Kelly
How can I learn Japanese?

I'm really confused on how to learn Japanese, I have apps, the book "Japanese for Dummies", and I know a lot of resources online. Except I'm still not improving the way I want to. Is there anyway for me to start improving? 

Oct 9, 2015 4:37 AM
Comments · 2

its been a year or 2 since I last read/listened to him talk about it but Tim Ferris had excellent pointers on how to acquire languages. you can find him talking on countless podcasts/youtube videos and he has a few website resources on the subject as well. 

 

but for me its in my off time watching tv I'd have an inner dialogue actively trying to find the equivalent japanese words in place of what is being said on the television. 

 

and of course finding a partner to converse with. its the whole reason for this website 

October 10, 2015

I had this same problem when I first started learning Japanese.  I studied so many books and read so many different websites, but nothing stuck.

 

To fix my problem, I started taking Japanese lessons and I vastly improved in a short period as I was able to converse with a person and ask random questions on the fly.  This definitely helped to learn grammar!  I would recommend finding someone who knows Japanese to talk with; I was not only able to start grasping the language but also learn about a different culture.

 

If you don't have time/money for regular lessons, I would recommend the "A Dictionary of Beginner/Intermediate/Advanced Japanese Grammar" books by Seiichi Makino and Michio Tsutsui.  The explanations are great plus there are examples of the grammar usage.  When it comes to learning new words, I just go in order from N5 -> N1 kanji so I could slowly build vocabulary in a structured way.

 

But either way (self-studying or lessons), make sure you at least know hiragana and katakana.

 

Good luck!

October 9, 2015