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5 Second Trick to Remembering Vocabulary When Reading Japanese

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Different people learn and remember information in different ways. This is obvious when you talk to different people about how they learn languages, such as Japanese. (I personally like using mnemonics but my spouse is a wizard an can “just remember” words… I’m not jealous…) Anyway, this is just one of many different methods you can use to remember vocabulary. It’s actually an incredibly quick trick I’ve been using when I read novels. (This is partially so I don’t spend so much time later drilling vocabulary with flashcards.) When I first come across a word I don’t know I try… Read More…

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Ink Wash Painting and Grief 「線は、僕を描く」(Sen wa Boku wo Egaku)

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線は、僕を描く （せんはぼくをえがく） by 砥上 裕將 (Togami Hiromasa)   Author: 砥上 裕將 (Togami Hiromasa) Genre: novel, college, melancholy Great for: Advanced (JLPT N1+) Length: 317 pages Amazon Japan: 線は、僕を描く Bookwalker Japan: 線は、僕を描く (can test read on BookWalker with 試し読み!) (The manga is also available on Amazon and Bookwalker Japan.)   Japanese Synopsis (from the book) まさか水墨画をめぐる小説が、これほどまでに心をゆさぶる物語であるとは思いもしなかった。 両親を失い、空白を抱えていた「僕」は、紙に「線」を引く芸術を一から学び、練習を重ねることで、やがて失っていた自分を取り戻していく。生きている瞬間をとらえようと描き続け、自らの美をつかむ。現代の青春求道小説として、力強く胸に迫る作品だ。   English Synopsis (translated by JTalk Online) The Lines That Draw Me I never thought a story about ink wash painting would sway the heart so much. After losing both his parents and surrounding myself in white space, “I” learn from scratch an art… Read More…

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How to Get from Intermediate to Advanced Japanese

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Many language learners hit this point around intermediate level where they feel like they’ve plateaued. It’s the same for Japanese learners, coming in at around JLPT N3 to N2 level. This point, where you feel yourself stagnating, is the time to change up your approach to studying Japanese! Here is how you get from intermediate to advanced levels with your Japanese learning.   70% Consume, 30% Study Up until the plateau, most of Japanese learners’ time is taken up by studying. Especially if they attend Japanese classes. This means focusing on a textbook, studying for tests, doing homework; all important… Read More…

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War, Humanity, and Letters「ヴァイオレット・エヴァーガーデン」(Violet Evergarden)

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ヴァイオレット・エヴァーガーデン (Violet Evergarden) by 暁 佳奈 (Kana Akatsuki) There are two main novels in this series with a spin-off (外伝) and an after story, a total of four novels. This review to Japanese learners focuses only on the first book of Violet Evergarden 上巻. (I was planning to read the second book too, but started reading other books instead…) Author: 暁 佳奈 (Kana Akatsuki) Genre: Fantasty, military, drama Great for: Advanced (JLPT N1+) Length: 351 pages (book 1) Kyoto Animation: ヴァイオレット・エヴァーガーデン 上巻 Amazon Japan: KAエスマ文庫 ヴァイオレット・エヴァーガーデン 上巻 文庫 – 2015/1/1 Bookwalker Japan: N/A   Japanese Synopsis (from Amazon Japan) 陸軍病院で“一人”目を覚ましたヴァイオレット。… Read More…

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Japanese Short Stories「5分シリーズ」(5 Minute Series)

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5分シリーズ (5 Minute Series)   Author: Various (published by エブリスタ) Genre: short stories, moving Great for: Intermediate (JLPT N2) Length: Around 210 pages Amazon Japan: 5分シリーズ（5分後に涙のラスト） (will need to search for others) Bookwalker Japan: 5分シリーズ   Japanese Synopsis (from Amazon Japan) 小説投稿サイト「エブリスタ」が主催する短編小説賞「三行から参加できる超・妄想コンテスト」入賞作品から、さらに選りすぐりのものを集め、加筆・修正。20000作超から選ばれた最高の感動体験8作。   English Synopsis (translated by JTalk Online) A collection of short stories from the novel website Eburisuta which were hand selected or won the “Great / Imaginative Contest for Sangyo”. Eight incredibly moving tales handpicked from 20,000 stories.   Why You Should Read 5分シリーズ (5 Minute Series) There are multiple books in the「5分シリーズ」 by エブリスタ, and each one… Read More…

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Light Novel Comedy「はめふら」(Bakarina)

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乙女ゲームの破滅フラグしかない悪役令嬢に転生してしまった… is a Japanese light novel from 2015 which also has a manga release and just got an anime (which is airing Spring 2020).   First off, let me clarify the names for this series: Japanese official title: 乙女ゲームの破滅フラグしかない悪役令嬢に転生してしまった… Japanese unofficial title: はめふら English official title: My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! English unofficial title: Bakarina As we’re talking about the Japanese novel, which even the author’s editor said had one of the longest titles ever, I’ll be referring to it as はめふら. Author: Satoru Yamaguchi Genre: light novel, comedy, isekai, reverse-harem, romance, otome games… Read More…

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Study Beginners Japanese With Science!

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By study beginners Japanese with science, I don’t mean Matrix-level download the language to your brain (although I wish I did!) I mean, using science books aimed at young Japanese people to learn a wide variety of general knowledge and Japanese vocabulary. The science books I’m talking about in particular are なぜ？どうして？科学のお話 or “Why? How? Science Stories”. Here’s a review of these science books aimed at children and how you can use them to boost your Japanese! なぜ？どうして？科学のお話 (Why? How? Science Stories)   Genre: science, textbook, for children Great for: Beginners (JLPT N4-N3) Length: about 180 pages per book (total… Read More…

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Fantasy, Mystery「かがみの孤城」(Kagami no Kojou)

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Author: Mizuki Tsujimura Genre: coming of age, drama, (light) fantasy, novel, award winning Great for: Intermediate (JLPT N2) Length: 554 pages Amazon Japan: かがみの孤城   Japanese Synopsis (from Amazon Japan) 鏡の世界で謎を追う不登校児 大人と子どもの目が共存する救いの物語 大人である現在の自分と、子どもだったあの頃の自分の両方を、同時に、ここまで慰め、励ましてくれる小説なんてはじめてだ。辻村深月の新作『かがみの孤城』のことである。 中学一年生のこころは、ある出来事を機に学校へ行けなくなり、いつも家で過ごしている。ある日一人で家にいると、部屋の鏡が突然輝き始め、潜り抜けてみると、そこは城の中だった。集められたのはこころを含め、似た境遇にいるらしき中学生が七人。九時から十七時まで滞在が許されるその城で、彼らにはひとつの課題が出される。猶予は一年。戸惑いながらも七人は、少しずつ心を通い合わせていくのだが……。   English Synopsis (translated by JTalk Online) Truants Chasing A Mystery in the Mirror World – A Story of Salvation for Both Children and Adults “This novel began as a story that would comfort and encourage both myself when I was a child and myself as an adult now.” The latest novel from Mizuki Tsujimura, Kagami no Kojou. Kokoro is a first-year middle school girl who… Read More…

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Feminist Fantasy「女だから」(Sexiled)

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女だから、とパーティを追放されたので 伝説の魔女と最強タッグを組みました （Sexiled: My Sexist Party Leader Kicked Me Out, So I Teamed Up With a Mythical Sorceress!） by 蛙田あめこ (Kaeruda Ameko)   Genre: fantasy, light novel, feminist Great for: Intermediate and above (JLPT N2+) (OR N3 learners who really, really love fantasy novels.) Length: 270 pages Amazon Japan: 女だから、とパーティを追放されたので伝説の魔女と最強タッグを組みました Synopsis (from Amazon Japan and Amazon US): 魔導師のターニャは「女だから」という理不尽な理由で冒険者パーティを追放される。 そのストレス解消のため、人のいない荒野で大魔術をぶっ放していたら、伝説の大魔女・ラプラスの封印を解いてしまって!? 半信半疑のターニャだったが、指を鳴らすだけで天候を変える大魔女の実力を目の当たりにして、本物だと信じることに。 Tanya Artemiciov is a talented Mage-class adventurer who just got kicked out of her party by a sexist scumbag. So what’s a girl to do? Go to the wasteland and blow stuff up of course! One small problem though: she… Read More…

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School Romance Novel 放課後美術室 (After School Art Room)

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放課後美術室 (After School Art Room) by 麻沢 奏 (Asazawa Kana) Genre: fiction, romance, coming of age Great for: Lower-Intermediate and above (JLPT N3+) Length: 309 pages Amazon Japan: 放課後美術室（麻沢 奏） Synopsis: 「私には色がない―」高校に入学した沙希は、母に言われるがまま勉強漬けの毎日を送っていた。そんな中、中学の時に見た絵に心奪われ、ファンになった“桐谷遙”という先輩を探しに美術室へ行くと、チャラく、つかみどころのない男がいた。沙希は母に内緒で美術部に仮入部するが、やがて彼こそが“桐谷遙”だと知って―。出会ったことで、ゆっくりと変わっていく沙希と遙。この恋に、きっと誰もが救われる。 “I have no color” thinks high-school freshman Saki, as all she does everyday is study, just like her mother told her to. But when she goes to the art room in search of her senpai Haruka Kiriya, the one she became a fan of during middle school when his painting stole her heart, she instead finds an elusive, womanizing boy. Saki decides to join the art club, keeping… Read More…

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How to Remember Japanese Vocabulary

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Remembering new words can be difficult. Remembering new words in an entirely different language, can be an even greater challenge. Not to mention that Japanese is notorious for being a language that takes time to learn for English speakers. (Especially as the alphabet and cultural approach to the language is so different.) There is, however, a trick to remembering vocabulary, grammar, and kanji long-term without putting too much time in. (In other words, without having to drill vocabulary by writing it down twenty times on a piece of paper.) This trick is actually one you’ve probably already come across before…… Read More…

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Language Learning Tips from a Polyglot Conference

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I attended the Polyglot Conference 2019 in Fukuoka, Japan this last weekend. All the workshops and presentations were held by polyglots, people who know multiple languages. As a bilingual (and aspiring polyglot) I was really eager to find out how these amazing people learned their various languages. Here are my language learning takeaways from the various talks I attended.   Immersion Isn’t the Only Way Workshop by Rebecca Howie (co-host of Language Chats Podcast) Rebecca says you can “immerse” yourself in a language without having to visit another country. To do this, she suggested people create practical opportunities for themselves. Practical… Read More…

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Hacks for Reading Japanese Novels

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Hacks for Reading Japanese Novels

  I recently shared on Twitter how I had just finished reading a novel and felt inspired to write something useful about it. The following are a few hacks I’ve developed/picked up while reading Japanese novels. Hope you find them useful for your own reading! Bookmark Names and Terms Not that you should highlight every name or term, but instead write frequently used universe terms and names onto a piece of paper used as a bookmark. These are great because you can quickly reference terms as you come across them without having to flick back to a previous page where… Read More…

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Open Letter to Memrise re: Decks

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Memrise just announced “Decks” and are moving content created courses and flashcard decks to a different website. So you will only be able to use their Memrise created content on their App. Yes, I’m rather put out by this. See the announcement here.   Open Letter to Memrise re: Decks Dear Ed, Thank you very much for the explanation of Memrise’s decisions for the recently announced change to Decks. I have been an active user and creator on Memrise since 2014. I feel in love with Memrise because it was a great user-friendly gamified alternative to Anki. (Which I found to… Read More…

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Review of Kyoto JALS – Great for Beginners, Not Advanced

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To put my situation in context: I have been studying Japanese for over 10 years. I have passed the JLPT N2, working on the N1 for about 6 months, and am a translator. The reason I wanted to study in Japan for 6 weeks was to improve my speaking for interpreting classes (which are on summer holiday). I also hoped it would help me with N1. I initially chose the Japanese Language School (JaLS) in Hokkaido because they offered afternoon internships. I figured this would be great for improving speaking in a natural environment. But they told me the advanced… Read More…

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Indefinite Hiatus

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Too long didn’t read: Japanese Talk Online will be going on an indefinite hiatus. I may come back but not anytime soon. The website, Twitter, Facebook and Memrise will not shut down. Patreon will shut down.   Why the Indefinite Hiatus? My name is Jennifer. Many people who come to this site don’t realize that I am a single person who has been doing Japanese Talk for…many, many years in my free time, for free. Japanese Talk was always a hobby that I did in my spare time. In recent years I had the time to work on it. I… Read More…

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Quality Japanese Self Study Techniques

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The majority of Japanese Talk articles focus on “Tips & Tricks” to study Japanese. These focus on study methods for improving speaking or reading, or studying in general if you’re busy, etc. Memrise is normally my go-to learning app for studying Japanese. (Lord knows there are a lot of Jtalkonline.com courses on Memrise.) But I’ve been using a new method recently that’s been a lot more effective.   The Drill Method (aka Quantity) Here’s a quick story. In 2015 I took the JLPT N1 for the first time. I used the Nihongo Soumatome books and studied their kanji and vocabulary using… Read More…

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NEW! Manga Japanese for Patrons!

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Did you know Japanese Talk Online has a Patreon? Patreon supporters get early access to articles, vote on and request future topics and have access to the Discord where I provide one-to-one help. I’m now creating Patreon exclusive content! Random short articles about Japanese found in manga. These articles are for $2+ Patrons. Starting with Wotakoi – Japanese Otaku Vocab (and more) These articles will include cultural references, specific terminology for things like games, and common onomatopoeia. Patrons are an amazing support! I cannot do Japanese Talk Online with out. The more support I get the more time I can spend… Read More…

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Why You MUST Read in Japanese

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When I started learning Japanese I drilled vocabulary, grammar and kanji. In my young mind language = words. For many years that was all I focused on, figuring that listening and reading was only achievable from learning this core information. Yes, vocabulary, grammar and kanji are incredibly important. But they mean nothing if you don’t read. You don’t magically learn how to read just from learning this information. You learn to read by reading. Reading then supplements and adds to your knowledge of vocabulary, grammar and kanji. But reading does SO much more than that.   First Attempts to Read… Read More…

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Reading Japanese Intensified – Review of Tango Risto

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If you’re anything like me and you struggle to improve your reading then you want to get Tango Risto. I have always struggled with reading comprehension. It is the hardest part of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test and a must need for any level of Japanese. I try to read novels to improve this but that means I lack a core amount of Japanese vocabulary and grammar. Namely, the news. In the past I tried my own 2 Week Japanese Reading Challenge but going out of your way to find a good article for your level can be hard. Tango… Read More…

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How to Use Manga to Study Japanese

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A lot of us study Japanese because we want to be able to understand anime without subtitles or read manga in Japanese. Being able to do either of these is incredibly rewarding, but many beginners think you need to be ‘fluent’ or that you need to live in Japan for a certain number of years before you reach this level. They convince themselves that being able to read manga is beyond their abilities, so why even try?! Well, what if I told you it is possible to be able to understand manga a lot sooner than you thought?   Why… Read More…

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Japanese Talk Online Hiatus [Until April 9th]

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You may not know this but Japanese Talk Online is a website I run in my spare time. It was always a hobby to share my knowledge and experience of learning Japanese. This was doable when I was in University but not so much anymore. I am now a freelance Japanese – English translator and am trying to continue my own Japanese studies. I tried to take a step back before but found that I still spent a lot of time on Japanese Talk. I recently started tracking how much time I spend on Japanese Talk stuff and it’s about 10… Read More…

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Cheap Japanese – You Don’t Need to Break the Bank to Learn Japanese

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I was at a convention the other day talking about how beginners can learn Japanese for anime and manga. At the end one person asked me. “I was thinking of starting Japanese with Rosetta Stone, but is it worth the price tag?” I’d never used Rosetta Stone but after asking others everyone said: nope. Which got me thinking, do you need to break the bank to learn Japanese? Here are some cheap Japanese language options for beginners and intermediate.   There are plenty of free resources online (such as flashcard programs Anki and Memrise) that are easy to find. But… Read More…

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Presentation and Resources – Japanese With Anime and Manga ECCC 2018

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Japanese With Anime and Manga ECCC

This last weekend I gave a presentation at Emerald City Comic Con (ECCC); “How to Learn Japanese Using Anime and Manga”. The idea behind the presentation was tips, tricks and resources that anyone can use to learn Japanese with anime and manga. This is a presentation I have done in the past in terms of anime only, but this time I added manga. Patreon supporters can watch all full past presentations here: Japanese With Anime and Manga ECCC 2018 [TO BE EDITED & UPLOADED] Using Anime to Study Japanese [Presentation] – KumoriCon 2018   Learn Japanese Using Anime & Manga… Read More…

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Lose Yourself in Japanese: “Let Me Eat Your Pancreas” 「君の膵臓を食べたい」

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Last year I picked up a book from Kinokuniya called 「君の膵臓を食べたい」(Kimi no Suizou wo Tabetai). I didn’t realize at the time was a great book it was. To the point where I would become so enthralled that I forgot I was practicing my Japanese. This is the kind of story that you want to find when you’re learning Japanese. One that you lose yourself in to the point where you’re not studying, you’re using Japanese.   “Let Me Eat Your Pancreas” 「君の膵臓を食べたい」Novel Japanese Level Other Media Live Action Movie Manga Anime Movie (coming 2018) Genre Drama Short Description A young boy… Read More…

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How to Be Productive When Studying Japanese

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It’s incredibly easy to constantly think “I’ll do this later” and then not. Then the day ends and you haven’t studied. Then the week, then, if you’re not careful, the month! It’s incredibly easy to do. Sometimes you don’t even realize you’ve not studied in over a week until it’s too late. Even I struggle to be more productive with Japanese, but you’ve got to find a system that works for you. This could just be a single app and/or a combination of productivity techniques. Here are a few suggestions that you can implement to become more productive when studying… Read More…

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Learning Japanese Through Audio Dramas and Games – Kylie’s Story

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Could you tell us a little about yourself and what got you into studying Japanese? What are your goals? My name is Kylie. I’m half-Japanese but I grew up solely speaking English. I wanted to learn Japanese so I could communicate with my family in Japan. Most of my Japanese family can’t speak English well. My goal is to be able to competently communicate with my family through speaking, reading, and writing.   Your mom is Japanese and your dad is American, how has that impacted how or what you learn? English has always been spoken in my household. This… Read More…

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Japanese Language Articles [Link Roundup Jan 2018]

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Studying Japanese Language 8 Proven Methods to Amplify Your Japanese Speaking Skills – “There are far too many people who have passed the JLPT N1 and yet can’t carry on a simple conversation with a native Japanese speaker. This is pathetic. Don’t be this person! Use the resources found on this page to amplify your Japanese speaking skills.” Reading Resources for Japanese Beginners: Part 1 – Three suggestions for beginners Japanese learners for JLPT N5 and N4. A New Year’s Celebration in Your Pocket – New Year cultural references and terms in Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp.   General Language Study Advice… Read More…

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Getting the Most out of Personal Japanese Lessons

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From February 1st italki will be holding a New Year Language Challenge. This is simply just a matter of getting badges for completing a certain number of hours of lessons in the month. It’s a great way to motivate yourself to study more with a teacher if you struggle with motivation. You don’t have to take the ‘challenge’ but it had me thinking about Japanese teachers. I’ve had a few Japanese teachers through italki over the years and had mixed experiences. Never anything bad but there have been times when I’ve not gotten what I wanted and left lessons frustrating.… Read More…

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Improve Japanese Reading [2 Week Challenge]

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Improve Japanese Reading Challenge

Learning vocabulary, kanji and (to a point) grammar, can be easy to do by yourself. But reading, speaking, listening and writing can be more of a challenge. I recently asked Patreon supporters what kind of challenges they would like to try to improve these Japanese skills. The most voted on was Japanese reading. The following is a 2 week challenge of my own design which I am testing out myself. I’m going to record my daily progress on the Japanese Talk Online Twitter and then discuss the results at the end. I encourage people try this along with me and tweet… Read More…