Memory

Right now I am practicing kanji with Anki software. (I blogged about Anki before here, here, and here.) And I am amazed at how fast I have forgotten the kanji that I didn't practice. I guess even though I work with memory-related problems all the time, and I've read about how human memory works, I still did not realize just how fast we forget things unless we practice them.

I guess it's a good reminder for me that I should bring my laptop to class and do Anki practice with my students at every chance I get. Sometimes I forget, but this really shows how good it is to be consistent.

I started Anki with one of my junior high school classes, and because I found some funny pictures for them, I think they liked it.

I wonder if I can and will be allowed to integrate Anki in at least one of the classes that I'll do ALT work in from August. I really hope so, because I want to see how far a database would go in a year.

I have to think of the logistics of using Anki in a 30+ student setting though, as opposed to a private 1-on-1 lesson or a 6 students class. With group/class work there is a problem that some smart students will know everything, and the rest of the class won't know. I have some ideas, like group work for Anki (with competition between groups for motivation, maybe), or picking a random student to answer instead of letting the smart kids say everything. Anyways, I really need to think about this more.

~ Back to my own Anki practice, I've finally added my friends' names to Anki, so I can practice being able to write their names. Before only my kendo teachers' names were in Anki.

I still have some time before I have to leave for work. I wonder if I'll be able to finish my review. I need to practice piano tonight too. And tomorrow. And the day after. And speaking of the day after, it's a holiday, I think, so I wonder if there's kendo that day. I also wonder if my documents will arrive in the mail so that I can go to the Nagoya consulate. The people there are so helpful, but I don't want to have to re-schedule my appointment there if I don't get my documents. Grrr for Canada Post.