How to Learn Chinese Characters

I think I've written before about how I study at university, but I wanted to go in depth about my system for studying Chinese characters, because I've been really enjoying it and I think it's been working really well.


I kind of figured out this system through trial and error, so there is kind of an evolution. I first bought a notebook for character practice last year and started experimenting with number of repetitions and structure of each page.

Sometimes the page set up was too involved and time consuming.

Sometimes there was no structure and it was just a mess.

I eventually figured out the exact spacing and number of repetitions that worked well for me, looked nice, and made for fast practice.

So I started titling and organizing the pages. I've also dated them so I can see the last time I've looked at the characters.

It all looks very neat now and I'm very happy with the system.

The other thing I think it really important is a good pen. When you sit down to write for a couple hours every day, a good pen becomes really important. I bought several pens and tested them to see which would be the best and I've come down to two that are my favorites. All I'm looking for is a good pen that won't bleed or be uneven when writing (I want my characters to be beautiful!). Neither is perfect, so I just switch between the two.

This semester I started to get in the habit of going through my notes every week, highlighting characters I wanted to practice, and then writing them out in the notebook. I think it's made a big difference in my reading ability and the amount of words I've learned this year.

The point is not to memorize each character on the spot and never expect to study it again. I just focus on the character while I'm practicing it, then move onto the next character. Naturally, there are characters that I remember without having to practice again. There are also characters that I learned last year and end up writing out in my notebook every week or so, because it simply won't stick.

The goal is to improve my ability to recognize the characters (and ideally be better at producing them, too). I don't worry too much about remembering every single one, so it's not super stressful or straining.

I have been thinking about how to take this study method to the next level and have an even higher retention rate (without resorting to flashcards, which I hate with a burning passion). I learned a while ago about the Goldlist method, so I'm finally going to try it. I will hopefully write about it once I've gotten into it, assuming all goes well.

So that's pretty much how I've been dealing with learning Chinese characters.