| ❌ Don’t | ✅ Do | |----------|-------| | Memorize English translations without reading Japanese sentence | Read the Japanese sentence first, then check meaning | | Ignore pitch accent | At least notice the color coding – it builds intuition | | Blast through 30 new cards/day | 10–15 new cards max for retention >80% | | Skip audio | Listen every time (prosody matters) | | Suspend cards that are “too easy” | Let FSRS schedule them – they’ll space out naturally |
The deck is famous for its minimalist design. A typical card contains:
Because Kaishi uses both recognition (Japanese → Meaning) and production (Meaning → Japanese) cards, you should suspend the production cards initially. Many learners toggle off the English→Japanese cards until they have finished all 1.5k recognition cards.
Created by community members to fix the common complaints of older decks, it serves as the perfect "bridge" to get you from absolute beginner to reading and listening to native content. 🌟 Why Kaishi 1.5k is the New Gold Standard Pure High-Frequency Words:
This guide covers what the deck is, why it’s better than alternatives like Tango or Core 2k/6k, and how to use it effectively.