Using Anki for Chinese: A Singapore Parent's Guide

Anki is a free flashcard app that uses spaced repetition to help your child remember Chinese vocabulary long-term. It's the same system used by medical students to memorise thousands of terms — and it works brilliantly for Chinese characters.

What Is Anki?

Anki is an open-source flashcard application available on Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone, and Android. Unlike regular flashcards, Anki uses an algorithm to show each card at the optimal time — just before your child would forget it.

This means: - Words they know well appear less frequently - Words they struggle with appear more often - Over time, vocabulary moves from short-term to long-term memory

Why Anki Works for Chinese

Chinese vocabulary is uniquely suited to spaced repetition because:

1. Characters are largely arbitrary — Unlike English words with Latin roots, Chinese characters must be memorised individually
2. The MOE syllabus is cumulative — P3 builds on P2, P4 builds on P3, all the way to PSLE
3. Forgetting is the enemy — Children who cram for Ting Xie forget fast: in Ebbinghaus's memory experiments, relearning a list one day later took about two thirds of the original effort (source)

Anki solves the forgetting problem systematically.

Getting Started

Step 1: Download Anki

• Desktop: Download from apps.ankiweb.net (free)
• iPhone: AnkiMobile ($34.99 — this funds the free desktop version)
• Android: AnkiDroid (free on Google Play)

Step 2: Get a Good Deck

The quality of your flashcard deck matters enormously. A good Chinese deck should:

• Be aligned to the MOE syllabus (not HSK or other standards)
• Include audio pronunciation
• Show stroke order or character breakdown
• Be organised by primary school level (P1-P6)

Step 3: Set Up a Daily Routine

The magic of Anki is consistency:

• New cards per day: Start with 5-10 for younger children, 15-20 for P4+
• Daily reviews: These are non-negotiable — skip a day and the backlog grows
• Session length: 10-15 minutes is enough for most primary school children
• Best time: Right after school while the content is fresh

Tips for Singapore Parents

• Don't override the algorithm — If Anki says to review a card tomorrow, trust it
• Celebrate streaks — Consistency matters more than speed
• Start early — P1 vocabulary is the easiest to learn and sets the foundation
• Complement, don't replace — Anki handles vocabulary; tuition handles composition and comprehension