Latest Posts by oliviasstudyblrshit - Page 8

Conversation topics for incoming college freshman

(Here’s a link to my tips for college freshman worried about how to make friends)

Hey! I’m Em, a socially awkward person who has yet to master the art of conversation. To help all you people who might feel the same, here are some questions to ask beyond the basic ‘where are you from?’ and ‘what’s your major?’ I hope you find it helpful and I hope you kill it at college!

1. What dorm are you in? Do you like it so far? 2. Did you know your roommate before you came to college? 3. Are there any clubs you’re looking to join? 4. What is the farthest place you’ve heard someone here is from? 5. Why did you choose your major? 6. Which dining hall is your favorite so far? 7. Do you have any pets at home? 8. What other colleges where you looking at before you chose this one? 9. Which class are you most excited for? 10. Have you gotten lost yet? 11. Do you know of any haunted buildings on campus? 12. Do you know any upperclassmen? 13. Are you interested in rushing/do you have any family involved in Greek life? 14. Opinions on astrology? (For some reason, college peeps are big on zodiac signs) 15. Biggest fear for the upcoming semester? 16. Do you have a car on campus? 17. Have you climbed the rock wall yet? 18. Are you looking to get a job this first semester? 19. Whats your favorite thing that you bought specifically for college? 20. Do you have a favorite meme?

Now, these are all pretty basic starting points, so remember that after they answer, give them a two part response. First, react to what they said. Then, add onto it to provide the other person with something to respond to. Good luck!

types of study breaks for every situation

if you realize you’ve been studying for hours: grab a snack to refuel your body and watch a sitcom to refuel your brain. then back to the books.

if you’re feeling stressed out: take some deep breaths, text your friends, maybe stare at a wall for a few minutes. gather yourself.

if you can’t seem to focus: get moving and get outside. take out the garbage, check your mail box, maybe walk your dog. just get moving and get fresh air. it’ll help bring you back.

if there’s something else going on in your life and you can’t get it off your mind: write down what’s going through your head, sort of like a diary entry. it’ll help you work things out.

if you’re just mentally and physically exhausted: set a timer for 25-30 minutes and take a nap. any longer and you’ll hit REM and you’ll wake up feeling just as tired. once you wake up, get some caffeine in you.

if the material is boring as hell: find another way to study. see if there’s a crash course video online about it or draw out what you’re trying to learn in diagrams and pictures to make it fun.

if people around you won’t shut up: listen to some music. soundtrack and classical music is always good because they won’t absorb you as much as music with lyrics. white noise (like ocean waves, rain sounds, etc.) also works.

if you only half understand a concept: call/message a friend who’s not in the class and try to teach the material to them. this will help you mentally work through the material and will help you remember it as well.

頑張ってください！// ig: studylustre

the habit tracker in the mossery undated academic planner has been a lifesaver when it comes to staying consistent with my language studies!! (pssst - if you’re interested in getting one of your own, use my code STUDYLUSTRE15 or click here for 15% off ✨) // ig: studylustre

How I Learn Languages

As an aspiring polyglot, it’s important that I have a bunch of resources at my disposal for language learning. I use a variety of resources for my learning, such as books, websites, apps, T.V. shows, movies, etc. Almost all of these resources are free too! These are some of my resources!

-Websites-

1. Omniglot

This website is more for finding information about languages and finding languages to learn. It has a very comprehensive list of languages and you can find plenty of secondary resources for learning the language. You can find tutors for that language, and even songs in your target language. I can just about guarantee you that no matter what language you’re looking for, it will be documented here. It is absolutely amazing, and it is a FANTASTIC resource for the dedicated linguist. Price- Free

http://www.omniglot.com/

2. Duolingo

This is both a website AND an app, however, I tend to use the website more frequently, mainly because I’m always on my laptop anyway. The learning system that this website uses makes out very easy to stay motivated, and the lessons are organized amazingly. Currently, the website offers about 27 different language courses for English speakers, and various language courses for speakers of languages other than English. You can set goals for yourself, take multiple courses, be involved in discussions, and even do translating activities. Beware though, it gets VERY addicting. Price- Free

https://www.duolingo.com

3. Memrise

Also a website AND an app, this is my all time favorite resource for learning languages. It has SO many languages to choose from, and it even offers subjects other than languages, although foreign language learning is its primary appeal factor. Price- Free

http://www.memrise.com/home/

4. BBC Languages

Although this sector of BBC has been archived and is no longer updated, it still contains some valuable information. It includes some useful phrases, alphabet guides, and jokes in many languages. You’re bound to learn something new there, so check it out! Price- Free

http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/

5. Foreign Service Institute (FSI)

This website offers language courses constructed by the U.S. government, and relies heavily on audio-based learning. However, many of the language courses include lessons in the form of pdf. There is a very large selection of languages to choose from, so this resource is very good for getting an excellent introduction to your target language. Price- Free

https://fsi-languages.yojik.eu/

6. Live Lingua Project

Claiming to be the internet’s largest collection of free public domain language learning materials, this website is a MUST for language learners. It contains the FSI courses, Peace Corps language learning materials, and the DLI (military) language courses. It also offers Skype sessions for language learners in several different languages! The main appeal of this website, however, is the Peace Corps language material archive. There are SO many different languages to choose from, and there are many ebooks and audio files to take advantage of here. Price- Free

https://www.livelingua.com/#project

7. Languages On the Web

This website offers texts that translate English texts into 55 other languages. It is not a translator, it merely provides reading material in foreign languages to learners. It is a very useful website, especially for analyzing how sentences are formed in other languages. Price- Free

http://www.lonweb.org/

8. Learn 101

This website is really helpful for explaining grammatical concepts and for learning general stuff about languages, such as verbs, vocabulary, nouns, adjectives, basic phrases, foods, etc. There are quite alot of languages offered on this website, so it’s a great resource! Price- Free (for certain features)

http://learn101.org/

9. Clozemaster

This website is great for learning languages through a sentence based, contextual experience. It’s a bit like Duolingo in that sense, and it requires you to fill in missing words from sentences. In my opinion, it’s better for people with a background in their target language, and they offer many different options for languages. It’s also good for speakers of a native language other than English! Price- Free

https://www.clozemaster.com/

10. Lexicity

This is a great website for ancient language learners, and it provides resources for Egyptian, Mayan, Hittite, Latin, Old English, Etruscan, Gaulish, and several others. I have found the majority of resources that I have looked through helpful to my learning efforts. They have dictionaries, grammars, charts, and texts, and it is a very comprehensive resource. Price- Free

http://lexicity.com/

11. Book2

This is a good resource for learners looking for audio files to help them practice their listening. I haven’t used it all too much, but there are many language options, so you’re bound to find a language that you find interesting on here. Price- Free

http://www.goethe-verlag.com/book2/

12. Lang-8

This is a great resource for getting feedback on your writing in your target language. You can post things in your target language, and native speakers of that language will correct it, and you can do the same for other people! It’s very helpful, and is a great resource if you have to write in your target language often. Price- Free

http://lang-8.com/

13. Bilinguis

This website offers a few books to read in different languages and is good for comparing different languages of the same book. This makes for good practice for reading in your target language. Price- Free

http://bilinguis.com/

14. Udemy

There are quite a few languages courses on this website, although several of them cost money. However, there are quite a few courses that are free, and are good for introducing you to your language of choice. Price- Varies depending on the course, however, there are some free ones

https://www.udemy.com/courses/

-Apps- [For this, I can only give the price for iPhones, however, I am relatively sure that these should be the same price in the Android store]

1. Memrise

As mentioned above in the websites section, this app is so amazing for on-the-go language learning, as well as for subjects other than languages! It helps users memorize concepts with “meme” which are pictures that will remind you of what the word or concept means, and it’s such a unique and fun learning experience! It has the feel of using flashcards, but I just love using this app so much. Price- Free

2. Duolingo

Also mentioned in the websites section, this app is great for both learning new words and reviewing words that you have either memorized or have just been exposed to. There are grammar lessons available, translation activities, groups that you can join, and Duolingo makes it fun to learn a language with it’s reward system. Price- Free

3. HelloTalk

This is my absolute FAVORITE app to talk to native speakers of my target language(s). You can become language partners with people, help others with translations, video/voice call, send voice messages, and have as many partners as you want! It’s an absolutely amazing app, and I highly recommend it to everyone! Warning- If you’re a native English speaker looking for a native Chinese speaker, you will get HUNDREDS of requests. It might overwhelm you for a second. Price- Free

4. TuneIn Radio

This is really great for finding stations in your target language, and it helps with practicing both comprehension of spoken language as well as introduces you to awesome music in your target language! Price- Free

5. Tigercards

This app presents words in the form of lists, and gives you vocab so that you can review it. Not the best presentation of words and it doesn’t really offer a memorization technique like Memrise, but it’s still helpful! Price- Free

6. Busuu

This app is a bit like Duolingo, and it offers German, Spanish, Portuguese, French, English, Italian, Russian, Polish, Turkish, Japanese, and Chinese! Price- Free

7. uTalk

This app offers so many different languages, it’s pretty incredible. There are games that you can play, phrasebooks, and several other features. The interface is also really awesome and simple, so it makes learning easier than usual. Definitely a must have. Price- Free

8. Innovative Language

I haven’t used this app much, but I have heard that the lessons on this app are very good, and you can download the lessons so that you can view them offline. Price- Free

9. FlashSticks

This has been super helpful to me, in addition to the games and flashcards that it offers, it also provides an object scanner, which uses your camera to scan objects and then tells you what it’s called in your target language! Price- Free

10. Mondly

This has been an awesome resource for me since it’s a bit like Duolingo, only with more unique language options. I’m currently using it to learn Hindi, however, there are tons of other language options. The interface is awesome, and I love using it. Price- Free

11. MindSnacks

This company makes several different language apps, and currently I’m using the Mandarin, Japanese, and French ones. So far, I’ve really enjoyed these apps! Price- Free

12. Spotify

Through Spotify’s “Word” category, there are many different playlists dedicated to language learning, such as for Arabic, Mandarin, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Russian, Portuguese, and Swedish! Price- Free

13. Quizlet

This is more of a diy language learning resource. It is not an inherent language learning resource, however, if you learn best through lists and/or flashcards, then this app allows you to make cards and review vocab that way! I use it all the time for exams! Price- Free

14. FluentU

This is an awesome app for watching videos in your target language, and is really good for learning new words. Price- the app is free, but the service is $15 per month or $120 per year

-Books-

1. Teach Yourself

This series offers an astounding number of languages, and I have found them to be pretty effective in helping me learn languages. I have used the Russian, Arabic, Mandarin, and Irish ones.

2. Barron’s Grammar and Verb books

I really like the way Barron’s does language books, so far I have used their Japanese grammar book and their Russian verbs book, and I really like the layout of them, especially the grammar book!

3. Dk Visual Bilingual Dictionaries

These are so helpful for me, I’ve been using the Mandarin and Japanese dictionaries for a long time, and they are so comprehensive and awesome!

4. Ethnologue

These aren’t language “learning” materials, but rather they help me find new languages to learn. These are more for the linguistic lovers, since they catalog almost every living language in the world in every country, and provide language maps and statistics. There’s really fascinating stuff in those books, so I highly recommend purchasing them. 

5. The “Dirty” books

So far, I have only used the Japanese version, however, I really like what the book includes, and it’s great for learning slang in your target language, and things that traditional textbooks wouldn’t teach you.

6. Living Language

I LOVE these books so much, I’ve used the Russian, Mandarin, and French ones and I’ve found them very helpful! The layout of these are very nice, and they’re pretty comprehensive.

7. Tuttle books

Tuttle offers several different language books, and they all are very good in my opinion. I have used their books for Arabic, Korean, Mandarin, Japanese, and Hindi.

That’s all that I have right now, but if you all would like more resources than I will definitely make a second one!

I'm at a N5 level and I'm wanting to find youtubers the speak natural Japanese. The only Japanese youtubers I know are mimei and The Japanese Man Yuta. Do you know any channels that are Reaction/Interview/A laid back video? A lot of my english ytbers don't scream/swear(constantly)/etc. If you can help, thank you.

バイリンガール英会話 – lifestlye & travel

Chiaki – makeup, fashion & lifestyle (lives in the uk)

こんどうようぢ – makeup, lifestyle & lgbt+

Ami Morita – makeup, lifestyle & fashion

LIFE OF MIYU – lifestyle & fashion

和田さん。チャンネル – makeup & fashion

藤子さき – makeup & lifestyle

たかねんわーるど – lifestyle

日本語の森 – Japanese language information

三本塾 – Japanese language & culture information

禁断ボーイズ – fun & games

すしらーめん – fun & games

はじめしゃちょー – fun & games

東海オンエア – fun & games

さんこいち – fun & games

hatomugi ASMR – ASMR

華凛 – ASMR

Latte ASMR – ASMR (Japanese, English & Korean)

Sorry this took so long! I have quite a long YouTube subscription list and I wanted to make sure I organized it a little bit too. A few of these YouTubers are from Kansai (like 禁断ボーイズ) so their Japanese may be more difficult or not sound as refined as the other YouTubers, but I recommend all of them 😊

Hello! I am a beginner to learning Japanese and I was wondering if you had any workbooks you recommend or websites you use,etc. I'm kind of stuck because I dont know where to start. I'd really appreciate if you could help me 😄

I highly recommend Maggie Sensei’s website! She’s so helpful, and her explanations are really thorough. Also, she’s on Twitter so you can tweet her if you’re unsure of something, and she answers comments too 😊

hi! do you know any vocabulary books? or websites/apps(besides a dictionary) that teach vocabulary? a lot of the vocabulary on tumblr/etc idk if it's accurate and i want to reach N4 soon. apologies if this sounds rude ^ ^ こんばんは

It doesn’t sound rude at all! I double check Tumblr vocabulary too (especially with natives) and make sure to get mine double-checked because it’s really easy to just put anything on the Internet these days. ✍🏻

Good vocabulary books are usually just textbooks! I’m a huge fan of the Genki series because I think their vocab is broken up really well. If you’re specifically studying for N4, I’d recommend getting your hands on N4 vocab books! 

新完全マスター has a whole series for vocabulary, kanji, and grammar. The books aren’t too expensive either!

日本語総まとめ also has a ton of good books for vocabulary that are geared towards N4

I also really like the 日本語能力試験完全模試シリーズ because just like the previous two, it has books geared towards each level and you can pick what you want to study (so there’s a whole vocab book)

はじめての日本語能力検定試験Ｎ４単語１５００

Truthfully, I recommend heading over to Kinokuniya’s website and searching “N4.” Tons of information comes out for books you can find and order online! 

As for apps, I love news apps! You can usually find kanji + vocab in tandem, and it’s a great way to practice your reading skills as well. Totally recommend! Apps like NHK for School or Easy Japanese are great for this. I also really like StickyStudy (I think it’s only available for iPhones though?). There is TONS of vocabulary broken up by JLPT level.

I hope this helps! My favorite vocabulary builder is WaniKani, but it does cost a bit of money to get past the first 3 levels and unlock the whole 60 level program. Definitely worth it in my opinion, but it does take some time to complete as well.

A GUIDE TO JAPANESE PITCH ACCENT

Japanese pitch accent is something so rarely taught in Japanese language classrooms – or textbooks for that matter – that learners from beginner to advanced levels have no idea what it is. Pitch accent is called 高低（こうてい）アクセント in Japanese, and it refers to the high and low pitches placed on Japanese words in order to help distinguish them from other, similar-sounding words.

For example, let’s look at 橋 端 and 箸. All 3 of these kanji are read “はし,” but the difference is that the first はし means bridge, the second means edge, and the third means chopsticks. But how are you supposed to differentiate these words outside of context or reading their kanji?

Pitch accent.

There are a lot of Japanese natives that don’t even understand what 高低アクセント is, but it’s what makes or breaks native- versus foreign-sounding speech. While in context a native will understand that the かえる you mean is 帰る (to return) and not 蛙 (frog), one is pronounced differently, and using 蛙’s pitch accent where 帰る’s would be used is something a native will notice.

DISCLAIMER: This is not a full lesson on pitch accent, but merely an introduction and overview. At the end I’ve listed additional resources to further Japanese pitch accent study, but it’s something that takes time and effort. A single Tumblr guide will not teach you Japanese pitch accent.

TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Introduction & FAQ 2. Essential Vocabulary 3. Indicating Pitch Accent 4. Golden Rules 5. Examples 6. Additional Resources 7. Conclusion

Keep reading

hello there! i would like to ask if you know any sites where i can practice reading japanese? like news sites, manga sites, or sites that offer free e-books that are in japanese. and are there any japanese podcasts that i can listen to? thank you in advance for answering this question. it'd mean a whole to me!

Hey there! There are actually quite a few recommended sites for Japanese learners, so I’ll link them right now :)

Japanese IO – I’ve used this site quite a few times and I love the interface! The design is really sleek and “to the point,” so there’s no distractions from what you’re trying to do, which is practice reading Japanese. It also has a great library and look-up feature.

朝日学生新聞社 – This is the “kid’s version” of the more adult 朝日新聞社. If you don’t feel that you’re quite up for the adult version, test out the version geared towards kids. They have fewer articles, but there’s plenty for a learner to pick through.

NHK NEWS EASY – I’m almost positive this is one of the most famous ones for learners. It’s similar to Asahi’s kid newspaper – articles are condensed with easier kanji and vocabulary, and it’s geared towards children, so learners can spend some time combing through updated articles and testing their skills.

Yahoo! Kids – More short news articles geared towards easier-to-understand Japanese.

MATCHA – A fun magazine similar in style to NHK EZ.

Watanoc – Another magazine-type site with a variety of articles.

Traditional Japanese Stories – Get your hands on some easily printed Japanese stories that are told to children. Great for language skills and culture! Similar to English pop culture stories (like Cinderella and so on), Japan has its own fairytales that are occasionally referenced.

Fuku Musume’s Fairy Tale Collection – More stories!

World of チョコチョコ – These are beginner stories, but as you progress you can read other stories on this website.

EhonNavi – Read hundreds of Japanese picture books for free!

If you’re looking for more advanced content…

NHK – Japan’s national broadcaster. You can read articles as well as stream audio and video (may be blocked depending on location).

毎日新聞 – Moderate/left-leaning national newspaper

朝日新聞 – Left-leaning national newspaper

読売新聞 – Conservative national newspaper

東洋経済オンライン – A well-known business and finance magazine.

Project Gutenberg (Japanese) – Get access to a ton of out-of-print and classical books for free.

小説家になろう – A site where authors can publish their works online in exchange for reviews.

青空文庫 – Another site where you can get older and out-of-print novels.

University of Virginia Japanese Text Initiative – Another place to access novels in Japanese for free (with the option to read them with furigana).

ComicWalker – Free manga from the publisher Kadokawa. There’s an app too!

最前線 – You can read some manga online for free.

コミコ – More free Japanese manga available here!

キナリノ – A woman’s lifestyle blog which covers fashion, cooking, decor, and more!

Magazine Lib – You can read PDFs of Japanese magazines.

1000文字小説 – A place where users can submit 1000 characters or less stories. 

I also highly recommend starting a Twitter (if you don’t already have one) and following Japanese accounts. I follow a lot of feminist and political accounts so that I’m learning words relevant to my interests, as well as interacting with people that are discussing topics of interest to me (i.e. women and their place in Japanese society).

If you’re curious, you can find me on Twitter at @sydney0313 :)

I hope this list proves useful to you! (And others.)

頑張ってください！

What books did you use to help you learn japanese (grammar&vocabulary)? Can you recommend me anything?(I’m at a beginner level)

I actually use more websites than books, but the main books I’ve used are the grammar dictionaries that are kind of famous (or so it seems).

There are three of them (each about $40-50 each):

A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar

A Dictionary of Intermediate Japanese Grammar

A Dictionary of Advanced Japanese Grammar

These books are amazing. Basic is enough to get you at least to N4 and a little into N3 level grammar, while Advanced is N1 and highly complex stuff. 

I really regret not buying Intermediate and Advanced when I was in Japan because the entire Basic book is all review for me, and I should’ve bought Intermediate at least so I could practice more. Cryingggg.

If you can, try to buy these in Japan! They’re a lot cheaper. Only around ¥3000 per book or something like that?

to the anon struggling with the kanji memrise course, there is also some just in kana, such as course 29267 which is for Genki 1 or 258569 which is N5 grammar for beginners. (I can't link the courses in an ask, but you can put 'course/258569' in the memrise URL, hope this helps ^^

for the anon ^

thanks for the tip 💖

hello! i'm only starting to learn japanese and i'm finding it hard to know where i should start with the kanji. do you really have to learn kanji separately and memorize both their pronunciations or can you just learn the kanji in the vocabulary?

omg no! don’t stress yourself out like that anon!!

okay, i’m going to be real with the japanese language learning community: you all are doing waaaaaaaay too much when it comes to kanji.

there. i said it.

learning kanji does not have to be a headache!

i spent the first 6 months of my japanese learning “career” (for lack of a better word) trying to figure out the best way to learn kanji because every website and book was like “here’s the kunyomi, here’s the onyomi, now learn them both” but the fine print of that learning method says “you’re going to f*cking struggle”

but then i started realizing that kanji i read all of the time, i didn’t even “properly” study like those articles said. i didn’t know the kunyomi and onyomi for 行 for ages, but i knew it was read いく in 行く and こう in words like 旅行 and 直行. because i learned those words in context and on their own.

a few months after i came to japan, i started asking japanese people how they learned kanji and every single one of them answered the same way: they learn through vocabulary. i once asked my boyfriend how he learned kanji in grade school, and he said that they were basically given a kanji, and then they were given a list of vocabulary that included that kanji. they then memorized the vocabulary and grew to know the kunyomi and onyomi readings.

which, spoiler: kunyomi and onyomi is not always an accurate measure. lots of compounds use the kunyomi, some of them add dakuten (as in ちゅうごく instead of ちゅうこく in 中国), and others add っ (as in ちょっこう instead of ちょこう in 直行). this really isn’t something you can just magically guess.

but it’s important to remember that everyone learns differently. i don’t learn individual kanji – i learn kanji within various vocabulary words. i make sure to get as much exposure to the various ways a single kanji can appear within a larger compound, so 高 is not just a single kanji, but it is 高い and 高校生 and 高価.

i do, however, think it’s important to understand the meaning of a kanji. this can help you decipher the meaning of a word you don’t know yet. for example, 高価 (こうか) means “high price.” 高 means high and 価 means price. knowing their meaning individually can help decipher the meaning.

in this way you can argue that yes, knowing the individual readings of these two kanji makes guessing the reading of this word easier, but 価 can also be read “ke"! you can’t guarantee an accurate reading all of the time, but with more and more exposure to individual kanji, you will be able to tell.

which brings me to my main point: learning kanji is an individual experience. i, personally, think that learning onyomi and kunyomi readings for 2,000+ jouyou kanji is a HUGE WASTE OF TIME, but there are a lot of people out there that do this methodically and know lots and lots of kanji and vocabulary. i, personally, need kanji in a larger vocabulary word in order for it to stick, and my brain just catalogues the various readings away. that’s how my brain works and learns, but it’s not how everyone else works and learns. 

it’s important to find what works for you.

that being said, if you’re just starting out i highly recommend Jakka. it’s a website meant for japanese grade school teachers and has tons of grade school kanji material broken up into their appropriate grades. japanese school children are expected to learn and master a certain amount of kanji + vocabulary each grade level, so if you’d really like to learn like a child, learn like the school children do! (the website is in japanese but fairly simple to navigate.)

i hope this helps a little anon! and remember that learning kanji isn’t a race. if it takes you awhile to learn them, don’t worry. everyone learns languages differently.

I want to try learning Kanji and I think I want to try it your way w having a kanji and the list of vocabulary the kanji it is in. Was it a teacher or yourself that made those lists?

I made the lists! I made them based off of the jouyou kanji break down (this list is all over the internet). So I’m learning grade-by-grade, and just learning common vocabulary attached to those particular kanji. It’s possibly a more grueling process, but it’s helping me.

I also use WaniKani, which uses a slightly similar system of learning kanji in vocabulary. They do teach readings first, however.

hi i really want to learn kanji/katakana but i dont know where to start

Hi! Yeah, Japanese can be really daunting at first because it feels like there’s so much to learn and many places to start. I’m not sure whether or not you know hiragana already, but I’m going to list the way I started with Japanese kana (hiragana + katana) and then moved on to kanji. ლ(╹◡╹ლ)

Anything in bold is something I use/used/highly recommend!

1. LEARNING THE KANA ALPHABETS (HIRAGANA + KATAKANA)

I personally recommend learning the alphabets separately. Master one alphabet (I recommend hiragana first because it’s what you’ll use the most), and then move on to the next. I spent 2 days learning and mastering hiragana, and then slowly mastered katakana over a period of a few weeks because hiragana is everywhere, but katakana wasn’t an immediate concern for me. Obviously you need to learn both, but if you know hiragana you can jump into grammar, kanji, and other lessons while slowly mastering your katakana skills and becoming familiar with that alphabet through katakana vocabulary.

Here are some kana resources to try out!

Learn Hiragana: Tofugu’s Ultimate Guide *

Learn Katana: Tofugu’s Ultimate Guide *

Hiragana Drag-n-Drop

Katakana Drag-n-Drop

StickyStudy (phone app; on-the-go flashcards for learning kana)

Real Kana (quizzes you in different fonts to help you get used to different styles)

Practice katakana with Pokémon

* I’m not personally a fan of mnemonics, but I know a lot of people swear by them so it’s worth trying them and seeing if they work for you!

Both kana alphabets will become easier with exposure, so just keep practicing them over and over! 

2. KANJI

Okay, so I’m going to be honest – everyone learns kanji differently. Some people benefit from just writing them 100 times, other people need flashcards, and some people can see them 2 or 3 times and remember them forever. You’re going to have to find the best way to learn for you, but the following resources will at least get you started. The rest is up to you ^^

Japanesetest4you – a good way to learn kanji is in vocabulary words, so once you’ve learned hiragana you can jump right in to learning new vocabulary and mastering kanji along the way! I love this websites way of splitting vocab into JLPT levels

StickyStudy (phone app) – this costs ~$9.99, but is unbelievably useful because it has kanji split into grade levels, allows you to decide how many you see everyday, and so on. I also like that I can use it on the go!

MindSnacks (phone app) – also lets you practice kana, but can expose you to kanji in a fun, game-like format

WaniKani – people have mixed feelings about this website because it works for some and not for others, but the first 3 levels are free so you can get your feet wet and decide if it’s right for you!

Memrise courses

This N5 verb list – a good start to basic, common kanji you should learn!

TEXTBOOKS + BOOKS

Genki – as far as I know, this is one of the most popular textbooks for learning Japanese and I can vouch they’re really good. They teach certain amounts of kanji each lesson and expose you to those kanji continuously, eventually removing the furigana to force your brain to remember the kanji reading + meaning alone!

Basic Kanji Book – I’ve personally never used this, but I see it everywhere on langblr and it seems like a popular way to start learning kanji

When it comes to kanji, I think it’s important to understand how to read them and understand how they work in Japanese. Almost every kanij has multiple readings. Kunyomi (訓読み) is the Japanese reading and is generally used when one kanji is by itself, while the onyomi (音読み) is the Chinese reading and appears in compounds.

For example: the kanji 話, when by itself, is read はなし (story), or はな (as in the verb ‘to speak’ - 話す, hanasu). However, when found in a compound such as telephone (電話 でんわ), the kanji is read as わ/wa. I recommend reading Tae Kim’s Guide on kanji to further understand them! Understanding how kanji operate in Japanese was really helpful for my own learning.

I think it’s also important to remember that even Japanese people didn’t learn kanji all at once! They learned them by grade, learning anywhere for 80-140 kanji per year until they were in high school. These are called The Jouyou Kanji (常用漢字) and are essentially the 2,000+ kanji Japanese people are expected to know by the government. You can learn more about them here and here.

Good luck with your studies and I hope this helps! 

Personally, i agree with your point of view on the Japanese YouTubers community.It gets tiring and sometimes confusing.I have always been conflicted about whether the content is helofu4and informative for me or not.I am not condemning their content; it just seems to be aimed at entertainment seekers.(regardless there may be informative channels out there, but i haven't followed any for many years now). Please stay safe and remember that sharing your relationship is a double-edged sword of sorts.

That was when I finally decided to stop watching their content – when I realized it no longer felt healthy/beneficial for me. I just spent a lot of time feeling annoyed with it, or feeling like it wasn’t really entertaining anymore.

There are a lot of channels with informative content! Abroad In Japan (Chris) is great. He’s really honest about Japan, and he posts a lot about culture and travel. I also really love his sense of humor, and I love that he’s up to try new things and is respectful of the culture at the same time.

I also love Bilingirl Chika! Her fun mix of English and Japanese makes her videos both a learning tool for language and culture and entertaining to watch. She makes a lot of videos about Japan, life hacks, language tips, and more! Her personality is so bubbly and fun, and she’s really positive but realistic in her videos. She deserves way more followers than she has!

The final favorite is KemushiChan (Loretta). Her Japanese is really good, and she’s currently getting her masters degree in Japan! She has a lot of videos in Japanese, and she often features other Japanese YouTubers on her channel. She posts a lot of informative and helpful content about learning the language and “normal” life in Japan. I think she’s awesome!

I didn’t mean to turn this into a recommendation thing, but because I keep talking a bit negatively about foreign Japanese YouTube, I wanted to share a few channels I do love! A little positivity never hurt anybody, eh? Lol.

For anyone looking to expand their Japanese vocabulary a little bit, here’s a complete list of the kanji and vocabulary I need for my kanji midterm! It’s got 167 words on it, divided into 2 levels – one that tests English to kana, and another that tests kana to kanji. Feel free to use this to branch your vocabulary out a bit! It’s full of words like 手術 and 針金 and 職業 and 刺す and 美術館 and 御馳走. Have fun!

I’ll add 2 more levels at the end of the semester when I need to review for my final exam ^^

Sorry to be a pain but I was wondering if you had any Japanese children’s book recommendations? I’m a beginner (just learned hiragana and katakana and only know very basic phrases and vocabulary) and I was also wondering if you had an advice on how to read them? For example as I am a very beginner beginner I won’t know many words so should I start but reading paragraph by paragraph and translating everything I don’t know? Thank you 💕

First of all, sorry for late reply! I was busy these past weeks, that I only opened Tumblr yesterday.

I recommend this site for the Japanese children’s book. Notice that I did not recommend you a particular book, because I believe that each children book gives joy, and I want you to enjoy reading each one of them (^o^)

For the reading part, I suggest you to know first the meaning of each word, before reading it by paragraph. In this way, not only you learn the meaning, but also understand the content of the story. Make a flash card (like Anki deck) so you can memorize easily each word you have to learn (^_-)

I hope I was able to help you @jupiturde!

Apps for learning Kanji

Japanese kanji study - 漢字学習  

This app is great for learning kanji. You will learn the meaning, reading, different vocabulary, sentences, and my favorite feature of all: stroke order! You can also take a quiz by using this app (^_-)

 Take note that if you want to access all JLPT level, you have to purchase it. The price is cheaper compared to buying books (but I think it depends on country. Here in the Philippines, Kanji practice books are expensive.) 

NHK Japanese - Easy learner 

I use this app to practice my reading skills . It contains articles that are easy to read and understand. You can set your article to show 振りがな (ふりがな - kana over kanji to indicate pronunciation). When you click the kanji, it will show its meaning

You can play the audio, so you can imitate the pronunciation of each word. You can also download the article to read/listen offline.

NHK News Reader

Another app that I use to practice my reading skills, but this contains difficult article.

The same as the previous app, you can set it to show furigana, and you can click the kanji to read its meaning

Takaboto: Japanese Dictionary This is an offline dictionary. I really love this app because you can also learn each kanji used on the word, and also their stroke order.

I always use this app whenever I use the previous NHK app. This helps me to understand the meaning more. 

You can also learn how the word can be used on sentence by clicking the phrase tab.

I hope this will help for those who plan to study Kanji. 

N5 - N1 need to know

This website has documents, audio files, and other resources set up by N level. Happy studies!

Do you know any Japanese Language tumblrs ?

Here are some!

@themoonwascrimson

@orenjisupeesu

@japaneselangblr

@mellolearnsjapanese

@nihongonogakusei

@japanese-langblr

@shubsx

@aidoku

@miro-yo

@twiguyslangblr

@travellingtojapan

@kohi-kumo

@study-stream

@jpnlangblr

@miuna-lngblr

@mango-learns-nihongo

@errgative

@keytoanothergalaxy

@strawblondiestudies

@bakadesu-studyblr

@learnjp

@esterse

x

社会・歴史・世界・地理・公民　のディジタル教科書！JP TEXTBOOKS

As promised, there are the Japanese textbooks in my dropbox. I hope they are useful to you! They’re individual links, some are big.  Included is: Society (from 4th to 6th grade), History, World/Geography and Civics. I’m sorry I don’t have the time to fully recheck everything, so I think I put one pdf in more than one folder. Please forgive me for the inconvenience ;~;! If there’s a problem with one of them please tell me so I can replace it. 

社会

４年：X, X, X, X

５年：X, X, X, X, X

６年：X, X, X, X, X

歴史 : X, X, X

地理・世界 : X, X, X, X, X, X, X

公民: X, X, X, X, X

If you want MORE resources for a subject hmu. I can recommend you resources, lectures and videos for the following subjects: politics, international relations, geography, history. I can also help you find jp textbooks on amazon if you want to buy something on these subjects.

喜んで読んでみてください！♥

hello there! are there any sites that can help me practice reading in japanese for free? like news sites, manga sites, or sites that provide free e-books to read. also, can you recommend any japanese podcasts that can help me in my listening practice? thank you for answering this question!

Manga Library Z (Jコミ) has a bunch of out-of-print manga available

E-hon and Ehon hiroba are both good for picture books.

Hukumusume has classic tales. This one has the option to use parallel text with English.

NHK Easy News. any underlined words have a J-J popup dictionary entry attached to them.

Matcha for easy travel articles

Aozora Bunko for copyright expired books. Might be easier to use with an app. Just plug 青空文庫 into your app store and a few options should pop up.

Syosetu and Pixiv are good for finding fanfiction, pixiv has a lot of original stories mixed in there as well.

The podcasts I reccomend are the same as the ones Asta already recommended ＾＾;　ひいきびいき and Muggles’ Giggles You could also check out the RadioJapan app to listen to japanese radio stations or try browsing for Japanese Ted talks.

My first proper spread in a new journal, I’m trying to figure out how I want to set it up so it’s a bit messy :/ (also, little quote in bottom right is from @phoebe-does, not me)

student reset routine - how to get back on track ⛅

hello everyone. in today’s blog post i’ll be sharing with you tips to reset and prepare yourself for a new week! 

planning and productivity

catch up on any incomplete homework 

declutter old papers from your folders

plan and schedule for the week

write your notes and do your worksheets

empty out the trash in your bag

finish up all your tasks

digital declutter

unsubscribe from pesky newletters

delete useless photos

clear your inbox

delete unused social media accounts

turn off unnecessary notifications

turn on ‘do not disturb’ mode

uninstall miscellaneous apps, if possible

personal wellbeing

do some stretching or light yoga

drink water

turn on the diffuser and put some lavender essential oil

go for a walk

take a shower

wash your face

i hope you enjoyed this post - and have a great week ahead! 💖

p.s let me know what you think of my new content! how can i improve? let me know in the comments section below, thank you! 

11/100 // 08.17.2019

🎵 Kool Aid - KIRBY

A week until my SAT subject tests and my teachers gave 5 hours of homework 😩. Posted this completed bujo spread because having everything checked off after so long is soooo satisfying.

This week on my Bujo 🥰