Dealing with unfamiliar scripts:
Phonetic scripts (alphabets, abugidas, abjads and syllabaries)
For phonetic scripts, it may help to use the names of famous people and see how many you recognize. Note that if the sign changes according to its position (like Arabic), you may need more practice examples. With the most complex scripts, comparing look-alike characters and writing exercises can help. The quicker you can get rid of the romanized script, the better.
More complex scripts (Ideographs, rebus etc.)
With more complex scripts (hanzi, kanji, hieroglyphs etc.), there should be a superscript transcription for beginners. You progressively delete the transcribed words you can read aloud when hiding the transcription (practice difficult sentences often). It can help to study meaning or sound components using mnemonic devices and to make a list of similar-looking signs, so you work on telling them apart. The more you write the new signs down and read them aloud, the quicker they will stick. However, since these scripts can contain thousands of characters, becoming able to read fluently without superscript might take many years and depends entirely on exposure (i.e. on how many texts are available to you).
