READ FIRST

When review is homework, people close the list. A game shape is strong not because it is cute, but because it covers the meaning and makes you pull. The glow of “I know this” while you skim is a different memory from speaking under a clock. The round you lose is the expensive signal. Delete that card and the deck looks clean; a month later you meet the word as a stranger. The failure is collection plus homework. New words every weekday, a quiz dump on Sunday. When the queue becomes homework, the app closes. Five minutes is enough. Yesterday’s misses only; skip what you hit. Aim at a weekly count — five days — so an empty Tuesday does not kill the month. When you miss a day, do not repay the debt. Do today’s date only. You do not need a game. Fold the paper and flip five cards. The form is a tool. Retrieval is the article. Five cards tonight. That is also the whole of spaced repetition, if you let it be small. “I’ll build a review system first” is usually a polite way of saying you will not start.