I certainly

fall into the latter category.

What I’ve found helpful in the

past is to set trigger points

throughout my day, which re-

mind me to do whatever I’m fo-

cusing on – in this case a short

burst of flashcard study.

You can think of a trigger point as a rule, which says: As soon as

I_, I will_.

Without these trigger points, I often find that I get distracted by any

number of other things around me, forget to do what I’ve committed

to, and before I know it the day is over. Sound familiar?

Commit to doing five minutes of flashcards at least once a day, but preferably at regular intervals throughout the day.

If you find this hard, aim for short bursts of 1 minute each

SECTION 6

Consistency – The Key to Success

You’ll almost certainly do more once you get started

It is more effective to study a few times throughout the day than to do one longer session

Your daily study target is five minutes

The most flexible and convenient way to study flashcards is on your smartphone

Five minutes is one half of the equation, but daily study is the other. Whatever language learning strategy you’re talking about, 80% of your gains come from the fact of studying a little bit every day.

I can’t underestimate the importance of this. Commit to doing five

minutes of flashcards at least once a day, but preferably at regular

intervals throughout the day, keep it up every day for a couple of weeks

and you’ll be amazed at the pro-

gress you’re making.

Some people find it easy to make

resolutions like this and stick to

them, but others don’t. I certainly

fall into the latter category.

What I’ve found helpful in the

past is to set trigger points

throughout my day, which re-

mind me to do whatever I’m fo-

cusing on – in this case a short

burst of flashcard study.

You can think of a trigger point as a rule, which says: As soon as

I_, I will_.

Without these trigger points, I often find that I get distracted by any

number of other things around me, forget to do what I’ve committed

to, and before I know it the day is over. Sound familiar?

Commit to doing five minutes of flashcards at least once a day, but preferably at regular intervals throughout the day.

Here are examples of trigger points that I’ve used successfully in the

• As soon as I wake up, I will review my flashcards for five

minutes

• As soon as I sit down in the train on my way to work, I will

review my flashcards for five minutes

• As soon as I sit down at my desk after lunch, I will review

my flashcards for five minutes

• In bed, before sleeping, I will review my flashcards for five

minutes.

I decide which times throughout the

day it makes sense for me to study,

and I actually write them down in a

notebook.

Writing this down may seem like

a trivial step, and you’re probably

tempted to skip it, but I’ve found it

to be surprisingly effective, probably

because it’s just an extra level of

commitment that makes you more likely to follow through.

I got the idea from research by Dr. Gail Matthews at Dominican Uni-

versity in California which found that, just by writing down your goals,

you are 42% more likely to achieve them.

By writing down your goals, you are 42% more likely to achieve them.

It’s a small step that takes you less than a minute, but with this kind

of data backing you up, can you afford not to do it?

Be sure to decide on trigger points that work for you. The more you

can fit these new study habits around your life (rather than bending

your life to fit around what you’d like to happen in an ideal world), the

more likely you are to be successful.

It should also be becoming clear to you why I recommend studying

flashcards on your smartphone; the flexibility it gives you is huge.

Can’t do five minutes? Do two. In fact, just do 30 seconds!

It’s worth repeating: Consistency and repetition are the things that will

help you retain the most vocabulary. Quick study bursts of 30 seconds

done 10 times per day, are more effective than one five-minute slot.

And don’t forget, the power of the five-minutes-per-day rule is that,

however much you forget to do

it, however tired or busy you may

be, you can always fit in a quick

five-minute flashcard session be-

fore you go to sleep at night.

The system I’m describing to you is

designed to be achievable, however

busy or lazy you may be. If you think

this can’t work for you, for whatever

reason, I’d like you to email me right

now and tell me why not.

Consistency and repetition are the things that will help you retain the most vocabulary.

Here are examples of trigger points that I’ve used successfully in the

• As soon as I wake up, I will review my flashcards for five

minutes

• As soon as I sit down in the train on my way to work, I will

review my flashcards for five minutes

• As soon as I sit down at my desk after lunch, I will review

my flashcards for five minutes

• In bed, before sleeping, I will review my flashcards for five

minutes.

I decide which times throughout the

day it makes sense for me to study,

and I actually write them down in a

notebook.

Writing this down may seem like

a trivial step, and you’re probably

tempted to skip it, but I’ve found it

to be surprisingly effective, probably

because it’s just an extra level of

commitment that makes you more likely to follow through.

I got the idea from research by Dr. Gail Matthews at Dominican Uni-

versity in California which found that, just by writing down your goals,

you are 42% more likely to achieve them.

By writing down your goals, you are 42% more likely to achieve them.

It’s a small step that takes you less than a minute, but with this kind

of data backing you up, can you afford not to do it?

Be sure to decide on trigger points that work for you. The more you

can fit these new study habits around your life (rather than bending

your life to fit around what you’d like to happen in an ideal world), the

more likely you are to be successful.

It should also be becoming clear to you why I recommend studying

flashcards on your smartphone; the flexibility it gives you is huge.

Can’t do five minutes? Do two. In fact, just do 30 seconds!

It’s worth repeating: Consistency and repetition are the things that will

help you retain the most vocabulary. Quick study bursts of 30 seconds

done 10 times per day, are more effective than one five-minute slot.

And don’t forget, the power of the five-minutes-per-day rule is that,

however much you forget to do

it, however tired or busy you may

be, you can always fit in a quick

five-minute flashcard session be-

fore you go to sleep at night.

The system I’m describing to you is

designed to be achievable, however

busy or lazy you may be. If you think

this can’t work for you, for whatever

reason, I’d like you to email me right

now and tell me why not.

Consistency and repetition are the things that will help you retain the most vocabulary.

SECTION 7

Making Vocabulary Accessible in Conversations

Set up your software to display the English side of the flashcard first

This forces you to think in your target language

...and this makes you better

able to speak by mirroring

the process you go through

when speaking your target

language for real

So you start to put together your flashcards and you end up with lots of cards – English on one side and your target language on the other.

Now when you come to study them, which side do you display first? If

you display the target language first, and English on the other, is that

a good thing? If you set them up like that, what goes through your

head when you study?

(Take a second to think about it.)

Now, if you display English first, and the target language on the flip

side, how does this change things?

This may seem rather unimportant. After all, either way, you end up

learning the vocabulary, right?

Well, by displaying the vocabulary in the target language first, all you

have to do is remember what it means. Flipping the card and display-

ing the English simply confirms whether you successfully remembered

the meaning or not.

This is a very passive way of studying. After a few rounds, it becomes

easy and very little challenge for you.

Now let’s look at it the other way.

By displaying the English first, this is no longer a case of simple rec-

ognition. You are forced to recall and produce (say) the phrase in the

target language.

SECTION 7

Making Vocabulary Accessible in Conversations

Set up your software to display the English side of the flashcard first

This forces you to think in your target language

...and this makes you better

able to speak by mirroring

the process you go through

when speaking your target

language for real

So you start to put together your flashcards and you end up with lots of cards – English on one side and your target language on the other.

Now when you come to study them, which side do you display first? If

you display the target language first, and English on the other, is that

a good thing? If you set them up like that, what goes through your

head when you study?

(Take a second to think about it.)

Now, if you display English first, and the target language on the flip

side, how does this change things?

This may seem rather unimportant. After all, either way, you end up

learning the vocabulary, right?

Well, by displaying the vocabulary in the target language first, all you

have to do is remember what it means. Flipping the card and display-

ing the English simply confirms whether you successfully remembered

the meaning or not.

This is a very passive way of studying. After a few rounds, it becomes

easy and very little challenge for you.

Now let’s look at it the other way.

By displaying the English first, this is no longer a case of simple rec-

ognition. You are forced to recall and produce (say) the phrase in the

target language.

So, in this case, rather than sim-

ply recognising the new word

and remembering what it means

in English, you now have an Eng-

lish word in front of you and you

have to remember how to say it

in the target language.

How many benefits can you see

to this?

Although doing things this way round is certainly more challenging,

and takes longer to learn the vocabulary well, displaying the English

side of your flashcards first is critical. Here’s why.

Doing it this way is like a speaking rehearsal.

In other words: Think what you want to say in English, then come out

with it in the target language!

It mirrors the process you go through when you’re speaking your target

language for real.

Why wait until you’re

in front of a real per-

son to start produc-

ing the language? By

setting up your flash-

cards in this way, and

revising often, you are

constantly practising

the act of figuring out

what you want to say

and how to say it.

After studying in this way for a while, when you come to speak your

target language out in the real world you will find yourself speaking

considerably more fluidly, as new vocabulary will much more accessible

to you and will come to mind much more quickly.

Note: See page 65 for how to adjust these settings in your flashcard

software.

By displaying the English first you are forced to recall and say the phrase in the target language.

By setting up your flashcards in this way, and revising often, you are constantly practising the act of figuring out what you want to say and how to say it.

So, in this case, rather than sim-

ply recognising the new word

and remembering what it means

in English, you now have an Eng-

lish word in front of you and you

have to remember how to say it

in the target language.

How many benefits can you see

to this?

Although doing things this way round is certainly more challenging,

and takes longer to learn the vocabulary well, displaying the English

side of your flashcards first is critical. Here’s why.

Doing it this way is like a speaking rehearsal.

In other words: Think what you want to say in English, then come out

with it in the target language!

It mirrors the process you go through when you’re speaking your target

language for real.

Why wait until you’re

in front of a real per-

son to start produc-

ing the language? By

setting up your flash-

cards in this way, and

revising often, you are

constantly practising

the act of figuring out

what you want to say

and how to say it.

After studying in this way for a while, when you come to speak your

target language out in the real world you will find yourself speaking

considerably more fluidly, as new vocabulary will much more accessible

to you and will come to mind much more quickly.

Note: See page 65 for how to adjust these settings in your flashcard

software.

By displaying the English first you are forced to recall and say the phrase in the target language.

By setting up your flashcards in this way, and revising often, you are constantly practising the act of figuring out what you want to say and how to say it.

SECTION 8

Q and A Studying with Flashcards

This section is dedicated to questions that I have received

from readers about studying with flashcards. If you are new

to flashcards, much of this might not make much sense to

you at this stage.

If this is the case, don’t worry!

I recommend coming back to this chapter after a few days of

experimenting with flashcards, at which point you may well

find yourself asking similar questions.

If you have other questions, please email me and I’ll add

them to future editions of the guide:

[email protected]

Q I’m trying to remember a word in Italian.

Should I include extra sides to a flashcards

with the word and example sentences? For

example, I can create a flashcard with four

sides: Side 1 – Italian word, Side 2 – English

word, Side 3 – Italian example, Side 4 – English

example).

A I don’t recommend this. Having the English

and Italian words on their own is unnecessary.

Remember, we’re looking to always see

vocabulary in context. You should just keep two

sides to the flashcard – the example sentences

(one in English and one in Italian).

It’s not that seeing the words on their own is

objectively a bad idea, but it makes the whole

process less efficient, as you’ve gone from two

sides of the flashcard to four. This doubles the

amount of work you’re doing, unnecessarily.

Q I’m using the Flashcard Deluxe program. One

thing I find a little confusing is that when I

load say 30 cards in, it seems like several days

go by before I ever see many, even most of the

cards. Is that how it’s suppose to/you prefer it

to work?

A This is a result of the spaced repetition settings.

You can choose how many new cards you need

to learn before moving on to the next ones. The

default is 10, and that works fairly well for me.

The principle is that you should be confident

with the first lot of 10 cards until you move on,

SECTION 8

Q and A Studying with Flashcards

This section is dedicated to questions that I have received

from readers about studying with flashcards. If you are new

to flashcards, much of this might not make much sense to

you at this stage.

If this is the case, don’t worry!

I recommend coming back to this chapter after a few days of

experimenting with flashcards, at which point you may well

find yourself asking similar questions.

If you have other questions, please email me and I’ll add

them to future editions of the guide:

[email protected]

Q I’m trying to remember a word in Italian.

Should I include extra sides to a flashcards

with the word and example sentences? For

example, I can create a flashcard with four

sides: Side 1 – Italian word, Side 2 – English

word, Side 3 – Italian example, Side 4 – English

example).

A I don’t recommend this. Having the English

and Italian words on their own is unnecessary.

Remember, we’re looking to always see

vocabulary in context. You should just keep two

sides to the flashcard – the example sentences

(one in English and one in Italian).

It’s not that seeing the words on their own is

objectively a bad idea, but it makes the whole

process less efficient, as you’ve gone from two

sides of the flashcard to four. This doubles the

amount of work you’re doing, unnecessarily.

Q I’m using the Flashcard Deluxe program. One

thing I find a little confusing is that when I

load say 30 cards in, it seems like several days

go by before I ever see many, even most of the

cards. Is that how it’s suppose to/you prefer it

to work?

A This is a result of the spaced repetition settings.

You can choose how many new cards you need

to learn before moving on to the next ones. The

default is 10, and that works fairly well for me.

The principle is that you should be confident

with the first lot of 10 cards until you move on,

thereby ensuring that you spend time on what

you don’t know yet, whilst not overwhelming

you at the same time. So, assuming you don’t

know the 10 active cards very well yet, then yes,

you won’t get to the other cards in the queue

until you know these ones better.

However, there is a simple way round this,

which is when you start reviewing a deck, you

choose new cards rather than active cards from

the popup menu. That should bring up the next

My approach to this is:

1 I want to know my current active cards well

before I move on (10 is the default number, but

you can change this in the settings – you might

prefer 15 at once, for example)

2 If there are some cards that I get stuck on, I

usually just exclude them because I don’t want

to waste too much energy on stuff that isn’t

going it

3 I don’t put too many new things into my decks,

otherwise I end up with a big backlog, like

you’re finding now

4 ...and this is why I recommended limiting

what you enter into flashcards (only the most

important new vocabulary).

It’s worth remembering that this isn’t an exact

science, and the most important thing is to find

the system that works best for you.

Q So one follow-up question then. Realistically

how many times a day will you attack a given

deck? I’m just curious how the flow works for

you. If you say go all out and do it 6 times,

then I suppose you will advance forward to

new cards more quickly, but on the other

hand, I would think the spaced repetition will

log all those successful attempts and figure

you know the cards well and then reintroduce

them less often. So I’m just looking for that

balance. I’m looking to tell myself when I get

up (I’m going to review X, Y, and Z decks n

times today). But I don’t know what n is right

yet for me.

A Good question. Here’s the honest answer...

I just do it as and when I can, and fit it around

my schedule. I have five minutes in a taxi to and

from work, and I have a bit of time waiting for

the barista to make my coffee, and then I get a

study reminder on my phone at about 10pm, so

I do a bit then (usually more).

It has to fit around your lifestyle in order to work.

The important thing is to just keep at it. Some

days I do the minimum five minutes. Other days

I’ll have a long taxi ride and do 20 mins. It just

comes down to the daily habit, and... whatever

else happens... just do those 5 mins!

thereby ensuring that you spend time on what

you don’t know yet, whilst not overwhelming

you at the same time. So, assuming you don’t

know the 10 active cards very well yet, then yes,

you won’t get to the other cards in the queue

until you know these ones better.

However, there is a simple way round this,

which is when you start reviewing a deck, you

choose new cards rather than active cards from

the popup menu. That should bring up the next

My approach to this is:

1 I want to know my current active cards well

before I move on (10 is the default number, but

you can change this in the settings – you might

prefer 15 at once, for example)

2 If there are some cards that I get stuck on, I

usually just exclude them because I don’t want

to waste too much energy on stuff that isn’t

going it

3 I don’t put too many new things into my decks,

otherwise I end up with a big backlog, like

you’re finding now

4 ...and this is why I recommended limiting

what you enter into flashcards (only the most

important new vocabulary).

It’s worth remembering that this isn’t an exact

science, and the most important thing is to find

the system that works best for you.

Q So one follow-up question then. Realistically

how many times a day will you attack a given

deck? I’m just curious how the flow works for

you. If you say go all out and do it 6 times,

then I suppose you will advance forward to

new cards more quickly, but on the other

hand, I would think the spaced repetition will

log all those successful attempts and figure

you know the cards well and then reintroduce

them less often. So I’m just looking for that

balance. I’m looking to tell myself when I get

up (I’m going to review X, Y, and Z decks n

times today). But I don’t know what n is right

yet for me.

A Good question. Here’s the honest answer...

I just do it as and when I can, and fit it around

my schedule. I have five minutes in a taxi to and

from work, and I have a bit of time waiting for

the barista to make my coffee, and then I get a

study reminder on my phone at about 10pm, so

I do a bit then (usually more).

It has to fit around your lifestyle in order to work.

The important thing is to just keep at it. Some

days I do the minimum five minutes. Other days

I’ll have a long taxi ride and do 20 mins. It just

comes down to the daily habit, and... whatever

else happens... just do those 5 mins!

Q What do you think of having gap fill cards,

e.g. “Q: The weather is _ today, isn’t it? A:

Muggy.”

A My view is that this is a waste of time. The

reason is that you will very quickly remember

which word fills the gap, and the card stops

presenting any kind of challenge. This system

also doesn’t force you to really produce (say)

anything, rather just remember the answer,

which doesn’t move you forward in your

language learning.

Q Is it important to break down words into

individual parts to understand the meaning

fully, thus help memorization?

A You should always understand the meaning

of what you’re trying to learn, but it’s not

necessary to understand all the grammar in

the sentence you’re learning (providing you

understand the meaning).

In fact, this is a very good indirect way of

learning grammar, because rather than trying

to remember rules, you’re learning real phrases

that use accurate grammar. After enough

examples, you’ll find the grammar starting

to “make sense”, even though you haven’t

explicitly studied it.

Q How important is the use of audio when

learning vocabulary?

A Accurate pronunciation is important. Most

flashcard software allows you to add an audio

recording to individual flashcards, so you can

have a native speaker record certain words or

phrases that you find difficult, if you want.

I’d say that if you’re comfortable with the

pronunciation, then you don’t need to add the

audio. If you’re unsure, add it if you want.

Q How important is the use of visual aids (like

pictures) when learning vocabulary?

A It’s important as you need it to be. They can be

helpful, but they certainly aren’t necessary. If

you find that a picture helps you remember a

word, then by all means add it to the flashcard,

but I find that mnemonics (i.e. pictures in your

mind/word association) are more effective,

because they then live inside your head and will

always be there.

Q What do you think of having gap fill cards,

e.g. “Q: The weather is _ today, isn’t it? A:

Muggy.”

A My view is that this is a waste of time. The

reason is that you will very quickly remember

which word fills the gap, and the card stops

presenting any kind of challenge. This system

also doesn’t force you to really produce (say)

anything, rather just remember the answer,

which doesn’t move you forward in your

language learning.

Q Is it important to break down words into

individual parts to understand the meaning

fully, thus help memorization?

A You should always understand the meaning

of what you’re trying to learn, but it’s not

necessary to understand all the grammar in

the sentence you’re learning (providing you

understand the meaning).

In fact, this is a very good indirect way of

learning grammar, because rather than trying

to remember rules, you’re learning real phrases

that use accurate grammar. After enough

examples, you’ll find the grammar starting

to “make sense”, even though you haven’t

explicitly studied it.

Q How important is the use of audio when

learning vocabulary?

A Accurate pronunciation is important. Most

flashcard software allows you to add an audio

recording to individual flashcards, so you can

have a native speaker record certain words or

phrases that you find difficult, if you want.

I’d say that if you’re comfortable with the

pronunciation, then you don’t need to add the

audio. If you’re unsure, add it if you want.

Q How important is the use of visual aids (like

pictures) when learning vocabulary?

A It’s important as you need it to be. They can be

helpful, but they certainly aren’t necessary. If

you find that a picture helps you remember a

word, then by all means add it to the flashcard,

but I find that mnemonics (i.e. pictures in your

mind/word association) are more effective,

because they then live inside your head and will

always be there.

Q What is your view on pre-made card decks

and 3rd party language flashcard apps, i.e.,

Wordpower, Visual Dictionary Pro with pre-

made flashcards with audio, visual aids, etc.

A You should never use pre-made decks...however

tempting it may be! One part of this method

is learning vocabulary. The other part, which is

just as important, is choosing the vocabulary

you want to learn right now.

Pre-made decks have been made by other

people, and you’ve had no input into them at

all. They are often not accurate, and usually

contain single words, rather than complete

sentences, which goes against one of the

most important principles in this approach to

learning vocabulary.

However, above all, as we covered earlier,

the most powerful thing you can do to make

flashcard study useful and effective is to

personally select the words and phrases that

will make it onto your decks. In order to keep it

all manageable, you can’t throw every new word

into your decks, and so you need to prioritise

the things that are most useful to you – the

vocabulary you feel a burning desire to learn

right now!

Using pre-made decks is the antithesis of this,

and I strongly urge you not to use them. The

exception would be decks that have been made

to help you learn to write the script of a foreign

language (e.g. Japanese hiragana, or the Arabic

alphabet). These are probably ok, since there’s

no interpretation required – it is what it is!

Q Even though you mentioned that grammar will

come by its own accord, would it be helpful

to know basic grammar rules when learning

vocabulary and its usage?

A Yes, absolutely. As I cover in my Language

Learning Foundations video course, working

steadily through a textbook is fundamental,

because you will learn the grammatical basics

of your target language.

Q What is your view on pre-made card decks

and 3rd party language flashcard apps, i.e.,

Wordpower, Visual Dictionary Pro with pre-

made flashcards with audio, visual aids, etc.

A You should never use pre-made decks...however

tempting it may be! One part of this method

is learning vocabulary. The other part, which is

just as important, is choosing the vocabulary

you want to learn right now.

Pre-made decks have been made by other

people, and you’ve had no input into them at

all. They are often not accurate, and usually

contain single words, rather than complete

sentences, which goes against one of the

most important principles in this approach to

learning vocabulary.

However, above all, as we covered earlier,

the most powerful thing you can do to make

flashcard study useful and effective is to

personally select the words and phrases that

will make it onto your decks. In order to keep it

all manageable, you can’t throw every new word

into your decks, and so you need to prioritise

the things that are most useful to you – the

vocabulary you feel a burning desire to learn

right now!

Using pre-made decks is the antithesis of this,

and I strongly urge you not to use them. The

exception would be decks that have been made

to help you learn to write the script of a foreign

language (e.g. Japanese hiragana, or the Arabic

alphabet). These are probably ok, since there’s

no interpretation required – it is what it is!

Q Even though you mentioned that grammar will

come by its own accord, would it be helpful

to know basic grammar rules when learning

vocabulary and its usage?

A Yes, absolutely. As I cover in my Language

Learning Foundations video course, working

steadily through a textbook is fundamental,

because you will learn the grammatical basics

of your target language.

CHAPTER 2

Quickstart Guide: Setting Up Your Flashcards

Integrating small amounts of flashcard study into your life whilst you’re out and about means that you need a solution that is fast, easy-to-use and reliable.

CHAPTER 2

Quickstart Guide: Setting Up Your Flashcards

Integrating small amounts of flashcard study into your life whilst you’re out and about means that you need a solution that is fast, easy-to-use and reliable.

SECTION 1

IntroductionThere’s plenty of flashcard software out there that uses spaced repetition. The first decision you have to make is whether you’re most comfortable learning on a computer or on your smartphone.

People like studying in different ways. Personally, I hate being glued

to the computer when studying, but there are others who equally

dislike studying on mobile devices and prefer to sit at a computer and

concentrate.

It’s up to you.

My personal recommendation is to go with smartphones for the simple

reason that it’s always with you. At any time in the day you can whip

out your phone and blast your flashcards for as little as 30 seconds.

As I mentioned before, it’s the regularity that really makes the most

difference. Three five-minute blocks of studying during the day are

much more effective than one single 15 minute session at night.

I also don’t have the strongest willpower in the world, so sitting down

to study for a fixed time every evening doesn’t always work for me.

On the other hand, if I can chip away for a few minutes at a time dur-

ing the day, whilst I’m having lunch or waiting for a train...no problem!