Refined Method

I have been learning Chinese for 7 days. During this time I have had the opportunity to see what is easy and what is hard. I have also been able to figure out how to focus on the very simple aspects of the language and learn a large amount in a short time. The tones and pronunciation are difficult but become easier each day, almost to the point where I can see a word written in Pinyin and pronounce it correctly.

I have decided to come up with a new refined method for learning which is altering my original plan. The original plan I had was to pretty much stay on course with Rxsetta Stxne. Work with 4 Lessons and learn everything in it to include the Simplified Chinese characters. What I have found is - without trying - I am picking up the characters as I go without studying sheets of paper for hours. Which, by the way, is a deterrent for learning, because you spend so much time learning very little.

First a little background information. The question I ask myself is how many words do I need to know to get by at a basic high school level. At that level you have working knowledge of the language and a good vocabulary. In English the average person is far from knowing every single word in the language. You don't need to know every single word. A doctor or scientist is going to have extensive vocabulary pertaining to their profession, but it is unlikely they each know the others "special" language. I have read several sources that say you need to know anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000 words. One source I read said 60,000 words. I cannot imagine that being anywhere near the truth. Other sources say 4,000 to 6,000 for a college graduate.

A good experiment would be to write down every single word you speak for a week straight. Only write each word once. Type it into a database on the computer or excel. Put each word in alphabetical order. You can use that as your "Everyday" vocabulary. Then you need to consider there is "Special" vocabulary for events that do not occur every day.

My new plan of action is the following. Make several lists to include:
100 Verbs
100 Nouns
100 Adjectives

I believe these lists will take me a month to complete. After that I am going to write sentences that combine different parts. I am also signing up for a Chinese Social Network so I can get some friends and try this out. The more you use it, the better you learn. I will also find a few friends I can get on microphone/webcam with.

After using this list for 2-3 months, I am again going to make new lists with 100 of each. Let's say 300 words every 3 months. That will be 1200 words a year. About 3 words a day. I am sure this plan will be refined once again.