Be Sad But Get Up. You Don’t Have To Shower. You Can Put On The Same Clothes You Wore Yesterday. Nobody

Reblog if English isn't your native language

Days of the week with time grammar! A way I was taught to remember them is with the mnemonic “nine green kangaroos stole my kid’s dog.” If you have any questions, feel free to ask

Guide to Self-Studying Japanese

A large proportion of Japanese learners self-study. Finding places to learn Japanese in a classroom environment can be difficult and expensive. Here’s a guide on how you can learn Japanese for free and from the comfort of your sofa.

When learning Japanese, the most important step is to learn Hiragana and Katakana, the writing alphabets of Japanese.

The best way I’ve found to do that is to make flashcards. Make sure you practice writing as well as recognizing them, this will not only be a great skill to have but will also reinforce the shapes in your mind.

Resources:

[Hiragana 42], the best guide I’ve found to learn the Hiragana (in a day!) [Hiranana and Katakana Quiz Site] [Kana Invaders Game] [Anki] An amazing program that will make sure you never forget any Kana….

The next step is to start learning vocabulary. Where can you find what to learn? Use a site like Memrise to find word lists (for example, there is a word list for all the vocabulary in starter textbooks like Genki), and use the amazing interface to learn them and keep them in your long term memory.

Resources:

[Memrise] as mentioned above to find and learn vocabulary lists. [Most Common Words List] [Anki] An amazing program that will make sure you never forget any Vocabulary….

While encountering vocabulary, you’re likely to be coming across super-complicated-looking Kanji. You can learn Kanji through Memrise as above, but there are some other websites that may be of interest.

Resources:

[Kanji Damage] A great site where you can learn Kanji through mnemonics. [WaniKani] by the same people who make TextFugu can help you learn Kanji from scratch. [Anki] An amazing program that will make sure you never forget any Kanji….

The next step is to apply that new vocabulary to grammar points and start making sentences.

If you can’t get your hands on textbooks like Genki, don’t fear! There are a lot of great online grammar resources.

Resources:

[TextFugu] a highly rated ‘online textbook’ which will guide you right from the beginning of learning Japanese. [Guide to Japanese] another online textbook with a lot of grammar points and excellent explanations.

So you probably started to learn Japanese because you have some interest in Japanese media. Time to start using it to your advantage!

Aside from the obvious watching Anime, J-dramas and films, why not try Reading Japanese News? Watching Japanese TV? Just make sure you are making these activities productive - note down new vocabulary, add them to Anki, and keep learning! It’s much easier to learn things you’re interested in.

The most important but difficult part of self-studying Japanese is getting your own compositions checked. Utilize all that grammar and vocabulary and write a short piece, it could be a diary entry or a short essay. Get it recorded for you by a native on RhinoSpike, and checked for grammar and consistencies on Lang-8.These sites also give you the chance to connect with Japanese natives, and perhaps start up some language exchanges!

For more resources, take a look at my Ultimate Resources List

Any more tips? Please submit them here!

when you really do care about mother nature

days of the month!The top with the number is how they are normally written out. The hiragana and kanji are how to say them. If you need any help let me know!

Giving (complete) guidetojapanese.org a chance

“I figure the universe is basically like a machine. I don’t know who made it but it chugs along the way its suppose to most of the time. Sure little pieces break and stuff goes haywire once in a while, but, mostly things happen for a reason.”

I’ve been preparing for the JLPT N5 myself, so I thought I’d make a little list of some of the resources I’ve found!

websites

Nihongo Ichiban N5 Study Material

JLPT Website:

Self Evaluation List

Sample Questions

japanesetest4you JLPT N5 Resources

JLPT Boot Camp

Mock Test

JLPT Study Page (a bit of an older page, but still a good study resource)

Memrise

JLPT N5 Vocab 

JLPT N5 Readings

books

Official JLPT Reference Books

Guide to Reading and Writing Japanese Characters (4th Edition)

Compact Japanese Dictionary

Read Japanese Kanji Today

apps (android)

Kanji Study

Obenkyo

Duolingo

Write Japanese: Kanji, Hiragana, and Katakana

Tinycards by Duolingo: Fun & Free Flashcards

伊達メガネ

伊達メガネ (だてめがね) - glasses that are just a fashion accessory, not something one needs because of bad eyesight

The first word, 伊達, means “elegance, having style, doing something just for show” and メガネ is, of course, “glasses”.

「声かけてもらえると助かる」”I’d appreciate it if you could call me.”

〜てもらえると助かる (~てもらえるとたすかる) “I’d appreciate it if you could ~/it’d be helpful if you could ~”

This grammar point is a really polite way to ask someone to do something for you.

The 〜てもらえる part is from the potential form of one of the grammar points for receiving favors 〜てもらう  So basically もらう (to receive) –> もらえる (to be able to receive) 〜てくれる can be used too but 〜てもらう has a more thankful feel to it and the verb 助かる means “to be saved” or “to be helped”

Ex: 明日、空港に迎えに来てもらえると助かります。 　  あした、くうこうにむかえにきてもらえるとたすかります。       I’d appreciate it if you could pick me up tomorrow from the airport.