The Japanese Language Learning / Support Thread!

[itsukoii 1300]

what's your guys' preferred method of practicing your listening skills? it's something i really need to work on, but i'm not really sure how to go about it. listening to music seems like the most obvious method, but i don't really want to go searching for lyrics for every song i listen to.

 

(i'd like to read japanese subtitles as i listen to whatever my preferred method of practicing is, because my listening skills are shit lmao. i need to read and listen)

[violetchain 912]

1 hour ago, itsukoii said:

what's your guys' preferred method of practicing your listening skills? it's something i really need to work on, but i'm not really sure how to go about it. listening to music seems like the most obvious method, but i don't really want to go searching for lyrics for every song i listen to.

 

(i'd like to read japanese subtitles as i listen to whatever my preferred method of practicing is, because my listening skills are shit lmao. i need to read and listen)

Variety shows can be good for that because they use massive, easy to read subtitles to emphasize the important parts of what people are saying.

 

Ex.

 

[d4rkie 5]

I'll admit the best method of learning japanese is to be forced to speak it to survive (that's how I learned it, living in Japan atm). Before that, my preferred way of learning languages is to immerse myself in the media.

 

I'd recommend to watch "nichijou" (slice of life) anime titles as they usually have the least jargon and their vocabulary is pretty close to the day to day japanese.

For reading - I found reading manga with furigana (regardless of genre) to help getting used to the kanji a lot. 

[crossparallel 180]

I don't know why I found it only now, but if there are others with their head in the clouds like me, holy hell look at stackexchange's list of resources for learning Japanese! Could have saved me so much time.

I'm just beginning to study Japanese properly, but recently I've been spending some time translating songs, looking up the words and grammar on the go. Some bits of knowledge do end up sticking - maybe not as effective as dedicated learning, but certainly better than doing nothing at all.

Edit: Almost forgot! Kenneth G. Henshall's A Guide to Remembering Japanese Characters is wonderful for people like me who find remembering so much easier when there is some meaning or story attached to the characters, yet are annoyed with the randomness of Heisig's Remembering the Kanji and similar resources. Henshall takes more of a historical approach, looking at the etymology of kanji. [There's a new supposedly updated version going by The Complete Guide to Japanese Kanji, but I don't know how that compares.]

Edited November 29, 2016 by crossparallel

[len 67]

It's being a while I don't study so I won't give a proper explanation about each website, sorry, but somethings that might be useful:

 

I studied the grammar through this website: http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/

This one seems pretty complete too: http://thejapanesepage.com/

 

JapanesePod101: https://www.japanesepod101.com/

Their Youtube Channel so you can have a sample: https://www.youtube.com/user/japanesepod101

And their page to help memorizing Kanji: http://blogs.japanesepod101.com/blog/category/kanji-mnemonics/

Reviews of their material: http://www.nihongonobaka.com/japanesepod101-com-individual-season-reviews/

 

For Android I use the app Kanji Senpai, it's similar to Anki: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=jp.rodriguez.kanjisenpai.android&hl=pt_BR

 

This website it's a little like Erin's Challenge but I didn't use it yet to really compare: http://anime-manga.jp/index_english.html

 

Kana Practice: http://realkana.com/study/

 

JLPT Samples: http://www.jlpt.jp/tw/samples/forlearners.html

 

Japanese Verb Conjugator: http://www.japaneseverbconjugator.com/

 

Some dialogues: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1bs_XpoPXI&list=PLPgbV0XokpA2imKtO5WLJtIt87pUS64Ct

 

Dialogues with subtitles in Japanese and English: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzzweIQoIOU

 

I'll be adding more stuff I find useful and organize it better later...

Edited January 27, 2017 by len

[Chi 2624]

My favorites are http://imabi.net/ & http://maggiesensei.com/ which I used together with the good ol' Minna no Nihongo textbooks  

Haven't studied japanese in a looong time though.

Edited January 13, 2017 by seurong

[togz 2004]

Hey friends. I have the Genki I and II books in PDF file. If you're willing to studying with me and like skype call or video call to practice conversational skills I can send it your way. Doesn't have to be one person. I just really want to study consistently. 

[jaymee 405]

I also want to suggest that if/when you find a language partner, in the beginning it's best to find one the same gender as you. This is because the way girls and guys talk differs quite a lot, and I've met more than my fair share of non-Japanese dudes who have learned Japanese from their wives, and if I wasn't privy to that fact, I would have thought they were gay TBH.

 

Just to add to the list, resources I use a lot:

 

- http://tangorin.com (Dictionary)

 

- Typing something in Japanese you want to look up into Google and putting 英語 (English/eigo) after it. This method is usually better for me than just using Weblio alone. If nothing comes up in English, just replace 英語 with 意味 (meaning/imi). The latter is helpful for newer slang, as older Japanese also have trouble with it and often take to Ask sites for answers.

 

- I passed JLPT 2 a long time ago and keep telling myself that eventually I'm going to take the JLPT 1 exam just to have it on my resume, but in the meantime I've been using Sticky Study to memorize JLPT 1 vocab. I think I paid some money for the app, but it has all of the JLPT vocab and options to separate flashcards by how well you know them/need to review. Not having to wade through "filler" vocabulary and knowing exactly what will appear on the test alone made buying the app worth it to me.

[xtreme1 15]

On 11/20/2016 at 2:10 PM, itsukoii said:

what's your guys' preferred method of practicing your listening skills? it's something i really need to work on, but i'm not really sure how to go about it. listening to music seems like the most obvious method, but i don't really want to go searching for lyrics for every song i listen to.

 

(i'd like to read japanese subtitles as i listen to whatever my preferred method of practicing is, because my listening skills are shit lmao. i need to read and listen)

I use JPOD101 and podcasts, as well as skype calls with my tutor biweekly. I've been studying 2.5 years and honestly didn't think listening would continue to be as challenging as it is. Anime can also be useful, but I find its really easy to just zone out and go off of the video vs what they are saying (which can also be useful in its own right). Takes a lot of practice, but I don't actively have to try to improve my listening like I do writing, grammar, reading, etc.

[p0pp3r 27]

Hello. I'm Japanese...got linked to this thread so just saying I'm free to help (well, when I have spare time)
If you have any questions regarding Japanese language then let me know. 
As long as it's easy tasks like summarizing or grammar etc then I'm ok!!
In other words, I'll be ignoring anything time consuming like translating paragraphs  

 

Have a nice day!

[Seelentau 884]

えと…ボクは、過去に日本語を勉強した。そのとき、訳者でした。だが、今の日本語はダメです。とにかく、少しがわかります。

[Triangle 345]

Well, studying Japanese in uni as a major helped me have a base where to start from, but really everything I've learned for me to have a decent conversation in Japanese was somehow through shows and dramas. I used to not like Japanese dramas and variety shows that much but, since I pick up a language better if I listen, I kinda force myself to like it, to find positive stuffs in it. And it worked, I have my stack of dramas and variety shows I enjoy watching.

And really everything else I've done to learn Japanese was because I started listening to MUCC and all the videos I'd find were not translated in English, so I had to learn Japanese fast to understand what was happening, and to read their tweets (the gold nuggets vkey has are fantastic XD) and to try to understand their lyrics. I also use dictionaries a lot ( I have two apps on my iPhone : imiwa and one that's just called "Japanese" - it's by renzo inc.) and whenever I hear or see a word I don't know I look it up.

Also, for me, interacting with Japanese people was more than helpful. In my uni some Japanese people would come to study, we had  native teachers and some guests at our lectures, but really what worked for me in terms of actually having the courage to open up a conversation even if my Japanese is broken was interacting with people over Twitter who like the same bands I do, or share the same hobbies, or who are interested in other foreign cultures ( maybe not all of them XD).

And finally studying in Japan was really the best for me. Obviously if you go to the country whose language you're learning and stay there a while you pick up the language faster, so if any of you has the opportunity to get a scholarship or study abroad in Japan, if you can and have time there, I highly recommend finding a part-time job ( I know, duuuh captain obvious XD). It really helped me being forced to only speak Japanese as my coworkers didn't  know any other language I knew, also interacting with random people ( I worked at restaurant as a server) made me less shy to speak Japanese. Don't ever be ashamed if you make a mistake, you learn as you go, just try talking, even if you sound broken. And if you find people who make fun of you for speaking broken Japanese, don't waste your time with idiots like them ( just like every situation in general XD).

[monkeybanana4 1732]

Adding to the studying abroad in Japan topic, I would definitely recommend living with a host family. That way you'll be able to use the language even more and learn about the Japanese culture and its customs at the same time. It can be tricky trying to communicate with your Japanese host family, but don't worry! In my experience, they're very nice and willing to help you out with any problems. They can also provide useful tips and show you some things about the area/city/place you're studying/living in that you might otherwise not know about.

 

As for some resources...

Basic Kanji Book Vol. 1

Basic Kanji Book Vol. 2

 

My teachers recommended these books if you want to hone in on your writing skills. (I believe they also have intermediate and advanced levels.) I think they're okay and serve their purpose without overloading too much information on you. 

Edited October 13, 2018 by monkeybanana4

[Punk 5]

The basic question  to start a Chat : 

 

Eigo hanase masuka : understand english  ? 

[Elagabalus 4]

May I have a translation? 

How do you say "All for nothing" 

Or just "Sake of nothing" like doing something for the sake of nothing ya know? 

[Igyou_Hime 80]

I want to recomend the app (or their webpage for that matter) weblio. You can look up example sentences both in english and japanese!  I find it very convenient as it is not always possible to translate word by word but rather look at what the whole sentence want to convey.

[Elagabalus 4]

1 hour ago, Igyou_Hime said:

I want to recomend the app (or their webpage for that matter) weblio. You can look up example sentences both in english and japanese!  I find it very convenient as it is not always possible to translate word by word but rather look at what the whole sentence want to convey.

Thx!