Using a Japanese newspaper for kids, like Mainichi Shogakusei Shinbun above, I developed a 5 step study method designed to increase vocabulary and kanji identification, reading comprehension, and confidence for taking the JLPT!  Reading at the appropriate level makes it possible to practice reading similar paragraphs that will appear in the test and gives you the chance to identify vocabulary and kanji that are likely to appear in the JLPT.

1. Read the article without any helpful hiragana

2. Identify and list unknown words

3. Identify and list unknown kanji

4. Study the new lists

5. Re-read the article

Paired with Evernote and Jisho.org, this 5 step method should give you a good head start in your studying!

Step 1:  Read the article without any helpful hiragana

I know it’s frustrating, sad, and hard, but reading the article first without any help will help you out in a lot of ways in the long run so stick with it and don’t cry!  The first thing that will result from reading the article without any hiragana is helping you to honestly assess your reading ability.  It will show you the words you know and the ones you don’t in black and white.  The other important thing this step accomplishes is simulating the actual test.  There will be no helpful hiragana in the real test, so why practice with it?  If you are really serious about taking the test, you might also want to time yourself to see how long it takes to read a short article.

Using Evernote, I selected and added this text from an article on Mainichi Shogakusei Shinbun resulting in the above picture.  The rockin thing about Evernote in this example is that it automatically makes a title and takes note of the original page you visited so you wont forget later!  I then removed the pesky hiragana and gave reading the article my best shot.

Step 2:  Identify and list unknown words

Crap…as you can see I’ve got a LONG way to go!  In this step, highlight the words you don’t know in red and hope you don’t get an atomic red ink bomb like I did!  It is important to be HONEST with yourself here.  If you can’t read it without any help from hiragana, or if you look it up in the dictionary and say “Oh, right, duh!  I know this one!” mark it red Donny, because you are OUT OF YOUR ELEMENT! lol.  More seriously, just be conservative, if you don’t guess right the first time, it won’t hurt you to practice those borderline words a few times.  In the end, it is really good practice to identify difficult words as they are used in a paragraph.  When you are finished, your list should look something like this:

Step 3:  Identify and list unknown kanji

In the vocabulary list, find and highlight kanji in red that you can’t recognize right away as demonstrated in the example above.  Once identified, use a Japanese dictionary to make a list of kanji for future reference.  I found the website jisho.org VERY useful in completing this step.  Copy and paste the unknown kanji from the vocab list to the kanji list and as long as you don’t cut and paste anything else, you can simply paste it again into the kanji search page of jisho.org.  Once you look up the kanji, the website spits out more information than anyone can dream about that specific kanji.  I recommend at least taking note of all the different readings for the kanji and the definition in English.  One extra step I took was to include other words that that kanji appears in to practice recognition in general.  Jisho.org has a great feature to do this by pressing on the link in the “Kanji” page called “Words Containing” and usually zillions of words will come up that use this kanji, which can then be paired down to common words if desired.  Here is an example of a finished kanji list made from an article:

Step 4: Study the new lists

Now we get to the hard part: you have to remember all the stuff you just wrote down!  Making lots of lists is a waste of time if you don’t actually go back through them to learn the material.  Try to use the words in a sentence, look up more kanji combination, use them in a diary or homework assignment, or use Textfugu to learn about remembering radicals to help you retain the lists you just wrote.  Whatever you decide to do, be proactive and do something…anything!  It will pay off for the text and for the next step in this method.

Step 5: Re-read the article

Now that you are the master of all the vocabulary and kanji that stumped you in the article you read, go back and rock it!  Of course leave out the hiragana, and see how much you retained.  If there are still words and kanji that you miss, go back to the lists you made and study them for a while and re-read the article again.  Hopefully by the end of this process you will understand the meaning of the article, which will be a critical part in the new test.  Practicing reading full paragraphs will make life a lot easier for you when you actually sit down for the JLPT.  Good luck passing the JLPT!

LINKS

Newspapers for Kids:

• http://mainichi.jp/life/edu/maishou/index.html
• http://yomoyomo.jp/index.php
• http://kids.goo.ne.jp/index.html?SY=0&MD=2

Dictionaries:

• http://www.jisho.org
• http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~jwb/cgi-bin/wwwjdic.cgi?1C

Other Resources:

• http://www.textfugu.com
• http://www.tofugu.com/2010/04/06/tofugu-100-best-japanese-learning-resources/
• http://www.tofugu.com/2010/03/09/how-to-use-evernote-to-study-japanese-or-any-other-language/

This post was written by Nick W., who has traveled throughout many regions of Japan in search of unique cultural gems.  He is currently earning his MBA and has researched topics like folk music in WWII Japan and Ainu cultural revival through music.  His favorite Japanese musician is the late Nujabes.  Currently, he is studying for the JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Test) Level 2.

Related posts:

1. How To Use Evernote To Study Japanese (Or Any Other Language)
2. Learn Japanese Vocabulary Faster By Becoming A Nintendo DS Kanji Sono Mama Jedi Master
3. The Types Of Kanji In Japanese: On’Yomi vs. Kun’Yomi

I get all kinds of weird questions in my e-mail inbox. Sometimes they’re creepy, sometimes they’re hilarious, sometimes they’re interesting, and sometimes they’re a part of a pattern. This is one of those patterns. A few times a month I’ll get the following question:

What is the best Japanese Language electronic dictionary?

Once I get the same question too many times, there’s a good likelihood that I’ll just write the answer via a post here, which is exactly what’ I’m doing. So, what is the best Japanese Language electronic dictionary out there? Let’s find out.

The Best Japanese Language Electronic Dictionary Is… Not a Japanese Language Electronic Dictionary…

Guh-what? You’d think that if you were in the market to buy an electronic dictionary you’d buy an electronic dictionary… at least in the “traditional” sense. You can see pictures of them above. Now, for sure, they do the things they’re supposed to do, but that’s about it. If you buy one, you probably won’t be disappointed on this front. You’ll be able to look up words, see sentences, and in some hear audio. Not too shabby.

For me, though, I don’t feel like that’s enough, at least not in this day and age. Even though these do exactly what you want them to do, I don’t think they’re the best tool for the job. Here’s why:

• They’re big (though the big screen could be considered a plus)
• They’re bulky, try putting one of the regular sized ones in your pocket
• They aren’t versatile
• They’re expensive (approximately $200-$400+)

By now, I bet you’ve already guessed the “electronic dictionary” that I’d recommend.

Get An iPod Touch / iPhone Instead Of a Japanese Electronic Dictionary

Instead of a Japanese language electronic dictionary, I highly recommend you get an iPhone or iPod Touch. I think it’s an easy decision, but that’s also because I’m an Apple fanboy. Still, I think anyone will see the logic here.

• An iPod Touch comes in at $179 (if you buy it at Costco) or $199 from the Apple store. This is the same price as the lower end models of the Japanese electronic dictionaries, but you get so much more.
• You can download a dictionary application to your iPhone or iPod Touch. My favorite is “Japanese” because everything is stored locally (i.e. no need for an internet connection to look things up). This app is $16, which is pretty expensive for an iPhone app, but well worth it if you were planning on putting down $200-$400+ on an electronic dictionary. Update: A lot of people seem to like “Kotoba” as well. I haven’t tried it, but it seems to be highly recommended (and free!)
• There are tons of other Japanese language learning related applications in the iTunes store as well. There are so many different things you can get (and who knows what will come out in the future), making it an awesome (mobile) platform for practicing your Japanese.
• You can download Japanese Podcasts to your iPod / iPhone, and listen to them for continued practice while you’re driving, sitting around, at work, at school, etc.
• You can do other things with it, so you aren’t just pinned down to using it to study Japanese (you know, all the things an iPod Touch / iPhone are supposed to do, right?).

So, basically it’s better, more mobile, has apps, and costs less. What is there not to like? Granted, regular Japanese electronic dictionaries have their perks, too, I’m sure, but I personally don’t see the purpose of getting one when you could do this instead.

If that didn’t convince you, watch this video, which just says the same things you just read all over again.

Anyone else doing the same thing? Any angry Japanese electronic dictionary users out there? Let me know in the comments what you think.

Related posts:

1. How To Use Evernote To Study Japanese (Or Any Other Language)
2. What I Want To See With Apple’s iPad (In Regards To Japanese)

Japanese girls are great for a lot of reasons, I mean, get real, they’re loved world wide because they’re small, cute, wear tiny tiny skirts, and sometimes dress up in school uniforms (even if they’re not in school anymore).  It seems to be a rite of passage for every male exchange student, every JET, and everyone visiting Japan to try to find a Japanese girlfriend when they visit…

Many people even say that “the best way to learn a language is to date someone who speaks it!”  Sorry, but for the sake of your Japanese language skills

Flirting DOESN’T CUT IT!

I assure you, the longer you date a Japanese girl, the less likely you will be able read the rude t-shirt you started wearing to find one!  Why you might ask?  It only makes sense that the more you speak Japanese, the better you get, right? Right?  RIGHT?!

Wrong, and here’s why:

1.  You are lazy

Sure.  At first you might say, “Oh man, I’m going to get so good at kanji, and grammar, and all that stuff now!” and you might even convince your girlfriend to tutor you everyday, but that won’t last. It NEVER does. There are exceptions to the rule, but most of the time you’ve got a lot more “fun and important” things to do with your girlfriend than talk about freaking kanji radicals and grammar points (…at least I HOPE you do).  You’ll also have a lot more “unfun” things to talk about like when her mom is coming to visit or how bad you made the bathroom smell.  In any case, there will be times when you’ll get lazy and just use the easiest words you can think of, even if it’s just English that sounds kind of like Japanese.

2.  You will mix English and Japanese

There are lots of terms for this phenomenon, and it is not limited to just speakers of English and Japanese, but it is the DEVIL!!! This stupid practice, mostly caused by laziness will literally ruin your chances of speaking intelligible Japanese, and probably your girlfriend’s chances of remembering English.  You will create your own little language that no one else really understands, not even you, and that makes for absolutely terrible communication.

Here is a sample conversation that doesn’t make sense:

A.  When do you think the 図書館 is open?

B.  さあ、I don’t know, after dinner you should チェック。

A.  めんどくさいな。

B.  Don’t be a バカ。ほら見て、このサイトで it’s written right here!

A.   そうか。Fine, 夕飯を食べたら I’m gonna go return these 本。

See?  This conversation is wrong in too many ways to  “counto.”

3.  Getting made fun of sucks

No matter how good at speaking Japanese you get, there will always be ways to get made fun of by your girlfriend.  Some are simply called “cute” for speaking with an accent, while others get called out on their weird grammar or pronunciation.  No matter what, most guys HATE criticism, even backhanded statements about how cute you are!  It makes you feel stupid, like you are being treated like a small child, and it’s easy to get defensive.  Even people who speak really awesome Japanese get made fun of because they speak better Japanese than normal people!  It’s frustrating!  It’s only fair though, because I’m sure not many of you can honestly say you’ve never made fun of Japanese English or “カタカナ イングリーシュ.”  It’s just so cute and funny.  アイ　ライク　ユウー！カン　ウイ　ハング　アウト　ツモーロ？ “I like you!  Can we hang out tomorrow?” Awwwwwww….okay, fair is fair.

4.  あんたの彼女とばかり話してると、かわいい女の子みたいに話しちゃうわよ！笑

This title means, if you talk with your girlfriend all the time, you might end up sounding like our friend above:

「あたし美しいね〜!」”I’m sooo beautiful!” (said very cutely)

This is probably not desirable, and believe me, everyone will let you know how girly you sound.  This unfortunate scenario also occurs a lot because a huge portion of Japanese instructors are women, and most foreign guys don’t spend their time looking for manly sounding Japanese dudes to chase around.  If you are just starting your language learning experience, you won’t be able to help but talk like girl.  On the flip side, if you over compensate, and try to talk like a Japanese THUG, then your friends, girlfriend, their friends friends, will think you’ve lost your mind and will all laugh until they turn blue.

5.  Your girlfriend wants to learn English

I know Koichi hates this with a passion, but most guys learning Japanese are going to try to get girlfriends in Japan by becoming language partners.  Sorry Koichi, but it’s the birds and the bees, and it’s the way it will always be.  Men, chances are your future girlfriend isn’t going to date you because she’s really pumped about teaching someone basic Japanese over and over again.  If anything, she’ll agree to hang out with you because she wants to learn English, at least as one of the perks.  If that is the case, you will probably spend a lot more time explaining things in English rather than learning Japanese.

6.  No keigo or kanji with your girlfriend

Maybe I have exaggerated a smidge in the above parts, and there are significant linguistic improvements that can be made in your life by chasing Japanese girls.  Keigo (formal language) and Kanji skills are probably not included in this theoretical list of benefits.  Unless you want your conversations with your girlfriend to sound like two bankers who aren’t quite sure which of them is 先輩「せんぱい」 “senior,” you won’t be getting a lot of time practicing keigo.  Even Japanese people have trouble learning keigo because no one uses it with anyone close to them.  Using keigo with people you like makes you sound like you are being especially cold and probably mad at them.  It’s like when your parents were driving the car on a road trip when you were a little kid, and your dad is super lost and your mom asks overly kindly “Honey, would it be at all possible if we could stop and ask for directions?” to which your dad replies very politely and forcefully restrained “Darling, if we can just find the freeway, there will be no need to stop and bother the gas station attendant…”  It’s a little different in Japanese, but it’s the same concept that something isn’t right if you’re suddenly being very formal.  It sounds weird to the point where a lot of girls really don’t like to practice it with their boyfriends.  Sorry guys.

For kanji, unless your girlfriend is really into calligraphy and wants to practice together everyday, she probably won’t be a big resource for helping you there.  Some people try to hand write letters, but most would rather be doing other things, like eating nachos.  A popular solution is email, but I can assure you, everyone can type a ZILLION more kanji than they can actually write!  You, me, and most Japanese people under 30 included.  Now there’s even 191 more kanji we’re all supposed to know…so better start writing some really complex love letters!

7.  Jesus that’s fast! Can’t you speak slowly?!  Oh wait…you are?

It may seem like your girlfriend is talking like a machine gun to you, but wait until she gets around her friends…it’s a blur of giggling lightning!  For a lot of us, the only real part we participate in once they get going is listening to how silly or cute we sound if we try to say anything.  That means that most of the time she’s going easy on you.  It’s nice and practical for mutual understanding, but really it’s like using training wheels all the time.  Once you take them off, you’ll crash and burn in real conversations.  An obvious solution is to tell her to speak normally to you, but that often doesn’t last long.  If she tells you at lightning speed to “Bring the chopsticks” はしを持って来てね 「hashiwomottekitene」and you hear “Go to the bridge and back” 橋に行って来てね「hashiniittekitene」she’s probably going to get tired of you fast if you’re gone for an hour while she’s waiting for chopsticks!

橋だろ？！

8.  Your conversation topics will be limited

Some of you might be dating Japanese bioethics experts who take time and care to explain each vocabulary to you to ensure that you understand every word, but most of you will be repeating the following conversation far more often:

A.  今日何食べよう？「kyounanitabeyou?」”What should we eat today?”

B.  さあ、なにがいい？ 「saa, nanigaii?」”Uhh, well what do you want?”

A.  分からない。冷蔵庫に何が入っている？「wakaranai. reizokoninanigahaitteiru?」”I don’t know.  What’s in the fridge?”

B.  あまり何もないよ。「amarinanimonaiyo」”There’s not much.”

On the edge of your seat yet??  It’s like repeating basic Japanese class over and over again.  Some of you will get to delve into deeper topics from time to time, but it’s not like you’re going to be seriously practicing Japanese all the time with every conversation.  It gets tiring to have real deep conversations all the time, so it’s really easy to be lazy and stick to the mundane stuff, and mix in some English when you don’t know the right word and hope she understands.  BAD BAD BAD!

9.  Your girlfriend probably doesn’t know Japanese very well

I hate to criticize your girlfriend without having met her, but her Japanese is probably not perfect.  Unless she’s used to teaching foreigners all the time, it’s likely that she won’t be able to tell you much about how to learn Japanese.  She learned it a loooong time ago, and way differently than you’re going to have to do.  It’s not going to help you that much to go sit in on an elementary school Japanese language class in Japan.  Too much worrying about protecting your anus from mean children to focus anyway.

The Japanese your girlfriend uses isn’t even exactly the same thing you’ll be learning.  Her kanji’s probably off some of the time, and the grammar she uses sometimes won’t be found in your textbook.  That’s okay for basic practice, and it’s great to learn theoretical and practical use of Japanese, but this isn’t Japanese class it’s your GIRLFRIEND.

10.  Just kidding.

Getting a Japanese girlfriend really can improve your Japanese.  A lot.  Please don’t run away from Japanese girls screaming that you need to protect your language skills.  Please.  A lot of them are nice, fun, and might actually speak to you in Japanese.  If you practice with real people, then maybe you won’t sound like a conversation from Nakama or Genki, which will make people laugh way more than if you actually try.  Hopefully you’ll learn lots of cool things about culture, dating style, a new world view, and if you’re lucky, find more meaningful things to talk about than kanji radicals.  Just keep in mind the frustrations and pitfalls along the road, don’t give up, and don’t stop actually studying.  みんな頑張れ！

P.S. All this probably applies to Japanese boyfriends, too, for all of you that like boys and not girls.

This post was written by Nick W., who has traveled throughout many regions of Japan in search of unique cultural gems.  He is currently earning his MBA and has researched topics like folk music in WWII Japan and Ainu cultural revival through music.  His favorite Japanese musician is the late Nujabes.  He does have a nice Japanese girlfriend, but is too lazy to learn much Japanese from her.

Related posts:

1. Should You Learn Japanese From a Native Speaker or a “Foreigner”?
2. 12 Completely (Un)inspiring Images To Help You Learn Kanji

When it comes down to it, I’m pretty certain that most people don’t quit learning Japanese because it’s too hard. Really, the Japanese language isn’t that hard at all (at least if you know English already, which is a big ol’ mess by comparison). The problem with most Japanese learners is that they just don’t have the right motivation and inspiration to keep them going. Learning a new language is 99% motivation and 1% “other.” Originally, I kept this mailing list reserved for TextFugu members only. This morning, though, I took a looksy over the TextFugu Manifesto (as I try to do every morning) and stopped for a moment on #3: “Help People To Learn Japanese.” That’s when I realized that this mailing list is perfect for anyone learning Japanese (whether they use TextFugu or not), and thought it could be really useful if made available to the public.

What Is The “TextFugu Inspirational Mailing List”?

At the core, it’s all about inspiration. I created this list thanks to all the inspiration I get from the PhilosophersNotes mailing list (you should join it, it’s awesome). I thought I could create something similar, but much more targeted towards Japanese language learners. The goal is to help you stay motivated and happy, so that you can study Japanese more effectively than ever before (because, really, unhappy people don’t study Japanese very effectively). The mailing list is set up in an “autoresponder” format, which means there are quite a few e-mails already written out, and ready to go. You just have to sign up and you’ll start getting them week after week after week (until you decide to unsubscribe). You won’t find any hard sales pitches or anything like that either because this mailing list is set up for actual, paying, TextFugu members.

So, if you’re studying Japanese, you should give it a shot and see if you like it (I’m guessing this list won’t be for everyone, since not everyone is keen on motivational writing). Each week contains an e-mail with some kind of lesson, idea, or task to help you stay motivated enough to keep studying (or start studying) Japanese. I hope you like it!

[ Join the TextFugu Inspirational Mailing List ]

P.S. If you’re not into inspiration, there’s always the Tofugu Newsletter (which comes out more occasionally) and the Tofugu Twitter Account.

Related posts:

1. Tofugu’s 100 Best Resources For Learning Japanese
2. What A Police Negotiator Can Teach You About Learning Japanese

The other day I got an e-mail from Skritter. They’re a pretty rag-tag bunch, but I like that. Skritter lets you practice writing kanji using various flash card sets (either Skritter made, community made, or you-made). Sure, you could do all this with your hands, but here’s what makes Skritter interesting.

Writing / Drawing Your Kanji Into Skritter

Let’s start with both the best and worst part about Skritter. You can draw kanji into the kanji area (it’ll ask you to write a kanji, and you write it) which is totally awesome… if you have a tablet. Now, Skritter seems to know this and they recommend some fairly affordable tablets that you can purchase to use with their service, but in my opinion you’re only getting around 25% of the potential benefit if you use your mouse to write stuff in. Take a look at how things are done:

I was using my mouse (you can tell by how sloppy it is), though I imagine that if I pulled out my tablet It would be a much better experience. Using a mouse wasn’t bad per se, but it could have been better. Using a tablet will allow you to write faster, practice writing kanji the way you’d actually write kanji, and probably learn a lot more effectively. There’s just something weird about using a mouse, though it still works.

Practicing Stroke Order

If you watch the video above, you’ll see that I mess up the stroke order on 月 (whoops!). It took me a while to realize this, but Skritter actually keeps track of your stroke order accuracy as well. Here I thought I was pretty good at stroke order, but it turns out I’m kind of so-so, especially with more complicated kanji. Skritter’s a great tool for learning and practicing stroke order.

This is probably my favorite feature of Skritter right here – it’s something you can’t really get immediate feedback on when you’re writing with a pencil and paper.

For those of you who are beginners of kanji, you can also see the outline of the kanji as well (if you want). This is great for people just learning a kanji who need a little help, though it gives you as much (or as little) help as you need, when you need it. I’d recommend turning everything off, it’ll help you build your brain power up.

Vocab Learning

Skritter’s more about learning the vocab surrounding various kanji / words, which I think is great. That’s the more useful part, anyways, depending on what your goals are, and Skritter has a lot to learn from, including lists that come from various Japanese textbooks (Though TextFugu subscribers will have to wait – no TextFugu list yet).

On top of that, there are some user generated lists, Skritter lists, and lists you can make yourself. This isn’t a bad way to practice vocabulary at all. Where Smart.fm is great for being able to read vocab and kanji, Skritter is great for being able to write those same words. Although similar, I’d say they compliment each other very nicely.

All in all, Skritter’s a neat little tool. I’d definitely recommend you get a tablet if you’re going to use Skritter, though, otherwise you’re missing out. They have a two week free trial, though it’s going to cost you $9.95 a month after that. Not a bad price at all, if you ask me. That’s like going out to lunch, once a month, except you get to eat kanji instead. nom nom nom.

I probably wouldn’t recommend Skritter as your catch-all solution to Japanese learning, though I would recommend it to those of you who want to practice writing their kanji. It does a great job doing what it does, so if you treat it like that, you’ll have a wonderful experience.

Sign up for the trial and tell me what you think. What are your impressions of it?

[Skritter.com]

Related posts:

1. The 5 Biggest Mistakes People Make When Learning Kanji
2. Question: How Should You Learn Kanji?
3. Learn Japanese Vocabulary Faster By Becoming A Nintendo DS Kanji Sono Mama Jedi Master

This is a guest post by the awesome Japanese language teacher and blogger Rainbowhill. Be sure to subscribe to his newsletter (a personal favorite of mine!) and follow him on Twitter.

On Friday last week I spent most of the afternoon being verbally abused and physically threatened. It was all part of the training in conflict resolution offered by my employer and conducted by a wirey ex-cop that reminded me of an Aussie version of Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry. Our police trainer hired actors to play a client that had reached a level of aggravation beyond negotiation.

Our trainer told us that he wanted to scar our subconscious deeply enough so that when we were confronted with a potentially life threatening situation we would know how to respond instinctively. So with little knowledge of the conflict unfolding behind a closed door we were thrust into a room where we had to rescue a co-worker from a hostile situation.

The experience really struck home to me the importance of role play. All of the textbook theory in the world won’t prepare you for real life. The closest you’re ever going to get to it is in a role play. I felt the fear, the rush of adrenaline, and did what I was trained to do without a second thought.

It’s the same with language learning. The same sweaty palms, racing heartbeat and dry mouth you feel under the stress of having to speak in Japanese with someone you don’t know. Dealing with this stress in an uncertain situation you are forced to think on your feet to get a reasonable outcome.

If you can find a way to do this in a non-threatening environment and be given the chance to rewind and look over your performance then you can learn a lot about what works and what doesn’t.

Why you need more role play

Role play can give you a better sense of your Japanese progress than any paper test. Here are a few reasons you should use role play more often.

1. Through role play any situation imaginable becomes possible.
2. Role play encourages you to express yourself fully.
3. The use of non-verbal communication is highlighted.
4. It helps develop skills that you’d expect to face in life.
5. Role play is a chance to be someone else, if only for a moment.
6. It is fun when the objectives are clear and the environment is controlled.

How to find a person to role play with

If you’re going to lessons then you already have a group of people including your teacher to role play with. If they’re not using role play in their lessons then politely suggest that you’d like the chance to practice what you learn. If your teacher is reluctant to offer you the chance to role play you can always find a new one on TeachStreet or Craigslist.

If your classmates are cool with it you can always hang around a bit longer after class to practice.  I use Meetup in my city to find people to chat with in Japanese. Be safe online, stranger danger is real.

Don’t feel as though you’re limited by your physical location, online learning is cheap and accessible. If you want a live teacher you can find one on eduFire. It’s not only a great way to find the best teachers, but there is an excellent sense of community and you’ll find other people learning Japanese to practice with.

The Internet is all about social media, so you might want to try the social learning networks you’re on already. There are plenty of groups on Facebook that are set up to provide opportunities for language exchange. If you’re ready to tackle Mixi, you have access to the biggest social network in Japan. If you’re a member of Lang-8 then you’ll know how valuable it is to have someone correct your written output. Why not ask a friend on Twitter to help you correct your spoken output over Skype?

Before you rush off and find someone to be your Japanese language pal, read Koichi’s tips on how not to creep people out.

How to set up a role play

Once you’ve found someone to role play with, you’re going to have to know how to set one up. I spent years perfecting the set up in my days as an eikaiwa instructor, but today I’m only going to give you the crib notes. It may not work every time you try it, but dealing with the unexpected is all part of the fun. This method is called C.R.O.W.

Conflict

Situations with conflict work best because you’ve got something I want, and you’re not going to give it up easily. It doesn’t have to be as threatening as a hostage situation, a simple information gap can work. So rather than “Ask a stranger for the time” you could use “Interrupt a person reading to ask them the time”. Introducing a conflict adds creative tension.

Role

For it to work roles need to be clear. You can add variety to even a simple role play by giving more detailed roles. Rather than “You are reading a book, I’m going to ask you the time” you could use, “You are getting to a really exciting part of your book, and you don’t like being interrupted. I’m going to ask you the time”. Or, “You are hard-of-hearing and you’re reading a really interesting report. I’m going to ask you for the time”. You get the idea.

Objective

From reading the previous two parts of the set up, you might think that people just go around asking people the time for no reason at all. This rarely ever happens. Think about it. If everything is going to plan, do you ever ask complete strangers the time? If your goal is to catch the right train to board your flight in time it adds a sense of urgency to the conversation. Make sure there is a reason for what you are doing.

Where

With all of the other things done well, you might not think place would make much of a difference. Consider this, “You are getting to a really exciting part of your book, and you don’t like being interrupted. I’m going to ask you the time. You are sitting by yourself on an empty station platform”, versus “you are on a crowded and noisy express train about to reach your station”. Think about where you are when you need to do something.

What to do next.

You are a Japanese learner who is looking for a way to quickly put into practice all the things you’ve been learning online. You know there are people who can speak Japanese better than you and you’re intimidated. That fear of failure is holding you back, but you know what? It’s imaginary. Quit imagining and get real. Accept that you are going to fail often and get on with it.

You are getting to that really exciting part of language learning where you can actually make conversation. You need someone to talk to. You are going to find someone to talk to, right now. Review this post, explore your social networks. Put your Skype address in a comment on this post. I’m easy enough to find on Skype – Brett.Fyfield.

Set a time for you and your new partner to do some role play. Make it a recurring meeting and stick it in your diary with a reminder so you are forced to take action. You are going to make role play a regular part of your Japanese learning, today.

You are reading a post about role play on one of the most popular Japanese language and culture blogs in the universe. There is someone reading this that wants to speak Japanese with you. Find that person. Set a time to get together.

Go on, make my day! I’m listening.

Brett Fyfield is the Chief Rainbow Maker at Rainbowhill Language Lab. When he’s not taking hits from underpaid actors he enjoys perfecting his Parkour technique. Hit him up for a fifteen minute Skype session, follow him on Twitter, and sign up to Rainbowmail for insider tips on passing the JLPT.

Related posts:

1. Tofugu’s 100 Best Resources For Learning Japanese
2. Is Learning Japanese Not Popular Anymore?

Not content to blindy folllow popular methods of language study a Jedi Knight searches the near and far galaxies for hitherto unknown tools and techniques with which to master Japanese. Hidden beneath the long sleeves of a hooded cloak is a tool for deciphering even the densest of Japanese literature, the Kanji Sono Mama Rakubiki Jiten on Nintendo DS.

Kanji Sono Mama is a dictionary, translated “Kanji just like that, easy to pull”, which puts any authentic Japanese text within the reach of a mere mortal. Sure there are other electronic dictionaries, but none I’ve found come close to the utility of this sleekly packaged touch generation device. I’m going to show you the method I use to expand my vocabulary with Kanji Sono Mama.

This method works with any dictionary which allows you to look up kanji compounds online or off. The Kanji Learners Dictionary is a good example of a dictionary that will allow you to look up compounds based on recognition of their radicals. If you’re reading kanji online then you could use a combination of QuickKanji and Jisho.org. For this post however I’m going to focus on using Kanji Sono Mama, because it’s mobile and it has a flash card function that combines well to make it an all-in-one vocabulary droid.

Your choice of reading material

I’m a big proponent of reading authentic Japanese while you’re learning. Textbooks simply don’t have the variety of language that literature does. Your choice of literature is up to you, I’m a big  fan of Manga as you might know. I welcome a debate about the merits of manga over classical Japanese literature any day, but ultimately the choice of reading material is yours.

I covered some techniques for reading authentic Japanese manga where I talked mostly about short sessions without a dictionary. This post picks up where that one left off, because ultimately you’ll want to know the meanings of words you’re reading.

Choosing what to study.

People often ask me how to select books that are the right reading level. I usually answer that what you find interesting is usually more important than what reading age it’s aimed at. Reading Chibi Mariko Chan or Sazae San is not just for kids, it’s important social commentary. Although, if it doesn’t interest you it’s not going to hold your attention for very long.

Let’s imagine you have something you really want to read, it’s important to select vocabulary for further study with real intent. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is trying to read too much in one go. Other mistakes that will slow you down are selecting too many items for review or words that are too far out of reach.

Keep the passage you intend to study short, use the techniques I’ve covered elsewhere. Before you pull out your DS decide what vocabulary you’re going to study.

• Finish reading: Only after you have finished your reading session should you start to go back and find vocabulary you want to study. Keep these two sessions separate as much as possible, punctuate them with a short break if necessary. Make sure you have come to a point in your reading from which you will go no further.
• Choose things you understand: If you’ve seen something before but in a different context it is going to be useful for you to get a real fix on it through further study. You know these items are going to be useful because they just keep popping up. They may also be used different ways, so learn them well.
• Choose things you partially understand: In a new context things may look a little different, you may be able to infer meaning but you’ll need a bit more study to come to a full understanding. Choosing words you almost have a handle on is going to be much more fruitful than taking words completely out of context.
• Don’t choose more than you can commit to memory: Even for a Jedi Knight short term memory typically holds no more than seven items. For words you want to learn no more than five a day is a good rule of thumb, particularly if they are new and complex. You should spend as much time on these five items as you did in reading the passage of text you selected.

Practical example #1 – Guessing at the reading with hiragana

Good for: When you can guess from context what the kanji might be.
Method: Use your hiragana input to extract a dictionary entry.

The girl in the picture is on the phone, I could try keitai [けいたい] but that would be incorrect, next best guess is denwa [でんわ] Bingo! Now when I select the entry in the dictionary I get an English equivalent from the Ei-Wa jisho and some usage examples.

The guess work is important because it helps you make leaps at understanding, it doesn’t matter if you fall short a couple of times. Don’t dwell on it, just find the right answer and move on.

Practical Example #2 – Direct entry of the kanji

Good for: When you can’t guess the reading.
Method: Copy the strokes.

The big bold kanji in this cell is easy to copy. You may have seen it before but can’t remember the reading, 大丈夫, just use the touch pen.

I immediately get two readings as before, and some uses in fairly easy to understand sentences.

Practical Example #3 – Stab in the dark?

Good for: When you have to use the force.
Method: Use English input.

I use English input for the word ‘think’, there are two occurences of something that it might be. I get the entry from the Ei-Wa jisho. There are lots of examples, but not all of them contain the kanji I’m looking for.

Caution: Use sparingly!

Using the flash cards.

Now you have a word that you can add to your vocabulary list. This where I really like the DS Sono Mama Rakubiki Jiten, with a simple tap of the touch pen you can add the word to one of three flash card groups.

They have their advantages over hand made flash cards.You don’t have to write anything out carefully on tiny bits of paper. Each card links to a full dictionary entry if you want to see alternative uses and meanings. You can move the flashcards between groups, which is perfect if you are using a Leitner system.

The DS also has a one handed mode. You can collect vocabulary and then causally flip through you cards while sitting on the bus. Perfect for the incognito Jedi in you.

If you have technique for breaking down what you read into reusable chunks please share it in the comments. Do you use flash cards? How do you build your vocabulary?

Keep Reading! Take a look at the companion article: “Are You Still Lugging Dead Tree Bilingual Dictionaries?“

Brett Fyfield is the Chief Rainbow Maker at Rainbowhill Language Lab. He enjoys Aikido and is often mistaken for “suits homeless” because of his dishevelled appearance. If you want more tips on incorporating authentic Japanese literature into your study routine tweet him up on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

The Manga is Homunculus by Hideo Yamamoto. 2003.

Related posts:

1. Question: How Should You Learn Kanji?
2. 12 Completely (Un)inspiring Images To Help You Learn Kanji
3. How To Learn Japanese Using Flickr

J-blogger buddy Thomas from Nihonhacks has recently told me about his latest venture, which is sure to excite Japanese (or any language) learners out there. Traditionally, if you wanted to get audio for something, either it would be there or it wouldn’t (and then you’d be out of luck unless you found someone to record something for you, which doesn’t sound like much fun to me). Enter stage right: RhinoSpike.

The idea behind RhinoSpike is pretty simple and unique (nobody that I’ve seen has ever done this before).

1. You submit text that you want to be read (theoretically by someone who knows what they’re doing with the particular language, like a native speaker).
2. Someone Records the audio for your text and uploads it to the site.
3. You can then listen to the audio, download it, and use it for practice.

Pretty neat idea, right?

How To Use RhinoSpike To Learn Japanese

Although the service is brand new (at the time of writing this), there’s definitely a lot of potential for using it to practice your Japanese. I’m sure the service will grow and change over the next couple months, but there are a few things that probably won’t change for a long time.

1. RhinoSpike Will Be Great For Longer Texts: No doubt about it, RhinoSpike’s main talent will be longer texts, like blog posts, newspaper articles, paragraphs from novels, etc. There’s no point in asking people to read single vocabulary words (you can get single words read on Smart.fm or something like that), not to mention it would be a big waste of time. Go for the longer (but not too long) texts. Newspaper articles will be pretty popular, I imagine. You’ll get a lot more out of things like that, especially if you have to wait in line for someone to get to your text.
2. Use It With Lang-8: RhinoSpike is pretty much just the audio version of Lang-8 (one of my favorite Japanese learning resources). Put your text into Lang-8, get it corrected over there, and then add it to RhinoSpike to get it read out loud. That way, you’re getting the reading/writing practice and the speaking/listening on top of it. That’s a pretty whole picture right there.
3. Use It With Smart.fm or Anki: If you’re getting something recorded that’s full of words you don’t know, put those words into Smart.fm and study the words separately. Then, when you come back to the RhinoSpike recording, you’ll be able to get a lot more out of it.
4. Make Friends: Although the social aspect of RhinoSpike is pretty clunky right now, there’s a lot of potential to make friends and find language partners through the service (you can do the same thing over at Lang-8, too). Help a lot of people by recording English text for them, and I’m sure karma will be good to you.
5. Look Forward To Archived Content: This is going to be one of the most valuable aspects (and perhaps the most costly for RhinoSpike in the long run) of RhinoSpike. There’s going to be thousands upon thousands of archived recordings to study with. Why submit something new when you could study with a thousand other recordings that are already done? This is going to be the best part of RhinoSpike, though it will be a while before these build up. I also imagine that displaying these recordings in a simple, consumable way will be another challenge that RhinoSpike will run into, so enjoy things while they’re still small and organizable!

RhinoSpike is new, and has a long way to go, but the longer it takes for people to use it, the longer it will take to develop, I’m sure (so go give it a try!). I’ve tried the service out a bit, and it works well, getting the job done. I may even see if I can get some recordings for my Japanese Textbook TextFugu and see how that goes. As you use it, I’m sure the developers would love to get some feedback too (and I’m curious what you think!), so let me know in the comment section. What’s the good? What’s the bad? Why aren’t there more pictures of baby rhinos on the site? etc. Looking forward to seeing what your opinions are! [rhinospike]

P.S. If you think baby Rhinos are the cutest thing in the world, you should follow Tofugu on Twitter

P.P.S. If you think they’re kind of ugly, you should subscribe to the Tofugu Newsletter

Related posts:

1. The 5 Biggest Mistakes People Make When Learning Kanji
2. Tofugu’s 100 Best Resources For Learning Japanese
3. How To Use Evernote To Study Japanese (Or Any Other Language)

Way back in the day, I published a list of my 10 favorite (free) Japanese learning resources, which is great, but not as great as 100 Japanese learning resources. With a list this big, you’ll be able to procrastinate to your heart’s content, which is probably why you’re reading this blog and not learning Japanese instead.

This list has been broken up by category, that way you can find the things you’re most interested in quickly and easily (without having to scroll through the entire list). Within each category, I’ve listed resources starting with my favorites and working my way down. Those marked with a tofugu logo () are “Tofugu approved,” which mostly just means they’ll give you a warm and fuzzy feeling when using them (oh, and I would use the resource myself). Things that I just kinda-sorta like don’t get a sexy fish next to their names. But hey, we have a lot to go through, so let’s get to it.

Categories:

1. Japanese Textbooks
2. Hiragana / Katakana
3. Japanese Grammar
4. Kanji
5. Japanese Vocab
6. Japanese Dictionaries
7. Browser Add-ons
8. Japanese Learning Games
9. Social Learning
10. Multimedia Learning
11. Japanese Learning Software
12. Finding A Japanese Teacher
13. Google Resources
14. Reading Japanese
15. Japanese Resources Lists
16. Japanese Cheat Sheets

I know it’s a long list, but hopefully it will help you find what you’re looking for more effectively. If you decide to read everything on the top-10o list, good luck! Either way, I hope you find something new to add to your utility belt. Let’s get started!

The Best Japanese Textbooks

Traditionally, everyone learned from Textbooks. Although a lot of textbooks are getting a bit old, there’s a couple of good ones in here including (full disclosure) my own.

1. TextFugu

TextFugu is an online Japanese textbook designed specifically for self-learners of Japanese. As of this post, it’s still in its early stages of development, which means it’s pretty perfect for beginners / complete beginners, though intermediate / advanced learners won’t find much here (yet). What makes TextFugu unique is its focus on all the main issues that self-learners run into. With most resources, quitter-rate is between 80-90%. TextFugu’s much lower quitter-rate is thanks to the interesting content, personal feel, and focus on inspiration / motivation rather than the good ol’ fashioned content shotgun approach.

2. Genki’s Integrated Course in Elementary Japanese

When it comes to “traditional” textbooks, Genki is pretty darn good. Before TextFugu, this is what I recommended that people use. It does a good overall job of teaching someone Japanese, though the biggest problems usually only appear when you don’t have a teacher (or at least someone better at Japanese) to guide you. Some parts can be confusing and a big complicated, so if you’re planning on teaching yourself Japanese, expect to run into some (fairly minor) problems. Another issue I have with Genki is that the stories are really boring. Personally, not a fan of Mary and her dumb exchange student adventures.

3. Japanese For Busy People

Japanese For Busy People was a pretty terrible textbook a while back. They have, however, done a good job making things better in the third edition of their book. There’s still a bit lacking (though, hard to beat the $20 price tag…  you get what you pay for), and I think it moves a bit too quickly. Personally, I’d rather it teach me how to make my life less busy and stressful instead of trying to work around my already busy and stressful life. Still, all-in-all, you get quite a bit for the $20 it’ll cost you, which might make it a good deal for some.

4. Japanese For Everyone

Japanese For Everyone would have ranked higher… if it seemed like people could actually find the audio tapes associated with it. Either you’ll just have to go without the tapes (which is pretty boo boo if you ask me), or you’ll have to special order them from Japan. Either way, it’s not an ideal situation. The book itself is pretty good, and I’d rank it up with Genki… if it had the tapes.

5. Yokoso

Yokoso is going to be a lot better if used in a classroom. It lacks a lot of examples and isn’t organized too well. With a teacher, though, this textbook isn’t all that bad as long as your teacher fills in the gaps (which is, I’m guessing, why it’s so gappy). If you’re self-learning, I’d stay away from this book. If you’re not self learning, I might choose Genki instead. If you have no choice? Well, Yokoso is the best choice, then.

Resources For Learning Hiragana (and Katakana, too)

Hiragana, especially, is a big part of your early Japanese learning career. In fact, I’d say it’s the first thing you should learn. It sets a foundation for reading, pronunciation, and Japanese sentence structure. There are plenty of Japanese resources out there for learning Hiragana (and katakana), and here are my favorites.

1. Smart.fm’s “Master Hiragana” Deck

Smart.fm is a great way to learn Japanese vocabulary, but it’s also a great way to learn other things as well (including hiragana). Although this won’t help you learn how to write hiragana, it will help you learn how to read it. For the writing part, you’ll have to do it yourself, or use one of the other hiragana resources listed below.

2. NihongoUp’s Hiragana / Katakana Game

NihongoUp is a fun way to practice vocabulary, particles, and hiragana/katakana. Like Smart.fm, it won’t help you learn how to actually write the buggers, but it does do a good job helping you to remember them. There’s a free trial which should give you a good amount of time with the hiragana or katakana section. Using games to learn Japanese is definitely a great way to stay motivated (or take a break from the regular grind).

3. A piece of Paper and a Pen

You gotta learn how to write somehow, and it won’t happen on your computer. To learn how to read and write, it’s important that you actually do it. You can integrate this with your flashcard learning as well. Every time a card comes up, you write it down on your paper. Make sure you follow good stroke order too (makes your writing look nicer!). Try writing your hiragana big, then small, too. If you can write your kana big, and make it look nice, chances are you can make it small too (plus, this tricks your brain into remembering each kana better).

4. RealKana

RealKana is a flashcard web app that allows you to choose which kana you want to practice. When a kana comes up, you type it in. It’s as simple as that. One feature that makes RealKana unique from the rest is the ability to choose a font (or fonts) to study with. Like in English, there are multiple ways to write certain “letters.” This can be confusing if you see a new font somewhere. This feature allows you to see the kana in various fonts, which gets you used to what’s out there before you hit up the “real world.”

5. Hiragana Chart & Hiragana Stroke Order Chart

Everyone needs a hiragana chart in their bathroom, and this one does just the trick. It’s easy to see read, printer friendly, and does a good job. Try not to cheat too often, though, or else you won’t be able to actually memorize anything.

6. Hiragana Reading & Writing Practice Worksheet

This worksheet is simple. There are things written in hiragana. You have to change them into romaji. There are things written in romaji, you have to change them to hiragana. Just another way to practice reading and writing hiragana. If you finish this worksheet and want more, head on over to a Japanese newspaper (like Asahi) and “translate” every bit of hiragana you see on a page.

7. Comparisons Between Hiragana and Katakana

When you’ve learned hiragana, and it’s time to move on to katakana, you’ll notice that keeping them straight can sometimes be difficult. This resources puts hiragana and katakana side-by-side to help you differentiate between them.

8. TextFugu’s “Japanese Pronunciation With Hiragana” Lesson

This free lesson goes over the pronunciation of Japanese using hiragana as a backbone.

9. TextFugu’s “Reading & Writing Hiragana” Lesson

This free lesson teaches you how to read and write hiragana, using various resources and techniques.

10. Genki’s Hiragana & Katakana Page

Not the prettiest resource, but gets the job done.

Best Resources For Learning Japanese Grammar

Of course, Japanese grammar is the backbone of learning Japanese. If you don’t gots grammar, you ain’t gots nothin.

1. Jgram.org

Jgram.org is kind of a wiki dedicated to Japanese grammar. It’s broken up into JLPT levels and it’s easy to find the particular grammar you’re looking for, including example sentences, explanations, and more. The content you’ll find here has been contributed by users of the site, which means things are always being updated with newer (and theoretically better) information.

2. Tae Kim’s Guide To Japanese Grammar

When it comes to Japanese grammar, Tae Kim is pretty much the man. His guide to Japanese grammar has been up forever, and is full of great information. I’ve recommended Tae Kim’s guide as an alternate way to learn Japanese, though it’s missing a few things that could make it into a “one-stop-shop” Japanese learning… shop.

3. Maggie Sensei

Maggie Sensei, run by Victor of the YouTube channel Gimmeabreakman, is an absolutely great resource for learning Japanese slang, grammar, culture and more. Lots of stuff here that you won’t find anywhere else, all packed into one location. I’d say Maggie Sensei is best for intermediate level students of Japanese, but no matter what level you are you’ll find something useful (and entertaining as well).

4. Timwerx.net

Timwerx, I feel, must be Tae Kim from an alternate universe (or Tae Kim is Timwerx from an alternative universe). More Japanese grammar laid out in a pretty-easy-to-follow fashion. My only complaint is that there isn’t more explanation. I think this would be a great resource for those of you looking for a refresher / another explanation on a particular grammar point, rather than someone learning all this grammar for the first time. Still, good stuff can be found here.

5. Wikipedia

Wikipedia, as I’m sure you know, is a fountain of knowledge that can’t be plugged. I’ve not only found a ridiculous amount of grammar information here, but also the history of grammar points, links to a ton of examples, and more. Although you won’t find every grammar point, Wikipedia has great explanations on a lot of things, especially the harder-to-understand ones that a lot of people have contributed their knowledge to.

6. Evernote

Just like using Evernote for vocabulary, it’s also a great way to compile information and data on the grammar points you’re learning. Just tag your grammar properly, and it’s a great way to keep track of grammar-related information in one searchable space. If you ever forget a grammar point or need to look up some examples, you’ll thank yourself for using Evernote to keep track of it all, even if it’s a hassle to do while you’re studying.

7. The Japanese Learning Page

Sort of lacking in explanation of each grammar point, but an absolute great way to review your grammar (or look up something you forgot). Lots of info with examples makes this a decent Japanese grammar experience.

8. Visualizing Japanese Grammar

Visualizing Japanese Grammar is a site full of flash animations that take you through different lessons in Japanese grammar. It’s a bit old, and the animations can be a bit wonky (with kind of low quality audio), but definitely a good thing to take a look at for any Japanese grammar buff.

Best Resources For Learning Kanji

Everyone’s favorite part of learning Japanese, kanji. These resources will make kanji less painful, hopefully.

1. Smart.fm

I’m a big fan of Smart.fm and the unlimited amount of Japanese learning potential that they have. They’re basically a “smart” flash card web app that knows when you should study what, and tells you how much of it you should study. It brings back words you have trouble with more often, and is a really good way to learn vocab or kanji. Add sentences, audio, stroke order, and other games (besides the flashcard app) and you have yourself quite the winner. Users of the service also make their own flashcard sets, which you can also study. This means there are flashcard sets for everything (and if a set doesn’t exist, you can create one!).

2. Anki

Anki is a smart flaschard app like Smart.fm. There is definitely a pretty big crowd of people who love Anki and I can see why (though I tend to prefer Smart.fm). Anki has a slightly different approach for learning vocab (and the focus is more on you creating the flashcards, though you can download others), so make sure you try both Anki and Smart.fm to see which one works best for you. One of them should be a good match.

3. White Rabbit Press Kanji Flashcards

If you’re the type of person that absolutely needs physical flashcards, White Rabbit has some of the best. They can be a bit spendy, but they’re high quality and definitely good for the person that needs to hold their flashcards in hand. Personally, I’m more of an electric kind of person (because then it can keep track of what you need to learn and what you need to review), but perhaps these are a better fit for your own personal learning style.

4. Kanji Koohii

Kanji Koohii is a site that helps you to remember kanji using mnemonics generated by you and the other users of the site. Using mnemonics is a great way to help you remember things, and the cool thing about this site is that there are a plethora of user-generated “stories” that you can use whenever you can’t think of your own.

5. Kanji Wall Poster

Another thing that I bet is up on a lot of bathroom walls. This kanji wall poster consists of the ~2000 kanji you need to function in everyday society (or read a newspaper). Use this kanji wall poster to inspire you to learn all of the kanji up there, or use it to keep track of what you still need to learn. It also just looks pretty sweet. I imagine people who get ridiculous kanji tattoos would agree.

5. TextFugu Kanji Section

TextFugu has a kanji section as well, though it is quite young. When finished, it will be a complete guide to learning kanji that will really do a good job streamlining a lot of the issues other kanji resources have. It seems like nobody out there is quite 100% “complete” in the sense that they do somethings much better than others (so if you combine several resources, that works quite well). The goal of the TextFugu kanji section will be to create a simple, one-stop learning experience that gets you through kanji quickly, efficiently, and somewhat painlessly.

6. Heisig’s “Remembering The Kanji”

Remembering The Kanji is one of the first kanji resources to use mnemonics to help you learn Japanese. It does a really good job helping you to learn the meaning of a particular kanji, though it doesn’t go into the actual readings / pronunciations of the kanji quite as well. If you’re looking to only learn the meanings of the kanji (not super useful when reading, but certainly helps a lot), then Heisig’s is a great place to start. There are a lot of diehard fans of Heisig, so it can’t be that bad.

7. ReadTheKanji

ReadTheKanji has a pretty cool take on kanji learning and drilling. It’s full of pretty stats, looks good, and works pretty well too. Words / sentences will come up, asking you to write the “spelling” of the kanji. It’s great because you can see kanji / words in context with sentences, and it keeps track of what parts of the kanji you remember as well. Definitely a great daily tool to use for 15 minutes or so to learn / review a little bit every day.

8. NihongoUp

NihongoUp is a great way to practice and review your kanji. In game form, this app makes it fun to review your kanji and make things a little less painful (because, you know, kanji is the devil’s alphabet). Kanji/vocab falls from the sky, and you have to write out the pronunciation before they hit the ground. Now if only someone will make a “Kanji House of The Dead,” I’ll be super happy.

9. Yamasa’s Kanji Dictionary (Kanji Stroke Order)

Sure, there are a ton of kanji dictionaries out there, but when it comes to stroke order I like to use Yamasa’s. Not the prettiest interface in the world, but when you put a kanji in the kanji slot, it comes back with, amongst other things, the stroke order, and that’s pretty invaluable for beginners of Japanese.

10. Renshuu.org

Renshuu is another kanji quizzing web app that includes vocab quizzes, listening quizzes, and more. There’s a ton of similar things on this list, so make sure you try them all out. Maybe this is the perfect fit for you (and maybe not).

11. Slime Forest Adventure

Although I haven’t played Slime Forest Adventure myself, playing a game & learning Japanese while doing it doesn’t sound like a bad deal at all. I know quite a few people who enjoy this program, and it definitely seems like a good way to learn and have fun while doing it. You’ll have to pay for a pro account if you want to get all 2000 kanji going, though you can demo it for free and get around 200.

12. KanjiBox

If you’re one of those “Facebook people,” then kanjibox might be good for you. I suppose if you’re going to spend four hours a day updating your status, reading other peoples’ statuses, and playing Farmville, you might as well add something educational to the mix. KanjiBox is a Facebook app that lets you study kanji / vocab right from, well, Facebook.

12. How You Should Learn Kanji

Don’t take my opinions for granted, check out the opinions of 10 other Japan-bloggers in this article on “How You Should Learn Kanji.”

13. Biggest Mistakes People Make When Studying Kanji

If you’re just starting to learn Japanese, or if you’re a Japanese learning veteran, chances are you’re making a mistake with your kanji learning (somewhere). Almost all resources and teachers go about kanji learning in these weird, nonsensical ways. In this article I try to straighten things out for you and help you on your way.

14. On’Yomi vs. Kun’Yomi

One of the most confusing things about learning kanji is the difference between On’Yomi and Kun’Yomi. By learning the differences early, you can get a nice big jump on the rest of the kanji learning world. This is something that a lot of people don’t explain very well, so hopefully this article helps!

Best Resources To Learn Japanese Vocabulary, Words

Kanji & Vocab are pretty similar, but I think I’ve broken them apart here. Definitely hit the kanji section of this list too if you’re interested in vocab, as they go hand in hand.

1. Smart.fm’s Core 2000

Combine 2000 of the most common Japanese words with an awesome vocab-learning system like Smart.fm and you have yourself a winner. I highly recommend you go through 15-20 of these every single day until you’re done, and then move on to the next Core lesson.

2. Flickr

Flickr (and any other photo / images site) is a great way to find inspiration and learn new words. Just find a new image every day, write out the vocabulary on that image, and then translate those words into Japanese (and maybe stick them into Smart.fm or Anki). By using images, you’re giving your brain something else to latch on to, which means you’ll probably remember words you pull from images a lot better than those you don’t. Read more using Flickr as a Japanese learning resource.

3. Evernote

Evernote is a way to keep track of everything. This will take some time on your part, but if you keep track of every word you learn, and put it into Evernote, you’ll have a searchable database of words and vocab you can look up at any time. This is a great way to store information and retrieve it later. Invaluable for the serious Japanese student. Read more about using Evernote to learn Japanese.

4. Smart.fm’s Core 6000

If 2000 wasn’t enough for you, you can move on and the next most common Japanese words. This list is for intermediate students, so the words definitely get a bit tougher, but you can’t go wrong continuing to this list after finishing the first 2000.

Best Japanese Dictionaries

You’ll have to look something up at some point, and there’s definitely a few dictionaries that stand out in terms of quality.

1. Jisho.org

Jisho runs is a prettied up (and featured-up) version of one of my favorite online dictionaries, Jim Breen. It’s better (and prettier) in almost every way, my favorite section being the kanji radicals. If you’re going to use an online Japanese dictionary, this is the one to use. Make sure you hit the “common words” button when you search for something, though, otherwise you’ll get all kinds of wild uncommon results.

2. ALC

ALC is a dictionary that’s all in Japanese, but not that hard to figure out. There’s only one spot to put your word (be it English, or Japanese), and the results are usually pretty good. The best part is the plethora of example sentences that come with a result. Apparently, ALC was made by translators and for translators, making it a good place for… well… translating!

3. Jim Breen

Jim Breen was the first absolutely amazing online Japanese dictionary, which means it definitely can’t be without a space on this list. Jim Breen has a pretty sweet beard, too, and everyone knows that Beards + dictionaries = win.

4. Yamasa’s Kanji Dictionary

Personally, I just like Yamasa’s Kanji dictionary for its kanji stroke order feature. Other than that, it’s a good kanji dictionary, and not too much more.

5. Yahoo Dictionary

If you want another dictionary with good example sentences, Yahoo Dictionary is a pretty good choice. Not my favorite, but there’s nothing wrong with it either. You can always use another perspective when it comes to looking up words and kanji.

Best Browser Add-ons For Japanese Learners

If you’re on Firefox or Chrome, you probably use add-ons. If you don’t, you’re missing out. So why not get some plugins to help you with Japanese too?

1. Rikaichan

Hard to live without Rikaichan. This is a Firefox (and Chrome) plugin that allows you to hover over Japanese words and get a little translation right in your browser window. If you’re reading newspapers (or anything else online) this is a great tool to have. Be careful not to overuse it, though. If you rely on it too much, you’ll find that you’re not actually learning anything!

2. Kanjilish

Kanjilish is a neat concept. When you turn it on, it turns the first letter of an English word into a kanji. The kanji corresponds to the meaning of that word, which helps you associate the kanji with its (English) meaning. For example, the word “eat” might look like 食at. It’s a

3. PeraPeraKun

PeraPeraKun is pretty similar to Rikaichan. Personally, I like Rikaichan, but others like PeraPeraKun. Your choice.

4. Kitsune

Kitsune lets you type in Japanese (in Firefox) without having an IME or anything like that installed. Personally, I’d recommend you just install it and be able to type in Japanese (everywhere), but for some reason if you only want Japanese in your Firefox, Kitsune will do the trick.

Best Japanese Learning Games

Woohoo! Games are fun and make learning easier. Games do have a couple missing pieces, but all-in-all they’re a good way to supplement your studies.

1. NihongoUp

NihongoUp won’t give you an all-in-one Japanese learning package, but out of the things it does do, it does them well. NihongoUp is a great way to study hiragana, katakana, kanji, and (this is the best part), Japanese particles. Probably the best Japanese particles quiz out there (and if you’ve studying Japanese for any amount of time, you’ll know that particles are tough). Definitely worth the small fee to grab yourself a copy of this app.

2. My Japanese Coach

In general, I’ve mostly heard good things about this Nintendo DS Japanese learning game. There’s a few errors here and there (to be honest, though, almost all Japanese textbooks have a few errors, at least), but it’s definitely a good way for younger people to learn Japanese. This game is just for beginners, though, so intermediate / advanced learners of Japanese probably won’t benefit from this.

3. Slime Forest Adventure

I haven’t played this game myself, but there’s a good number of people out there who love it. Slime Forest Adventure is an RPG style game that helps you learn Japanese while you play it.

Best Social Learning Japanese Resources

Everything’s a lot more fun when it’s social. Social learning helps with motivation and gives you a new perspective on everything. I definitely recommend you try some of these out if you aren’t already!

1. Lang-8

Lang-8 was my top pick for the Top 10 Free Japanese Learning Resources article from a while back. It’s still really high up there, and a definite must for anyone who’s been learning Japanese for at least a month or two. The idea is simple: You write articles in Japanese, and Japanese native speakers correct your journals. Japanese people are also writing articles in English, and you help them with their English. It’s language exchange at its finest. You won’t find a better way to practice writing your Japanese.

2. Twitter

Twitter, surprisingly, is a pretty fun way to practice Japanese. You can do a couple of things. First, you could tweet in Japanese – this is an easy (and not too overwhelming) way to practice writing a bit. Secondly, you can follow Japanese tweeters, and translate what they have to say. Once again, it’s short (140 characters!) so it doesn’t feel like you’re doing too much. Do this a few times a day, and you’ll get more done than you think!

3. Mixi.jp

If you already have some Japanese friends, Mixi is a great way to keep in contact (and keep practicing your Japanese). Mixi is Japan’s biggest social network, and with journals, status updates, and more, it’ll surely keep you busy (and learning Japanese) without even realizing it.

4. Skype

No better way than Skype to talk to people in Japan on the phone. There are Japanese language exchange groups within Skype, and you can Skype with people on Lang-8 as well. Somehow they manage to get their audio quality right in every way possible.

5. Making Some Real Friends

All we’ve been talking about here is making online friends. Why not go make some real friends? Those tend to be the best (and most rewarding) type of friends anyways.

6. RhinoSpike

RhinoSpike is pretty new (just launched, in fact), but the premise has a lot of potential, I think. The idea is that you submit text that you want read out loud by Japanese native speakers. It can be anything (newspaper article, blog post, sentence, word, etc). They record it, and you get the audio for the text you want. Conversely, you can help a Japanese native speaker by recording some English. At the time of posting, they’ve only been around about a week, but if you give them a chance I think they could be a pretty legit resource for Japanese listening practice.

7. LiveMocha

LiveMocha is super popular, and has a lot of (free) RosettaStone-ish features (not a fan). It’s a combination of doing online lessons and connecting with native speakers of the language you’re learning. Personally, I think the above resources (combined) do a better job, but some people will probably connect to LiveMocha really well.

8. LingQ

LingQ is another social learning program that has lessons, audio, social learning, and more. Personally not sold on LingQ, but maybe it’s something you would like. Take a look, though it can get a little pricey depending on what freemium upgrades you go for.

9. MyHappyPlanet

MyHappyPlanet is just another way to hook up with language partners. I haven’t used this site myself, but it looks to be pretty good. Hard part will be finding people who will actually go through with the language exchanging, though, no matter what site you use.

Best Japanese Multimedia Learning Resources

Although probably not the best primary way to learn Japanese, multimedia is a great way to supplement your studies (and give you studious breaks when you need them). Here are the best spots to get Japanese media on your computer, iPod, and TV.

1. iTunes Japanese Podcasts

Even though you can’t purchase things on iTunes Japan, you can still download free things, like podcasts. Japanese podcasts are an absolutely fabulous way to listen to Japanese (even if you don’t understand it) and get your ear tuned to the language. Here’s how you do it. First, change your location to “Japan” (down at the bottom of your iTunes store). Second, go to the podcasts section. Third, download Japanese podcasts to your heart’s content. Lots of good stuff there, including things for kids if you want to listen to something a bit more simple.

2. JapanesePod101

JapanesePod101 is all about audio learning. They have podcasts specifically for learning Japanese, as well as worksheets and extra content to go along with them. If you are a purely auditory learner, then give JapanesePod101 a look. There’s a ton of free content as well, and you can get in on a free trial to see the rest (and see if it’s right for you).

3. YouTube

Definitely not going to be the best way to learn Japanese (if this is all you use), but it doesn’t hurt to listen to the Japanese language (and have fun while you do it). YouTube is full of great Japanese clips to watch and listen to. At the very least, it could be a good distraction between brutal bouts of kanji study.

4. NHK’s Japanese Podcast Lessons

This is a lot like JapanesePod101 (in that there are audio lessons that you follow), though it’s not quite as fully-featured. I also think they jump right into overly-complicated things in their first lesson (though that’s just my opinion). Once again, if you’re a purely auditory learner, it’s worth a peak, though I’d choose JapanesePod101 over this.

5. KeyHoleTV

KeyHoleTV allows you to watch TV from all over the world (including Japan), which means you could be watching Japanese programming (and infomercials) from the comfort of your non-Japanese home. Quality and reliability might be an issue, but what do you expect from TV you’re not supposed to be watching?

6. Veoh

Veoh, like YouTube, is full of Japanese content (and often at higher resolutions). This is mostly just another distraction, in my opinion, but you can definitely get some benefit out of it if you try hard enough.

7. D-addicts

Not that I’m promoting Bittorenting or anything like that, but if, for some reason, you needed some Japanese drama, well, this might be the place to find it. Maybe…if you catch my drift, Daddy-o.

8. TBS Japan

TBS Japan is pretty much just a news site with video clips. You’d be surprised at how hard it is to find a Japanese news site with video that’s not bloody Windows Media Player / Real Player only. Who uses either of those anymore? But, if you’re looking to get some Japanese news in Japanese (you know, to practice your formal Japanese), this is a place to do it.

“All-in-One” Japanese Learning Software, Apps, & Websites

These will give you a “one-stop-shop” in terms of Japanese learning.

1. TextFugu

This is my baby, which is why I believe in it so much. If I were to learn Japanese all over again, this is exactly what I would want to use (that’s why it’s my number one, because it was created for a dummy like me). TextFugu is an online textbook, so it lacks a lot of the fancy “features” that others in this section will have, but fancy features are just fancy features sometimes, unless they’re useful features, then they’re pretty awesome.

2. About.Japanese

There’s a surprising amount of information here. I’d say it’s not presented in a simple way, but if you can find the info, it’s pretty great. There’s a reason About shows up so often when you’re searching for Japanese language related queries.

3. All Japanese All The Time

Not quite a Japanese learning software, app, or website, but had to find someplace to put it. This is a site that shows you how to make everything in your life Japanese and create an “immersive environment” for yourself wherever you are to learn Japanese. Personally, if you’re going to get this intense about it, I think you should put all that energy into just moving to Japan. Easier than you think, if you want to do it. If you want to immerse and you’re stuck in some ho-dunk backcountry, though, you won’t find a better guide to immerse yourself in Japanese while not in Japan. Also includes a lot of tips, tricks, and info on staying motivated, which is cool too.

4. Rosetta Stone Japanese

Everyone knows about Rosetta Stone because they spend millions and millions on ads and airport kiosks. But, for the most part they aren’t as great as they make themselves out to be. Click the link above to read my opinion on them.

Best Resources For Finding A Japanese Teacher or Class

Whether you like meeting your teacher virtually in person, you’ll be able to find something here. If you can’t find anything at all, well, then it’s time to think about self-teaching. Main thing is you get started (and don’t let the excuse of no teacher get in the way). Go go go!

1. eduFire

Online learning is the future, and if you want a live teacher you can use eduFire to get one from Japan (or anywhere). Teachers come up on webcam (along with you) and you do your lesson in a virtual classroom. It’s pretty spiffy, and a great way to save money and find teachers you normally wouldn’t have access to.

2. Craigslist

If you’re looking for a local teacher, Craig is your dude. I’ve had a ton of luck finding all sorts of other things (like couches), and finding a Japanese teacher shouldn’t be that bad either (as long as you’re in a location with Japanese teachers). If you’re someplace rural, or lacking in Japanese teachers, you may have to go online and find yourself a virtual one (or teach yourself Japanese).

3. TeachStreet

Although not as expansive as Craiglist, Teachstreet is positioning themselves to be the search engine for teachers / lessons / classes, etc. They’re still only in a limited number of cities (U.S. will have the most luck), but if you are lucky enough to be in one of their operating cities, finding a Japanese teacher should be a cinch.

Top Google Resources For Japanese Learning

If you want to know more about using Google as a Japanese learning tool, check out this article.

1. Image Search

Did you know that Google’s image search is a great way to look new words up? Say you find a word and look it up. The dictionary sucks (because you didn’t use one of the top dictionaries in this list), so you come up with an ambiguous answer. At this point, you would put the word into Google image search to figure out what that word is visually. Chances are, you’ll get some good images to correlate with that word and you’ll now know what it means.

2. Google Search Results

Say you have two similar words (or spellings of words… maybe in katakana), and you aren’t sure which one you should use. Search for both of them in Google and see which one gets you the most results. Most likely, the one with more results will be the correct one to use.

3. Google Translated Search

Google translated search is a not-well-known resource that lets you see side-by-side comparisons of search results, one in Japanese, one in English. Although this is a good way to look at Japanese, there can be errors in automatic translations, so you have to be careful! This is best used by more advanced learners of Japanese.

4. Google Calendar

If you don’t make your Japanese learning important enough to schedule it, then maybe it isn’t important enough. Google Calendar is one of the best calendaring systems out there. It’s a great way to keep track of your studies, what you will study, and when you’ll study. I recommend everyone give scheduling a shot, it can be a great help as long as you stick with it.

5. Google Voice

Although Skype is probably the better alternative, if you’re calling land-lines in Japan, give Google Voice a shot. I use both Voice and Skype to make calls to Japan, and have been happy with both. It just depends on where you’re calling from (Skype = computer, Voice = phone).

6. Google Translate

As a last resort, if you have to do an auto translation, you could try Google Translate. Computer generated translations never turn out accurate, so if you’re using this, you better know a decent amount of Japanese to fix all the errors it’ll show up. Still, translators are supposedly getting better, but learning the language on your own is still the best route to take.

Reading Resources

Reading in Japanese is just another step. Along with these resources, I’d recommend using the Rikaichan plugin to help you look up kanji / words you don’t know or understand.

1. U of V Japanese Text Initiative

University of Virginia is putting together a database of Japanese text that you can search and read (and use to practice). Lots of really great printable text, sortable by author or title. There’s even the option to view text with or without furigana, which is pretty epic if you ask me (I’d try to go without, though, if you really want to learn).

2. Kankomie

Kankomie is full of old Japanese stories. The cool thing about this is that when you click on a story, it will open up a (flash) storybook and read it out loud to you, which means you can read along with the voice. It’s like learning Japanese with karaoke, except a lot older.

3. Goo.ne.jp

Looking for lots and lots and lots of Japanese news to read about? Goo for you.

4. Asahi Shinbun

My personal favorite when it comes to “Japanese newspaper studying.” Be careful, though. Articles disappear behind a paywall after a while, so use something like Evernote to grab the content to study later.

5. Yomiuri Shinbun

Just another Japanese newspaper to study with if Asahi doesn’t do the trick.

Top “Japanese Resources Lists” List

Of course, this is the internet, and there are plenty of other Japanese resource lists out there. I feel like a lot of them are pretty old, but that doesn’t mean you won’t find a couple of new gems in each. Believe it or not, this Japanese learning resources list could have been a 500 top learning resources list (thank goodness it wasn’t, though). There are a ton out there, so if you’re looking for more, these will get you started (and hopefully finished as well).

1. Top 10 Online Resources For Learning Japanese Free

Not all the resources on this list are free, so if you want a more concise, free-er list, take a look at this one. Everything on this top-10 list is also here, but this is a great way to see the best of the best (at least in the free category… sometimes, though not always, you get what you pay for).

2. Gakuranman’s Top 5 Free Online Japanese English Dictionaries

If the dictionary explanations above didn’t do it for you, or you want to find a couple new ones, check out Gakuranman’s list. He’s definitely the Japanese dictionary guru.

3. Top Books For Learning Japanese

Detailed information on pretty much every Japanese learning book out there. If you’re set on getting a book, take a look at this list and find one that’s right for you!

4. NihongoUp’s Japanese Learning Resources

NihongoUp lists their favorite Japanese learning resources for you. There’s a bit more emphasis on non-free learning resources, so you’ll definitely see some new stuff in this list.

5. Tumbleweed’s Resources for Learning Japanese

Just another list of Japanese learning resources.

6. Sabotenweb’s Japanese Language Learning List

A huge and somewhat poorly organized list. You’ll definitely find something new here, it’s like looking through a messy attic. There’s treasures hidden everywhere.

7. Japanese Language Learning Resources

Another big list of Japanese learning resources with fairly good organization

Japanese Cheat Sheets

There’s something to be said about cheat sheets. They’re so sexy and useful (if done right). Here are my favorite cheat sheets, available to download with the click of a button.

1. Nihonshock’s Ultimate Japanese Cheat Sheet

If any cheat sheet can call itself the “ultimate” cheat sheet, this is the one. It looks good and contains a ridiculous amount of information. In some cases, I’d say too much info, but if you need info on almost everything, go get this free cheat sheet.

2. Japanese Language Cheat Sheet For Travelers

If you’re traveling to Japan and don’t know a lick of Japanese, take this cheat sheet with you. It’s designed for someone who’s going to Japan but doesn’t want to study anything. Perfect for travelers.

3. Japanese Particles Cheat Sheet

If you’re like every other Japanese student, you probably hate particles. This cheat sheet will make your life a little bit easier.

4. Japanese Counters Cheat Sheet

If particles haven’t knocked you out of the ring, counters will. Okay, so this cheat sheet is many pages long, but there are a lot of counters out there to bash your head against. Enjoy.

5. Japanese Colors Cheat Sheet

Colors are weird and mysterious in Japanese, and this cheat sheet either makes it easier or more complicated. I can’t tell. Either way, all the information is there for all you color-lovers.

What Resources Would You Add?

Surely I’ve missed 300-500 resources up there, and there’s no way I’m going to add them all (because most of them are crap). But, is there something incredible I’m missing on this list? Something you think the world can’t do without? Let me know what you think in the comments, share this list with your Japanese learning friends, and go rest your eyes. You deserve it (and I deserve to rest my fingers).

P.S. If you thought this list was too long, you should follow Tofugu on Twitter.

P.P.S. If you thought this list was too short, you should subscribe to our newsletter.

Related posts:

1. Is Learning Japanese Not Popular Anymore?

One application which I’ve used for a long time is Evernote, though I’ve mostly been collecting and organizing recipes… until now. Just today, as I was scrolling through the Asahi Shinbun, I had an epiphany. I should be saving articles, sentences, vocabulary, and what-have-you in Evernote so that I can easily search for them later if I ever need to come up with examples on how grammar, vocab, etc., is used in a sentence. Doing this with Japanese blogs would be splendid too. More importantly, I’m going to deconstruct how to use Evernote for language learning (specifically Japanese in this article). It’s a very powerful tool with a lot of potential – I’m sure you’ll even find some interesting uses that I won’t even think of too.

What Is Evernote?

First off, you should probably learn more about how Evernote works, on a whole, before I dive into how you can use it to study Japanese. Evernote is a tool that helps you capture and remember everything. Because it syncs with your phone, computer, and so on, no matter how or where you gather the information, it will appear on all of your devices. These can be things like grocery lists (I write down my grocery list in Evernote on my computer, and it syncs with my iPhone, which I use in the store), remembering your favorite vintage of wine (take a picture of the bottle in the restaurant), or even saving entire articles with the click of a button (if you have a plugin installed in your browser). Because the organization and search features (you can separate your notes into notebooks, and then further break them up with tags) it’s easy to find your notes later. I use Evernote to take pictures of books I want to buy, movies I want to watch, to copy and paste articles I’ll read on my phone later, backups of newsletters / important information, shortcut keys for different applications, instructions on pieces of paper I don’t want to physically keep, my license plate number (in case I need to remember it), and more. Really, it’s good for almost any type of information you could ever want to store and have easy access to later. It’s not the prettiest UI in the world, but it does its job really well (that job being storing information and allowing me to retrieve it easily later). Best part is that it’s free unless you want to upgrade to a bigger plan, which I may actually have to do pretty soon.

So how about using it to learn Japanese, or perhaps some other language? I haven’t started doing this yet personally (I told you, I just had my epiphany today!), but I’ve thought about it, and here are some great ways to use Evernote to practice your Japanese. After I’m done, I’d love to hear from Evernote users out there on how you would use it for Japanese practice as well. I feel like there’s a lot of untapped potential in this simple little app!

Copying Articles To Practice Later

A lot of times when I’m scrolling through Japanese content, I find something I want to read and use as study material, but don’t have the time to study it right then. There are a couple of problems with this. 1. A lot of newspaper sites pull their content after a little while, which means bookmarking it won’t work. 2. I’m not going to remember it if I just bookmark it anyways.

With Evernote, you can install their browser plugin, highlight the text you want, and then click the Evernote button. From there, a popup will appear allowing you to add it to a particular notebook (I’d create a “Japanese” notebook) and then add tags (highly recommend you tag everything! In this case, I might tag it as “asahi,” “readlater,” and “Japanese.”

By using Evernote, it’s easy to gather a lot of content (and only the content you want, i.e. the article) and store it away for later in a place that’s easily searchable. Other options besides newspapers are Japanese blogs, Japanese Tweets, and any other sites that have regularly updated Japanese content.

Studying Vocabulary

Vocabulary study on it’s own probably shouldn’t be done on Evernote (use Smart.fm or Anki if you want to do that). There is, however, a lot of potential for compiling sentences that use the vocabulary that you’re learning. There’s probably a couple of ways you could do it.

1. Create a new note for every vocabulary word that you’re studying. As you come across sentences (either through dictionary searches, or Smart.fm example sentences) that use the word you’re studying, add them to that vocab’s note. That way, whenever you search for that vocab word, you’ll be able to find sentences that go along with it, and you can use that to study.

2. Just create one big note that has all your practice sentences in it. Using the search feature, you can find sentences that use the word you’re looking for and just scroll through looking at those. Not quite as organized, but less time-intensive as well.

Another thing you could try is using the tag feature to tag notes with the vocab you are learning. This, I imagine, could get kind of overwhelming, though, so try it at your own risk.

Keeping Track Of Grammar

One really neat thing you could do with Evernote is use it to keep track of grammar you’ve learned. All you would need to do is create a “Grammar” notebook (or even a note) and put all the grammar you’ve learned in one place. This way, if you’re having trouble with a particular grammar point (or just learned something new about a grammar point), you can open up Evernote no matter where you are, get the information you need, and move on with your life. No more searching your textbook or searching the Internet. It’s all there at your fingertips and you can always add more info whenever you need to, and it’s written in your own style, which means you’ll understand it.

Personally, I think this would be a great way to study for the JLPT, since a lot of the learning is pretty grammar-centric. As you’re going through other study material, this could be a great reference and help you study faster and more effectively.

Keeping A Language Log

Keeping track of the things you’ve done, the things you had trouble with, and then everything in between is pretty important, I think. Normally, I’d recommend using a blog platform (like WordPress) to do this, since being “public” with your log should help motivate you more, but this article is about Evernote, so let’s stick to that. Keeping a log with Evernote is fairly easy, and it’s a good way to keep track of what you had trouble with and what you should study more of. Here is a list of things you could log in Evernote in regards to your Japanese learning:

• What you did today / What you studied today
• What was giving you trouble? Can you write more about it and figure out the root cause of the problem?
• Breakthroughs
• Vocabulary words you learned / studied / need to study more
• What you’ll be studying next (so you don’t forget the next day)
• Sentences, paragraphs, etc., that you wrote today
• Ideas for studying better based on what happened earlier
• etc.

There’s a lot to keep track of when you’re learning a new language, and Evernote is a great platform to help you do it. By keeping a language log, you’re deconstructing a lot of what you’re doing, which is actually really helpful and will assist you in understanding what you’ve done and what you need to do. I’d recommend trying it out for a week or two if you haven’t before. It does a lot more than you might think!

Collecting Inspiration

Staying inspired and motivated is one of the most difficult things when learning a new language (especially on your own). This is something that TextFugu does a pretty good job tackling and taking care of – but you can find and compile the things that inspire you personally, right in Evernote! By collecting articles, quotes, notes, etc., into an “inspiration” notebook or tag, anytime you’re feeling down, or feeling like you can’t do it anymore, you can go straight to that section of Evernote and get a boost of energy.

Although I haven’t done this with Evernote myself, I do have a stack of books with chapters marked off anytime I need an inspirational “you can do it” lift. If those books were in Evernote, it would be that much easier. You’d be surprised at how much of a pick-me-up something like this can do, especially with something that really does need a lot of motivation, like language learning (especially if you study on your own).

Taking Plain Ol’ Notes

I wish I had Evernote when I was in school. I would have used it to take notes in class (well, actually, I’d probably have used Google Wave, and just collaborated on notes with 3-4 other people). If you’re in a class, though, Evernote is a pretty sweet way to do it, especially since you can sync your notes between computers and study no matter where you are (of course, there are things like Google Docs, Dropbox, and others which can do this part pretty well too). Still, it’s a pretty good way to do things. At the end of class (or during class, if you sit in the front), you can even take a picture of the whiteboard and save it to your note (it will even make the words in the image searchable!), that way you have the teacher’s scrobbles, your own scrobbles, and all the scrobbles in between right in one place. It certainly beats pen and paper, at least in terms of searching for things later. If anything, the tagging system makes Evernote a really worthwhile option for taking notes in class.

Sharing And Collaborating

One cool little feature that Evernote has is the ability to share your notes with others. If you want to allow people to modify your notes, you do have to be a premium member (which may or may not be worth it to you). I could see this being useful for people who are studying Japanese with others and want to share notes and ideas. I can also see this being useful for those of you who are learning in a class and taking class notes (and want to share those as well). There are any number of ways to use the share / collaborate feature of Evernote to your advantage. Other alternatives which also let you collaborate include Google Docs and Google Wave, which I would probably recommend more for the collaboration angle of things.

What Are Your Ideas?

Contribute to the Evernote-Japanese-Studying Idea-Pool by commenting below. I’m curious how you use or would use Evernote to your advantage when it comes to language learning. Like I’ve said a couple times already, I think there’s a ton of untapped Japanese-studying potential hidden away in Evernote, and it’s only a matter of figuring out the different uses. So, how would you use the big green elephant? [Evernote]

P.S. If you like elephants, you should follow me on Twitter

Related posts:

1. What I Want To See With Apple’s iPad (In Regards To Japanese)