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Master Japanese
How to Learn Nihongo the Fun Way
John Fotheringham Edition 7.0, PDF
Master Japanese How to Learn Nihongo the Fun Way
John Fotheringham Edition 7.0, PDF
Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham Cover & book design by Ninjetic Designs All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.
Table of Contents
Contents Start Here .......................................................28 How to Use This Guide ......................................................................................29 The learning happens out there, not in this guide ........................................................................................................29 You don’t need to read the entire guide........................................................................................................................29 You don’t need to read the guide in order.....................................................................................................................29
Guide Format...................................................................................................30 All web links are clickable.............................................................................................................................................30 Cross-referenced sections are hyperlinked....................................................................................................................30 All Japanese terms are presented in roumaji, kanji, and kana ......................................................................................30 Japanese names are presented in Japanese order.........................................................................................................31 Gender-specific words are marked................................................................................................................................31 Zero subjects and objects are shown in brackets ..........................................................................................................31
Complete Package Bonuses ................................................................................32 Expert Interviews .........................................................................................................................................................32 Free EPUB & MOBI Editions of the Guide .......................................................................................................................34 Free Lifetime Updates...................................................................................................................................................35 Print-Ready Cheat Sheets & Worksheets.......................................................................................................................35 A Free Copy for One Person of Your Choosing ................................................................................................................36 $29 Off Any LinguaLift Package ....................................................................................................................................36 Up to $30 Off Skritter....................................................................................................................................................37
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15% Off a JapanesePod101.com Account .....................................................................................................................38 20% Off a LingQ.com Basic or Premium Account ..........................................................................................................39 50% Off Everyday Language Learner guides.................................................................................................................40
FAQs ...............................................................................................................41 Who is Master Japanese For? ........................................................................................................................................41 Why did I create Master Japanese? ...............................................................................................................................42 You don’t have a PhD after your name. Why should I trust your advice?........................................................................42 Why learn Japanese at all?............................................................................................................................................42 What do I mean by “mastery”? .....................................................................................................................................43 How long will it take to learn Japanese?.......................................................................................................................45
The Master Japanese Road Map.........................................................................46 Phase 1: Master the Basics ...........................................................................................................................................47 Phase 2: Sharpen Your Sword.......................................................................................................................................49 Phase 3: Get Your Black Belt.........................................................................................................................................51
Fundamentals...................................................54 Kill the Myths ...................................................................................................54 Myth: You’re Not Good at Languages ............................................................................................................................54 Myth: You’re Too Old to Learn Japanese ........................................................................................................................55 Myth: You Have to Move to Japan ................................................................................................................................57 Myth: You Need to Attend Classes ................................................................................................................................58 Myth: Japanese is Difficult............................................................................................................................................59 Myth: Japanese is Vague...............................................................................................................................................62 Myth: Japanese is Illogical ............................................................................................................................................63
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Myth: It’ll Take You Decades to Learn Japanese ............................................................................................................63
How to Create Good Goals & Stick to Them .........................................................64 Create “S.M.A.R.T.” Goals ...............................................................................................................................................64 Make Japanese Your Mission.........................................................................................................................................66 Make Japanese a Habit .................................................................................................................................................66 Utilize the Power of Public Accountability ....................................................................................................................68
How to Make Time For Japanese .......................................................................70 Put First Things First .....................................................................................................................................................70 Apply the 80-20 Rule....................................................................................................................................................71 Batch Repetitive Tasks ..................................................................................................................................................72 Harness Hidden Moments ............................................................................................................................................72
How to Make the Most of Your Time ..................................................................73 Appreciate the Difference Between Efficiency & Efficacy ..............................................................................................73 Practice Deliberately.....................................................................................................................................................73 Leverage the Zeigarnik Effect .......................................................................................................................................74 Limit Distractions .........................................................................................................................................................75
How to Immerse in Japanese Anywhere in the World ...........................................76 Sample Immersion Schedule ........................................................................................................................................78 Label Everything in Japanese .......................................................................................................................................81 Change Your Devices to Japanese .................................................................................................................................82 Optimize Your Browser..................................................................................................................................................83 Recommended Web Browsers ......................................................................................................................................84 Recommended Firefox Add-Ons ...................................................................................................................................85
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Recommended Chrome Extensions ..............................................................................................................................86 Recommended Safari Extensions..................................................................................................................................87
Recommended Methods .....................................89 Learn the Natural Way .....................................................................................89 Avoid the Grammar-Translation Method ......................................................................................................................90 Avoid Rote Memorization .............................................................................................................................................91 Utilize Multiple Intelligences ........................................................................................................................................93 Maximize Input and Output .........................................................................................................................................95 Break through the “Affective Filter” ..............................................................................................................................96
Learn Through Action .......................................................................................98 Learn a Japanese Art Form............................................................................................................................................98 Learn a Japanese Martial Art ......................................................................................................................................102 Travel in Japan............................................................................................................................................................103 Teach Around Japan....................................................................................................................................................104 Work in Japan.............................................................................................................................................................105 Work for a Japanese Company in Your Home Country.................................................................................................107
Use the Shadowing Method..............................................................................107 What You Will Need to Shadow Properly ....................................................................................................................107 How to Shadow: Step by Step.....................................................................................................................................108 How to Get the Most Out of Shadowing......................................................................................................................110
Use Spaced Repetition .......................................................................................111 How to Use SRS Systems.............................................................................................................................................111
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Recommended SRS Tools............................................................................................................................................113 How to Create Your Own SRS System ..........................................................................................................................116
Use Timeboxing................................................................................................117 Why Timeboxing Works ..............................................................................................................................................117 How to Get the Most Out of Timeboxing.....................................................................................................................118 Recommended Pomodoro & Timeboxing Apps...........................................................................................................118
Master High-Frequency Language First ..............................................................120 Memorize Your Bio in Japanese ..................................................................................................................................120 Focus on High-Frequency Words & Kanji ....................................................................................................................121
Capture Notes in Japanese Whenever Possible .....................................................122 Recommended Note Capture Mediums ......................................................................................................................123 Recommended Note Capture Tools .............................................................................................................................123 Re-Write Your Notes ...................................................................................................................................................124 Get Your Notes Corrected by a Native Speaker.............................................................................................................124 Convert Your Notes to Mind Maps...............................................................................................................................125
Recommended Materials & Tools .......................127 How to Choose The Right Materials ...................................................................127 Choose Your Own Adventure ......................................................................................................................................128 The Shorter the Better ................................................................................................................................................130 Choose Digital Materials When Possible .....................................................................................................................131
Recommended Japanese Dictionaries .................................................................132 Recommended Online Dictionaries.............................................................................................................................132
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Recommended Mobile Dictionary Apps......................................................................................................................134 Recommended Desktop Dictionary Apps ...................................................................................................................135 Recommended Paper Dictionaries..............................................................................................................................136
Recommended Japanese Materials & Tools .........................................................137 Recommended Japanese Phrasebooks .......................................................................................................................137 Recommended Japanese Grammar Books, Sites & Apps.............................................................................................137 Recommended Japanese Textbooks & Guides.............................................................................................................139
Listening & Speaking .......................................142 How to Improve Your Japanese Listening Skills ..................................................143 Complete a Michel Thomas or Pimsluer Audio Course.................................................................................................143 Maximize Your Exposure to Authentic Spoken Japanese .............................................................................................143 Create Audio Versions of Text-Only Content ................................................................................................................143
How to Improve Your Japanese Speaking Skills .................................................144 Find a Japanese Tutor or Language Partner ................................................................................................................144 Imitate Natives as Closely as Possible .........................................................................................................................145 Talk to Yourself (or your iPhone) .................................................................................................................................145 Record Yourself ...........................................................................................................................................................146 Fix Common Pronunciation Problems.........................................................................................................................146 Encourage Correction of Your Mistakes .......................................................................................................................147 Practice Patience ........................................................................................................................................................147 Practice Humility ........................................................................................................................................................147 Use It or Lose It ...........................................................................................................................................................148
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How to Find & Work with Japanese Tutors .......................................................148 Where to Find Japanese Tutors & Native Speakers ......................................................................................................149 How to Select a Good Japanese Tutor .........................................................................................................................151 How to Set Ground Rules ............................................................................................................................................151 How to Schedule Tutoring Sessions.............................................................................................................................152 How to Communicate with Tutors...............................................................................................................................152 How to Share Documents with Tutors.........................................................................................................................153 How to Prepare for Your Tutor Session.........................................................................................................................154
Recommended Japanese Audio Courses..............................................................154 The Michel Thomas Method........................................................................................................................................154 The Pimsleur Approach...............................................................................................................................................157
Recommended Japanese Podcasts .....................................................................158 Why Podcasts?............................................................................................................................................................158 How to Get the Most Out of Podcasts .........................................................................................................................159 Recommended Podcast Directories & Tools ................................................................................................................160 Recommended Learner Podcasts................................................................................................................................161 Recommended Book & Literature Podcasts ................................................................................................................163 Recommended Business & Investing Podcasts ...........................................................................................................164 Recommended Comedy Podcasts ...............................................................................................................................165 Recommended Culture & Social Issue Podcasts ..........................................................................................................167 Recommended Daily Life Podcasts .............................................................................................................................168 Recommended Dating, Love & Sex Podcasts...............................................................................................................169 Recommended Health, Fitness & Well-Being Podcasts ...............................................................................................170 Recommended History Podcasts ................................................................................................................................170
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Recommended Media Podcasts..................................................................................................................................171 Recommended Nature, Outdoors & Ecology Podcasts.................................................................................................172 Recommended News Podcasts ...................................................................................................................................173 Recommended Science & Tech Podcasts .....................................................................................................................173 Recommended TED Talk Podcasts ...............................................................................................................................174
Recommended Japanese Video Games................................................................175 Video Game Platforms................................................................................................................................................175 Where to Buy Japanese Video Games .........................................................................................................................176 Recommended Japanese Video Game Sites & Forums ................................................................................................176 Recommended Japanese iOS Games ..........................................................................................................................177 Recommended Nintendo DS & Wii Games ..................................................................................................................178 Recommended PSP Games.........................................................................................................................................180 Recommended PlayStation Games.............................................................................................................................182
Recommended Video Tools & Sites ....................................................................184 Sub-Titles: Good or Bad? ............................................................................................................................................184 Where to Stream Japanese Video................................................................................................................................185 How to Stream Japan-Only Content Outside Japan.....................................................................................................187 Where to Buy & Rent Japanese Movies .......................................................................................................................188
Recommended Japanese Anime .........................................................................189 Anime 101..................................................................................................................................................................189 Recommended Japanese Anime Series & Movies .......................................................................................................190
Recommended Japanese TV Shows ...................................................................193 Recommended Japanese TV Tools & Resources...........................................................................................................193
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Recommended Japanese TV Series.............................................................................................................................193
Recommended Japanese Movies ........................................................................196 Japanese Movie Genres ..............................................................................................................................................196 Recommended Japanese Films...................................................................................................................................197
Recommended Japanese Audiobooks................................................................205 Recommended Japanese Audiobook Directories ........................................................................................................205 Recommended Japanese Books with Audio Companions ...........................................................................................206
Recommended Music Tools & Sites ....................................................................207 Where to Stream Japanese Music ...............................................................................................................................207 Where to Buy Japanese Music ....................................................................................................................................208 How to Get Lyrics & Identify Unknown Song Titles .....................................................................................................209
Recommended Japanese Music .........................................................................209 Recommended Japanese Music Lists ..........................................................................................................................209 Recommended J-Pop Artists ......................................................................................................................................210 Recommended Japanese Hip-Hop Artists...................................................................................................................210 Recommended Japanese Folk Rock Artists .................................................................................................................211 Recommended Japanese Rock Artists.........................................................................................................................212 Recommended Japanese Enka Artists ........................................................................................................................213
Reading & Writing .........................................215 How to Learn Hiragana & Katakana .................................................................216 Take Special Care with Look-Alike Kana ......................................................................................................................216 Recommended Kana Learning Tools ...........................................................................................................................216
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How to Conquer Kanji......................................................................................217 Why You Should Learn Kanji .......................................................................................................................................217 How to Learn Kanji .....................................................................................................................................................219 Recommended Kanji Learning Tools ...........................................................................................................................221
Getting the Most Out of RTK.............................................................................224 Remembering the Kanji FAQs .....................................................................................................................................224 Remembering the Kanji Tips ......................................................................................................................................225
How to Type Japanese ....................................................................................226 Writing in Japanese on a Mac OSX Machine................................................................................................................226 Writing in Japanese on a Windows Machine...............................................................................................................227 Writing in Japanese on an Ubuntu Machine ...............................................................................................................227 Writing in Japanese on iOS Devices.............................................................................................................................227 Writing in Japanese on Android Devices .....................................................................................................................228 Writing in Japanese on Windows Phones ...................................................................................................................229 Typing Exceptions.......................................................................................................................................................229
How to Improve Your Japanese Reading Skills ..................................................230 Read What You Listen To .............................................................................................................................................230 Get Your News & Entertainment in Japanese ..............................................................................................................230 Read a Section First, Then Look Things Up ..................................................................................................................230 Trace the Line With Your Finger or Pen........................................................................................................................231 Read for Enjoyment ....................................................................................................................................................231 Read Content At or Just Above Your Ability Level ........................................................................................................231
How to Improve Your Japanese Writing Skills ..................................................232
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Write in Japanese Every Chance You Get .....................................................................................................................232 Read More ..................................................................................................................................................................233 Get Your Writing Corrected .........................................................................................................................................233 Learn the Proper Stroke Order.....................................................................................................................................233 Learn Calligraphy........................................................................................................................................................234
Recommended Online Reading Tools .................................................................235 Recommended Japanese Sites & Blogs ......................................................................................................................235 Recommended Tools to Capture & Study Online Content............................................................................................237
Recommended Japanese Manga .......................................................................239 Why Manga? ..............................................................................................................................................................239 Manga Demographics ................................................................................................................................................240 Where to Find Free Manga Online ..............................................................................................................................241 Where to Buy Manga..................................................................................................................................................241 Manga Musts..............................................................................................................................................................242
Recommended Japanese Newspapers ................................................................245 Recommended News Sites & Apps .............................................................................................................................245 Recommended National Newspapers.........................................................................................................................246 Recommended Sports Newspapers ............................................................................................................................247 Recommended Regional Newspapers ........................................................................................................................248
Recommended Japanese Magazines..................................................................249 Japanese Learner Magazines......................................................................................................................................249 Recommended Japanese Magazines ..........................................................................................................................250
Recommended Japanese Books & Literature ......................................................252
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Recommended e-Book Apps ......................................................................................................................................252 Where to Find Free Japanese e-Books ........................................................................................................................253 Where to Buy Physical Japanese Books ......................................................................................................................254 Recommended Japanese Literature Compilations ......................................................................................................254
Japanese 101..................................................257 Japanese Overview .........................................................................................257 Japanese Speakers Around the World .........................................................................................................................257 Japanese Language Family & Origins .........................................................................................................................258 Japanese Language Characteristics ............................................................................................................................258
Japanese Sounds.............................................................................................260 Japanese Kana Chart ..................................................................................................................................................261 Pronunciation Guides & IPA ........................................................................................................................................262 Japanese vs. English Sounds.......................................................................................................................................263 Basic Vowels of Japanese............................................................................................................................................264 Short vs Long Vowels..................................................................................................................................................265 Japanese Diphthongs .................................................................................................................................................266 Japanese’s Voiced & Voiceless Consonants ..................................................................................................................267 Japanese Consonant Syllables ....................................................................................................................................267 Japanese’s D’Double Consonants ................................................................................................................................270 Use of Pitch Accent .....................................................................................................................................................271 Japanese Dialects .......................................................................................................................................................272
Japanese Writing ...........................................................................................274 Japanese’s Triumvirate Writing System .......................................................................................................................274
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Japanese Punctuation ................................................................................................................................................275 Japanese Text Direction ..............................................................................................................................................276
Japanese Vocabulary ......................................................................................277 Foreign Loan Words ....................................................................................................................................................277 Words of Chinese Origin..............................................................................................................................................278 Words of Japanese Origin............................................................................................................................................279
Japanese Honorifics .......................................................................................279 Formal Japanese Nouns..............................................................................................................................................280 Formal Verb Forms .....................................................................................................................................................281 Formal Japanese Adjectives........................................................................................................................................283 Formal Japanese Pronouns & Demonstratives ............................................................................................................283
Japanese Verbs ..............................................................................................284 Verb Conjugation Groups............................................................................................................................................286 Verb Tenses.................................................................................................................................................................290 Past Tense Verb Forms.................................................................................................................................................291 Participle Verb Forms..................................................................................................................................................293 Negative Verb Forms ..................................................................................................................................................296 Desiderative Verb Forms .............................................................................................................................................299 Volitional Verb Forms..................................................................................................................................................300 Provisional Conditional Verbs (Ba Form) .....................................................................................................................302 Conditional Verbs (Tara Form) ....................................................................................................................................303 Combining Verb Forms ...............................................................................................................................................305 Enumerative Verb Forms.............................................................................................................................................307 Command Verb Forms ................................................................................................................................................308
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Potential Verb Forms ..................................................................................................................................................310 Passive Verb Forms .....................................................................................................................................................311 Causative Verb Forms..................................................................................................................................................313 Causative Passive Verb Forms......................................................................................................................................314
Japanese Adjectives .........................................................................................315 I-Adjectives ................................................................................................................................................................316 Na-Adjectives .............................................................................................................................................................319
Japanese Adverbs...........................................................................................321 Adverbs Created from I-Adjectives..............................................................................................................................321 Adverbs Created from Sino-Japanese Nouns...............................................................................................................321 Time Adverbs..............................................................................................................................................................322 Sound Symbolic Adverbs ............................................................................................................................................322
Japanese Sound Symbolic Words ....................................................................322 Onomatopoeias ..........................................................................................................................................................323 Mimetics ....................................................................................................................................................................324 Psychomimes .............................................................................................................................................................324
Japanese Pronouns.........................................................................................325 Singular Pronouns ......................................................................................................................................................326 Plural Pronouns ..........................................................................................................................................................328 Japanese Demonstratives...........................................................................................................................................329
Japanese Proper Names ..................................................................................331 100 Most Common Japanese Family Names ...............................................................................................................332 100 Most Common Japanese Given Names ................................................................................................................337
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Japan’s Regions, Prefectures & Top 100 Cities .............................................................................................................342 Japan’s Top 30 Brands & Companies............................................................................................................................349
Japanese Particles ..........................................................................................351 Bakari (ばかり) ......................................................................................................................................................352 Daga (だが) .............................................................................................................................................................352 Dakara (だから) .....................................................................................................................................................353 Dake (だけ) .............................................................................................................................................................354 Dakedo (だけど) ....................................................................................................................................................354 Darou (だろう) ......................................................................................................................................................355 De (で) ......................................................................................................................................................................355 Demo (でも) ...........................................................................................................................................................358 E (へ) ........................................................................................................................................................................359 Ga (が) ......................................................................................................................................................................359 Hodo (ほど).............................................................................................................................................................361 Ka (か) ......................................................................................................................................................................361 Kamoshirenai (かもしれない)...........................................................................................................................363 Kara (から) ..............................................................................................................................................................364 Kashira (かしら) ....................................................................................................................................................365 Keredomo (けれども) ..........................................................................................................................................365 Goro (ころ)..............................................................................................................................................................366 Koso (こそ) ..............................................................................................................................................................366
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Kurai (くらい)........................................................................................................................................................366 Made (まで) ............................................................................................................................................................367 Madeni (までに) ....................................................................................................................................................368 Mo (も) .....................................................................................................................................................................368 Na (な) ......................................................................................................................................................................370 Nado (など).............................................................................................................................................................370 Nagara (ながら).....................................................................................................................................................371 Nara (なら)..............................................................................................................................................................371 Ne (ね) ......................................................................................................................................................................372 Ni (に) .......................................................................................................................................................................373 No (の) ......................................................................................................................................................................374 Noda (のだ).............................................................................................................................................................376 Node (ので).............................................................................................................................................................377 Noni (のに)..............................................................................................................................................................378 O (を) ........................................................................................................................................................................379 Rashii (らしい) ......................................................................................................................................................380 Ppoi (っぽい) .........................................................................................................................................................381 Sa (さ) ......................................................................................................................................................................381 Sae (さえ) ...............................................................................................................................................................382 Shi (し) .....................................................................................................................................................................382 Shika (しか) ............................................................................................................................................................383
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Shikashi (しかし) ..................................................................................................................................................383 Soshite (そして).....................................................................................................................................................384 Sou Da (そうだ) .....................................................................................................................................................384 To (と).......................................................................................................................................................................385 Toka (とか) ..............................................................................................................................................................386 Tomo (とも) ............................................................................................................................................................387 Wa (は) .....................................................................................................................................................................387 Wa (わ) .....................................................................................................................................................................388 Wake (わけ) ............................................................................................................................................................389 Ya (や).......................................................................................................................................................................389 Yo (よ) ......................................................................................................................................................................389 You Da (ようだ) .....................................................................................................................................................390 Yori (より) ...............................................................................................................................................................391 Ze (ぜ) and Zo (ぞ) ..................................................................................................................................................391
Japanese Numbers & Counters .........................................................................392 Counting 0 to 10 .........................................................................................................................................................392 Ordinal Numbers ........................................................................................................................................................392 Counting 11 to 99 .......................................................................................................................................................393 Counting 100 to 9,999 ................................................................................................................................................395 Counting Above 10,000 ..............................................................................................................................................396 Japanese Counter Words.............................................................................................................................................398
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Japanese Dates & Times..................................................................................402 Past, Present & Future ................................................................................................................................................402 Years ..........................................................................................................................................................................404 Seasons of the Year.....................................................................................................................................................404 Months of the Year .....................................................................................................................................................405 Days of the Month ......................................................................................................................................................406 Days of the Week ........................................................................................................................................................407 Japanese National Holidays ........................................................................................................................................407 Hours..........................................................................................................................................................................408 Minutes ......................................................................................................................................................................410 Time Particles .............................................................................................................................................................411
Appendix .......................................................413 My S.M.A.R.T. Goals ......................................................................................414 Sample Study Plan ..........................................................................................415 My Study Plan................................................................................................416 Japanese Sounds.............................................................................................417 RTK & MOE Kanji Lists ...................................................................................419 Conjugation Cheat Sheet ..................................................................................535 Note Taking Template .....................................................................................537
Start Here
Start Here Master Japanese was created to provide independent language learners with the tips, tools, and tech they need to reach their Japanese fluency goals as quickly, cheaply, and enjoyably as possible. Learning any language is of course going to take lots of time and effort, but if you employ the methods and materials I recommend, I guarantee that the process will be a hell of a lot more fun, and you will end up saving a significant amount of time, energy, and money compared with traditional textbook and classroom-based approaches. And speaking of textbooks, this guide is not intended to be one. While I do go over the basics of Japanese in the Japanese 101 chapter, the real learning only happens when you get sufficient exposure to the language through listening and reading, and adequate practice using the language through speaking and writing. Studying about Japanese will give you very little such exposure or practice, so please use this guide as a road map for action, not as a Japanese encyclopedia. One last thing before you get underway: I highly recommend that you take a moment to reflect on why you are learning Japanese. If you’re not properly motivated, it matters little what methods or materials you use or how much time you spend with the language. And on the flip side of this axiom, you can still learn despite poor methods, materials, or tools if you have the drive. Okay, ready to conquer Japanese? Let’s go! Ganbatte ne! (頑張ってね・がんばってね, “Good luck”).
Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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How to Use This Guide I have received a great deal of positive feedback from readers since releasing the first edition of Master Japanese in 2010, with many readers praising the guide’s unconventional approach to language learning, and the detailed, step-by-step tips on learning Japanese using a fun, immersion-based approach. However, one piece of constructive criticism has surfaced many times: “There is a lot of great stuff in this guide, but I don’t know how to use it!” I have heard your voices. Here are some quick tips to help you get the most out of Master Japanese:
The learning happens out there, not in this guide As I said above, Master Japanese is NOT a textbook. You are not going to find a series of lessons that aim to teach you a given grammar point or drill you on a specific set of vocabulary. This is by design. The problem with most language textbooks, courses, and classes is that they aim to force feed the language into you through conscious study. This seems like a logical way to go on the surface of things, but it ignores how the brain actually acquires languages. Master Japanese is centered around how to maximize your exposure to the language, thus providing your brain the optimal environment it needs to perform its amazing feat of evolution: decode, encode, retrieve, and utilize amazingly complex linguistic information at the speed of electricity. Just remember that the only way to make progress is to actually take action, do so consistently, and continually step outside of your comfort zone.
You don’t need to read the entire guide While I think you will get the most benefit from completing the guide cover to cover, it is certainly not necessary. Some people only want to learn how to speak Japanese, for example, while others want to focus more on reading and writing. I have therefore separated these skills into two different chapters, Listening & Speaking and Reading & Writing, allowing you to more easily focus on the particular skills you are interested in. For those who have experience learning other languages but have yet to tackle Japanese, you can probably skip much of the beginning content that covers how to learn languages, and get right to the Japanese-specific content.
You don’t need to read the guide in order I have added hyperlinked bookmarks throughout the guide to make it easier for you to quickly jump between related sections without having to go back to the table of contents. This also makes it easier to read out of order, which many learners seem to prefer. Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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Guide Format I have done my best to make this guide as user-friendly as possible. Since time is the most precious resource we have, many of this guide’s features center around ways to shave off seconds, minutes, and hours that can be used for actually learning Japanese instead of searching for tools and materials. To that end:
All web links are clickable All online resources listed in the guide include a clickable link to their location on the big ‘ole world wide web so you don’t have to waste any time searching for them or entering ridiculously long URLs.
Cross-referenced sections are hyperlinked In an effort to save you even more time, I have created hyperlinks that take you right to any crossreferences in the guide. That way you don’t have wade through the Table of Contents or scan through the document to find the section you’re looking for.
All Japanese terms are presented in roumaji, kanji, and kana I hate when Japanese books or materials indicate Japanese terms solely in roumaji (ローマ字・ろ うまじ), Romanized Japanese written using only English letters. While this is supposed to make things easier for new learners who might not yet be able to read a word’s corresponding kanji (漢 字・かんじ) or kana (仮名・かな), why do these publishers miss an opportunity to provide you with meaningful exposure as I just did in this sentence? All Japanese words and names will be presented with the word in italicized roumaji, the word’s corresponding kanji and hiragana in parentheses, and an English translation if relevant. For example: nihongo (日本語・にほんご, “the Japanese language”) nama biiru (生ビール・なまびいる, “draft beer”)
Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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Furthermore, words written in katakana (片仮名・かたかな) will be rewritten in hiragana (平仮 名・ひらがな) to help you get used to both systems more quickly. In both cases, the actual Japanese word will be separated from the hiragana reading guide with the・symbol, which is equivalent to the slash / in English.
Japanese names are presented in Japanese order As you probably know, Japanese family names are written first, followed by a person’s given name; the opposite of English. To help you get used to this and minimize confusion, I have written all Japanese names in this guide using the Japanese order (family names followed by given names). You will also notice that I write the roumaji version of last names in all capital letters to help reduce ambiguity. For example: SOUSEKI Natsume (漱石夏目・そうせきなつめ)
Gender-specific words are marked Some words are used chiefly by either men or women in Japanese. Keep a look out for the symbol ♂ which indicates terms used by men, and the♀ symbol for words used by women.
Zero subjects and objects are shown in brackets Japanese frequently leaves off the subject and object of a sentence if it is obvious from the context. In such cases, I include the “missing” words in the English translation within [brackets].
Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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FAQs Here are some of the most common questions I get about Master Japanese and my “attempted answers”. By the way, I borrowed the “Attempted Answers” part from one of my favorite writers, Chris Guillabeau, author of The $100 Startup and The Art of Non-Conformity. If any of your questions are not answered here, please email me.
Who is Master Japanese For? If you try to make a product that fits everyone’s needs, it probably won’t fit anyone’s. This guide, therefore, is not designed to make every single learner happy. Master Japanese was written for those who can nod their heads in agreement to the following statements: ★ I want to learn to speak, read, and write Japanese really well. Master Japanese provides you with detailed tips, tools, and tech on how to speak, read and write Japanese like a pro. ★ I have never learned any Japanese. This guide does not assume any previous Japanese study, providing step-by-step instructions from the very beginning. Consider yourself lucky as you will be able to bypass the years most of us—including this author— have wasted using traditional but highly ineffective methods. ★ I have tried and failed to learn Japanese before. If you have studied Japanese in the past but failed to ever reach even a modicum of fluency, this guide is for you, too. You are not stupid or lazy; you have just been using the wrong methods and materials. ★ I want to live and work in Japan. There are countless materials and courses available for “travel Japanese”, but they suffer from a serious problem: while they may show you how to say a few things, they don’t equip you with the level of fluency needed to actually understand what is said back to you. Follow the tips in this guide, and you will be able to engage in real two-way communication, not just shouting phrases you’ve memorized at the taxi driver. ★ I want to really get to know the Japanese people and culture. Most foreigners who visit Japan, or even live in the country for many years, only see the tip of the cultural iceberg. Being able to speak and read Japanese gives you the scuba gear you need to go below the surface and see, understand, and interact with the real Japan.
Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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Why did I create Master Japanese? As Steve Kaufmann points out: “We do not need more language courses. We need courses on how to learn languages.” This guide is designed to be just that: a course on how to learn Japanese. While teachers and tutors can help answer questions and help select materials for you, it is important to understand that nobody can “teach” you a language. Languages are “acquired” only if you get enough exposure to—and enough practicing using—the language in meaningful contexts. The incorrect belief that a teacher, course, or textbook will get a language into your head is one of the major reasons why traditional language courses and materials don’t work. Well, that and the fact they tend to bore the heck out of learners, convince them they aren’t good at languages, and completely ignore how our brains evolved to learn, process, and produce language. Like many of my fellow language learners, including both of my brothers to whom this guide is dedicated, I have tried and failed using more traditional methods. This led me to investigate alternatives to the tried and not-so-true “sit in a classroom, memorize grammar rules and vocabulary” approach, a journey that led me to fluency instead of frustration.
You don’t have a PhD after your name. Why should I trust your advice? When it comes to whether or not to trust my advice, I think my early failures with Japanese are just as important as my later successes. As is usually the case with most endeavors I undertake, I made just about every mistake possible when I started out in Japanese. I used terribly inefficient methods, boring materials, and didn’t have a good attitude toward the process. On the bright side, taking so many missteps but later correcting course makes me the ideal language learning coach. You never want to learn from someone who picks up the material easily, for they will not know how to explain what they did—and more importantly, why—and will not understand, nor have any empathy for, people who are struggling along in the dark. I have been there, too, and can help show you the way forward.
Why learn Japanese at all? There are countless reasons to learn Japanese. In fact, now that I think about it, I can’t come up with any good reasons not to learn the language. ★ It boosts brain power. As shown in a study conducted at the Swedish Armed Forces Interpreter Academy, learning a new language can actually increase the size of the Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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hippocampus, the area that controls memory creation, and various parts of the cerebral cortex. Check out this Science Daily article for more about the Swedish Armed Forces Interpreter Academy study. ★ It can help you land a kick-ass job. Foreign language skills are in high demand, and fluency in Japanese is a highly sought-after skill. And since so few Westerners speak or write Japanese well, you will have a serious leg up over the competition if you do. Read Want a Dream Resume? Learn a New Language! and see the Work in Japan section. ★ It allows you to better enjoy Japanese art forms. Japan is home to some of the greatest authors, artists, animators, actors, directors, and producers of all time. There is no better way to enjoy their work than in the language it was created. See the Learn a Japanese Art Form section. ★ It’s sexy. What is the surefire way to make a film’s lead character look suave and sophisticated? You show them speaking one or more foreign languages. This effect has been used in numerous Bond films, as well as the movie Limitless in which they used foreign languages skills to demonstrate the lead character’s newfound superhuman brain power. While we can’t simply pop a pill like Bradley Cooper’s character to learn Japanese, we can acquire enough of the language to start a relationship in a fairly short amount time.
What do I mean by “mastery”? First of all, “mastery” does not mean “perfection”, as such a thing does not exist when it comes to languages. And even if it did, “perfection” would not be a “S.M.A.R.T.” (short, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely) language learning goal. See How to Create Good Goals & Stick to Them for more info. At the risk of getting into the sticky realm of sociolinguistics, here are some reasons why perfection cannot exist in language learning: ★ Even native speakers sometimes struggle. We stumble over our words. We have a hard time remembering that word hiding on the tip of our tongue. We confuse the meaning of certain similar, uncommon terms. We forget how to spell things. All normal. Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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★ Languages are constantly changing. Every generation that learns a language changes it in small ways. What is considered “correct” or “proper” in one generation, might sound old-fashioned, racist, or even ungrammatical in the next. So if “mastery” does not equal “perfection”, what does it mean? I define “mastery” as follows: The ability to use a language well for your communicative purposes. That’s it. It is completely relative to your personal and professional needs. ★ If you are learning Japanese to work in Japan, then “mastery” would mean being able to easily communicate with your boss, colleagues, and customers. ★ If you want a meaningful social life in Japan, then “mastery” will mean being able to understand and contribute to casual conversations at an izakaya (居酒屋・いざかや). ★ If you are an anime (アニメ・あにめ) addict, then “mastery” for you might mean being able to understand an episode of your favorite show without relying on English or even Japanese subtitles. ★ If you are a hitherto monolingual Japanese-American, perhaps “mastery” entails finally being able to talk with Japanese relatives in their native language. ★ If you want to work as a Japanese translator, “mastery” means amassing a wide vocabulary in both Japanese and English, with specialized knowledge of one or more specific fields like automotive engineering, video games, medicine, etc. ★ If you want to be an interpreter, “mastery” means the same as that for translation, but with the added need to know Japanese-English equivalents at lightning speed, and developing the ability to speak one language while simultaneously thinking in another. What “mastery” does not entail is learning every last word you may hear or read. Even native Japanese speakers come across words they don’t know the meaning of, or encounter kanji that they forget how to write or pronounce. The key is to know enough Japanese that you can ask about the meaning of an unfamiliar word and then actually understand the answer. You should of course strive to constantly expand your vocabulary, but your focus should always be on quality over quantity. Just as in martial arts, having lots of moves is not as important as mastering a small set of techniques. “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” ~Bruce Lee
Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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How long will it take to learn Japanese? This is one of the most common questions I hear, and happens to be one of the most difficult to answer. How long it takes you to get there will ultimately depend on where “there” is, not to mention how badly you want to get there, and what mode of transportation you use. Obviously, learning how to speak, read, and write fluently on a wide range of topics is going to take longer than just being able to have casual conversations on a small set of topics. The former will likely take a few years or more, while the latter can be attained in a few months if you bust your ass. But on this note, progress toward your goals should be measured in how many hours you spend actively listening, speaking, reading and writing, not months, years or school terms. Just as you can spend many hours a day on Japanese and progress like an avalanche, you can just as easily spend only a few hours a week (like most college or language school students) and progress at a glacier’s pace. Unlike Japanese language schools, textbooks, or proficiency tests like the nihongo nouryoku shiken (日 本語能力試験・にほんごのうりょくしけん, “Japanese Language Proficiency Test”), I will not give you exact milestones of how far you should have progressed after a given numbers of hours. Such milestones are bogus for a number of reasons: ★ They are designed by and for language schools. Having been a manager in a language school, I can assure you that most administrators and teachers have no idea what those vague proficiency descriptions hanging on the wall actually mean. But this does not stop them from quoting the levels in their largely meaningless and artificial level assessments, which are used more as a sales tool than actual assessments of your progress. “You really need to pay for another 10 units so you can progress to the next level on this nifty chart here.” ★ They do not take into account individual goals. Every learner is unique. We each prefer certain colors of underwear, and more importantly, we all have different paces, preferences, and purposes for learning Japanese. One-size-fits-all proficiency charts ignore these differences. ★ They don’t reflect how the brain works. Linguists have spent a lot of time and research grant money trying to figure out the order we acquire certain language structures. Though they have nailed down some of the basics, there are still more questions than answers. Even if it’s allegedly “supported by research”, attempts to order various grammar structures on a syllabus usually entail more guesswork than actual science. Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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The Master Japanese Road Map While I don’t believe in formal milestones or proficiency levels, I do think it’s useful to break the language up into a few major “phases” with different tasks, tools, and materials for each. However, only you will know when it’s time to move onto the next phase, not some teacher, textbook, vague progress chart, standardized test, or language school motivated more by profits than your progress.
Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 3
Master the Basics
Sharpen Your Sword
Get Your Black Belt
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Phase 1: Master the Basics If you are just starting out in Japanese or have been studying for some time without any real progress, I recommend that you follow the tasks in Phase 1. No matter how long you’ve been learning something, it’s always helpful to go back to the basics. Don’t be in a rush to move on to more advanced materials, but by the same token, feel free to get in over your head if you still enjoy yourself. The key at this stage is to build a strong foundation on which to place more advanced words and structures. Just as I’ve observed in martial arts training, new learners are often too eager to skip what they perceive as “easy” or “simple” and jump ahead to the flashy stuff. Don’t wait until you get kicked in the face to realize how important the fundamentals are! ★ Learn kana. If you want to learn to read and write Japanese, it all starts with kana (仮 名・かな), the Japanese alphabet system; technically called a “syllabary” since it’s made up of syllables. Even if you only want to understand and speak Japanese, it is still a good idea to learn the kana as they will help familiarize you with the sounds of the language and make it easier to look words up in the dictionary. Each kana symbol represents a distinct vowel a, i, u, e and o (あ, い, う, え, お) or a consonant-vowel combination like ka, ki, ku, ke or ko (か, き, く, け, こ). There are two separate sets of kana symbols, hiragana (平仮名・ひらがな) and katakana (片仮名・かたかな), but both represent the same sounds. The difference is how they are written and when they are used. Hiragana is used for verb and adjective endings, particles, words with rare characters outside of jouyou kanji (常 用漢字・じょうようかんじ, “standard use kanji”), and for denoting kanji pronunciations of Japanese origin in dictionaries. Katakana, on the other hand, is used to represent foreign loan words like kouhi (コーヒー, “coffee”), foreign names like jonson (ジョンソン, “Johnson”), sound effects in manga (漫画・まんが), and for denoting kanji readings of Chinese origin in dictionaries. Since you will encounter hiragana more often, I suggest learning that set of symbols first, but don’t make the mistake of “taking a break” after hiragana as many learners do and end up never mastering katakana. You need both for full literacy in Japanese, so don’t delay. See the Japanese Sounds section for more about Japanese kana. ★ Begin learning “standard use” kanji. Although many teachers, schools, and textbooks advise learners to hold off on kanji, I think this is bad recommendation. First of all, learning Chinese characters can be quite easy if you follow the advice in this guide. It will of course take time, but won’t come with the nasty side effects faced by students learning by rote memory alone. Secondly, the sooner you begin learning kanji, the sooner
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you will be able to read and enjoy authentic Japanese materials, greatly expanding the pool of potential learning tools and the enjoyment that goes with it. See the Recommended Kanji Learning Tools section for more info. ★ Learn basic structures and common greetings. Buy a good phrasebook and try to complete at least a page a day. I suggest Lonely Planet’s Japanese Phrasebook & Dictionary and The Ultimate Japanese Phrasebook. ★ Learn the most frequent 1,000 Japanese words. Mastering just the most frequent 100 words in Japanese accounts for over half of written materials, while 1,000 words takes you to over 75%. See the Master High-Frequency Vocabulary section for more info. ★ Get your brain and body used to the sounds of Japanese. Borrow, buy, or barter for a copy of a basic Japanese audio program like Start Japanese with the Michel Thomas, Pimsleur 1, or Shadowing: Let’s Speak Japanese (Beginner to Intermediate Edition). Aim to complete at at least one lesson a day. Don’t worry about knowing the meaning of every word you hear; your goal at this stage is to get your brain and body used to the sounds and intonation of Japanese, all the while learning common words and phrases you can use to strike up conversations with native Japanese speakers, and getting used to the underlying structures of the language. See Recommended Audio Courses for more about Michel Thomas, Pimsleur, and the Shadowing series. ★ Listen to basic, language-learner specific podcasts. Jumping right into authentic content works for some, but is probably a bit overwhelming for most learners. As Yoda would say (with surprisingly Japanese-like grammar), “Frustration, a path to the Dark Side it is.” To avoid “going Anakin”, I suggest that you find some good newbie level programs that have a format and host you like. See Recommended Japanese Podcasts for my recommended shows. ★ Watch Japanese anime, TV shows, and movies with English subtitles turned on. Language learning Nazis will tell you that it’s “sink or swim” in a language, and that English sub-titles are for sissies. Ignore them, they just have daddy issues they are playing out in the form of mis-guided language learning advice. Remember: enjoyment trumps all. And watching a Japanese movie with little to no Japanese ability is probably not a very enjoyable experience for most. You will graduate to Japanese sub-titles soon enough, followed soon thereafter with no subtitles at all.
Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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See Recommended Japanese Anime, Recommended Japanese TV Shows, and Recommended Japanese Movies. ★ Get a basic Japanese grammar book. As you have probably guessed by now, I am not a big fan of formal grammar study. But I do think that some cursory review of Japanese grammar can be helpful so long as it does not replace what really makes the difference: spending enough time listening, speaking, reading and writing the language. If you do enough of these four activities, even with no formal grammar study, you will eventually internalize all key Japanese structures. Thinking about Japanese grammar consciously is no substitute for this natural acquisition process, but it does seem to help speed up the process a bit. See Recommended Japanese Grammar Books, Sites & Apps for my recommended grammar books.
Phase 2: Sharpen Your Sword Now that you have “learned” the basics, it’s time to sharpen your sword with lots of “linguistic sparring”: using the words, phrases, and structures you’ve learned in heaps of oral and written communication and eliciting feedback on the accuracy of your word usage, grammar, and pronunciation.
★ Become conversationally fluent. Spend as much time as you can speaking with native Japanese speakers via social language learning sites, Skype, local Meetup.com conversation groups, or if you already live in Japan, just about anyone, anywhere. In addition to furthering your motivation to keep learning, speaking also helps to “show you where your gaps are” as Steve Kaufmann says. You probably won’t realize you don’t know the word for “refill” until you try to get one at a café. See the How to Find & Work with JapaneseTutors section for more info. ★ Continue learning “standard use” kanji. By now, you have gotten the hang of learning new characters, though you probably still have quite a few to go. Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed. Just keep laying one brick at a time and before you know it, your “kanji castle” will be complete!
Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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★ Learn the most frequent 3,000 Japanese words. Once you’ve mastered the most frequent thousand words in Japanese, it’s time to make the next jump to 3,000 known words. When you accomplish this, you will be familiar with over 85% of the Japanese you are most likely to encounter on a day to day basis. See the Master High-Frequency Language First section. ★ Continue listening to language-learner specific podcasts. Learner specific podcasts are probably still your best bet, though by now you will be able to move past the “newbie” and elementary stuff to intermediate and upper-intermediate content. ★ Watch Japanese anime and movies with Japanese subtitles turned on. You can choose new programs or re-watch films you already watched in Phase 1. It might still be a little difficult for you, but try to watch with Japanese—not English—subtitles. This will accomplish 3 tasks at once: ❶ Reinforcing the kanji you have learned so far, ❷ Helping you to create a direct link between pronunciation and characters, and ❸ Getting you to think in Japanese instead of translating to and from English (e.g. turning off “crosstranslation”).
Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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Phase 3: Get Your Black Belt In martial arts, getting a black belt means that you should be able to both apply and defend against all the basic techniques of your style and are now ready to move on to more advanced material. Contrary to popular belief, it does not mean you are now a “master” or “expert”. Phase 3 in your Japanese language journey is much the same. By this stage, you’ll have assimilated the basics and are now ready to really learn Japanese. ★ Enjoy podcasts intended for native speakers. It’s time to move past the learner-specific podcasts and begin listening to programs intended for native speakers of Japanese. At this level, the pool of potential listening content expands significantly, with programs available for nearly every possible interest. In the beginning stages of Japanese, you may have had to compromise and listen to some less-than-thrilling content. At this stage, there’s no excuse to listen to shows you don’t love. See the Recommended Japanese Podcasts section for suggested programs. ★ Watch Japanese anime, TV shows, and movies with subtitles turned off. As in Phase 2, you can repeat programs you’ve already watched so that there is a clear context to stand on, or if you’re feeling adventurous, dive head first into new content and figure things out as you go! If you are watching something new, I suggest watching it first without subtitles and then going back and watching it again with Japanese subtitles turned on. This helps you get used to real-life communication where there are no subtitles or speech bubbles, but still gives you the chance to confirm your understanding and expand your vocabulary in a way not afforded in daily life. See Recommended Japanese Anime, Recommended Japanese TV Shows, and Recommended Japanese Movies. ★ Begin learning upper-level characters. Once you’ve learned all the jouyou kanji (常 用漢字・じょうようかんじ, “standard use Chinese characters”), it’s time to move on to upper-level characters. These will come in handy if you study at a Japanese university, work for a Japanese company, or read any technical or industry-specific materials. Check out James Heisig’s Remembering the Kanji: Writing and Reading Japanese Characters for Upper-Level Proficiency. ★ Read Japanese blogs, newspapers, magazines, and novels. You have probably peeked at some of these materials in Phases 1 and 2 already, but now that you can recognize the vast majority of the characters and words without reaching for the Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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dictionary every 3 seconds, you can begin enjoying the writing for the writing’s sake and forget that you’re actually “learning Japanese”. See Recommended Japanese Sites & Blogs, Recommended Japanese Newspapers, Recommended Japanese Magazines, and Recommended Japanese Books & Literature. ★ Learn all levels of Japanese formality. Mastering keigo (敬語・けいご, “honorifics”) is the final step in becoming a full-fledged Japanese speaker, and will set you apart from nearly all foreign language learners (few stick with Japanese long enough to learn keigo) and even younger Japanese native speakers (who nowadays must often be trained in proper keigo usage by their employers). This does not mean, however, that this system of Japanese formality is difficult; it is just not used enough in daily speech to become familiar as quickly as less formal language. You can see the same pattern in English vocabulary: everyone knows the word “dull” but how many of you know “insipid” without reaching for the dictionary? See the Japanese Honorifics section for more about keigo.
Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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How to Immerse in Japanese Anywhere in the World Although living in Japan is the ideal environment to learn Japanese, you can actually immerse yourself in the language anywhere in the world leveraging a little technology, creativity, and personal discipline:
★ Your Devices. Changing the display language on your computer and smartphone creates a mini Japanese immersion environment no matter where you happen to be. And since most modern humans spend the vast majority of their day using on their computer or mobile device, this can make a big difference in the long run. When you change the operating system language, menu items and prompts will still be in the same place and express the same meanings that you are already familiar with, allowing you to guess at their meaning much more easily than if you were exposed to the same language out of context. See Change Your Devices to Japanese and Optimize Your Browser. ★ Your Home Office. This is of course the easiest space to control as it’s all yours. It should not be too much trouble to implement all of the suggestions here. Do everything you can to ensure that it’s quiet, distraction-free, well lit, fully stocked, and labeled in Japanese. ★ Your Work Place. The work place is a little more difficult to optimize for learning as you are of course expected to be actually working, not studying Japanese. A discreet solution is to simply hang a kanji poster on your wall or under your transparent desk pad. You can also try fitting in some Anki sessions on your computer or phone, but bosses may assume you are Facebooking, not expanding your Japanese vocabulary. Kanji posters are available from KanjiPoster.com or WhiteRabbit.com. Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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★ Public Transportation. Like most Americans, I grew up completely reliant on cars for getting around. After moving to Japan post college, I finally realized what I had been missing all this time: public transportation rocks! It saves you money (gas, maintenance, parking, speeding tickets, etc.), it’s better for the environment, it eliminates the hassles of navigating traffic, finding parking, getting pulled over, etc., and best of all for our purposes, it allows you to spend time completely focused on learning Japanese each day! Just fill your smartphone with Japanese podcasts, Japanese language apps, SRS decks, etc. and away you go! See the Recommended Japanese Podcasts sections for more info. ★ Your Car. While driving is not as ideal for language learning as public transportation, you can at least make the most of your commute by listening to Japanese. Burn a CD of Japanese podcasts, pop in a Pimsleur or Michel Thomas CD, or if your car supports it, stream podcasts right from your device via Bluetooth. See the Recommended Audio Courses section for more about Pimsleur and Michel Thomas. ★ The Living Room. Make sure to always have Japanese programs available so if you must watch television, at least it becomes an immersion opportunity and not just a mind numbing departure from reality. In addition to DVDs, you can also consider streaming Japanese programs or podcasts on your Apple TV, xBox, or PS3. Netflix, as well as many podcasts, can be accessed on Apple TV, xBox 360 and PlayStation 3. ★ The Throne Room. Ah yes, everyone’s favorite thinking place. I suggest placing a stack of flashcards within reach (probably not ones you plan on using elsewhere...) or hanging a kanji poster within view. A good (though expensive) option is the Remembering the Kanji flaschcard box set. ★ Your Bedroom. Keep your copy of Remembering the Kanji on the nightstand and go through a set number of new characters just before bed and review them upon waking. You can also hang a kanji poster on the ceiling or wall if it’s within view. If there’s a TV in your bedroom, keep a stock of anime DVDs on hand. See the Recommended Kanji Learning Tools and Recommended Japanese Anime sections for more info.
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★ Your Body. Wait, what? Yes, your body. Or rather, your clothing. If you wear KanjiPoster.com’s “Mighty Kanji T” (with kanji printed upside down on your chest), you can get exposure to kanji throughout your day by simply glancing down. The “Mighty Kanji T” is available from KanjiPoster.com.
Sample Immersion Schedule By popular request, here is a sample immersion schedule employing the tips, methods, and tools detailed in the guide. The schedule is based around a 9 to 5 job, but can be easily tweaked to fit any lifestyle or work schedule. Keep in mind that this schedule represents a best-case scenario where you use all possible opportunities to immerse yourself in Japanese. I don’t expect that a normal human being will do all these things every single day. Just try to do as much as you can most of the time, and you will be on the right track. 7:30 am: Wake Up. I take three deep, conscious breaths to start the day off right. I remind myself how excited I am to be learning Japanese, and how important learning the language is in my life. I then spend 10 minutes playing a kana game on my iPhone. See Recommended Kana Learning Tools for recommended kana tools. 7:40 am: Shower. Using the steamed-up shower door, I write out as many kana as I can from memory. If the mood takes me, I also sing lines from Japanese children’s songs hoping that nobody is listening... See Recommended Japanese Music for recommended artists and resources. 7:50 am: Getting Ready. I play a “Newbie” level episode from the JapanesePod101.com podcast as I get ready. See Recommended Japanese Podcasts for more suggested podcasts. 8:10 am: Breakfast. I prop my iPad up on the counter and begin playing an episode of Cowboy Bebop (カウボーイビバップ) with English subtitles turned on while cooking and eating breakfast. See the Recommended Anime Series & Movies section for more suggestions.
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8:30 am: Commute. As I contend with rush-hour traffic, I listen to an episode of Japanese with Michel Thomas or Pimsleur, making sure to speak aloud when prompted. This works great since I am alone in my car, but I would probably opt for listening to a podcast or reading manga if I were on the bus or train. See the Recommended Audio Courses and Recommended Japanese Manga sections for more info. 9:10 am: Morning Meeting. Yay, meetings! Everyone’s favorite. Instead of doodling, checking email, or just zoning out, I instead use the opportunity to discreetly study. My colleagues think I am looking at the same boring PowerPoint on my laptop that they are, when I am in fact going through my Japanese Core 2000 deck in Anki. See Recommended SRS Tools for more about Anki. 12:30 pm: Lunch. I read 5 pages from hodou no owaru tokoro (歩道の終るところ・ほどうのおわ るとこと, the Japanese translation of Where the Sidewalk Ends). I read first for understanding, quickly highlighting—but not yet looking up—any unknown words or structures. After I’ve given a page a once through, I then go back and look up any unknown words in the Midori app on my iPhone or using Tangorin.com if my laptop is handy (the latter is preferable because you can directly export saved words to Anki). If I want to look up any new structures, I first use Tatoeba.org to see if I can figure the patterns out on my own, and then consult A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar if I’m still unsure. See the Recommended Japanese Dictionaries and Recommended Japanese Grammar Books, Sites & Apps sections for more recommendations. 1:30 pm: Tutor Session. I go back to my car, fire up the Skype app on my iPhone, and have a 15minute chat with my tutor. I ask him questions about particular words, phrases, and constructions that came up in that day’s listening and reading activities. I find this type of tutoring to be far more effective for me since the entire session is focused only on what I don’t yet understand, and far easier for the tutor since they then don’t have to prepare a “lesson” in advance. See How to Find & Work with Japanese Tutors for more info. 1:45 pm: Anki Session. I go back to my desk and finish up my lunch break with a quick 10-minute Anki session. I am pleased to hit the green button on some cards that proved more troublesome this morning. See Recommended SRS Tools for more about Anki.
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4:30 pm: Afternoon Meeting. Oh boy, more meetings! Since the afternoon meeting is even more worthless than its morning counterpart, I discretely look up some new words that came up during my lunch-time tutor session. See Recommended Japanese Dictionaries for my list of suggested print and digital Japanese dictionaries. 5:30 pm: Commute. I listen to the rest of the Michel Thomas CD from this morning. Again, I make sure to actually speak aloud when prompted as passive understanding is far less important than active recall. See the Recommended Audio Courses section for more info. 6:30 pm: Gym. I re-listen to this morning’s podcast episode as I warm up on the treadmill, and then listen to some high-octane Japanese music as I hit the weights. See Recommended Japanese Music for recommended artists and resources. 7:00 pm: Dinner. I wind down from the day with another episode of Cowboy Bebop or re-watch this morning’s episode if I’m feeling extra motivated. The wonderful music gets my toes tapping and head bobbing as I cook. See the Recommended Anime Series & Movies section for more suggestions. 7:30 pm: Nightly Entertainment. I stream a Japanese movie on Netflix. To help prevent the blue light from screwing with my circadian rhythm and making it hard to fall asleep later, I don my geeky orange glasses, dim the lights, and turn the brightness down on my device. See Recommended Japanese Anime, Recommended Japanese TV Shows, and Recommended Japanese Movies, and make sure to install F.lux on your computer to automatically reduce your display’s blue light after dark. 9:30 pm: Before Bed. I listen to another Newbie level episode from JapanesePod101.com as I brush my teeth and get ready for bed. See Recommended Japanese Podcasts for more suggested podcasts. 9:45 pm: In Bed. I crack open hodou no owaru tokoro (歩道の終るところ・ほどうのおわるとこ と) and re-read the pages I went through during lunch, and read another 5 pages. See Recommended Japanese Books & Literature for more suggestions. Copyright © 2013 by John Fotheringham. Visit Language Mastery for more language learning tips, tools, and tech.
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