Friday, 9 December 2011

Best Strategies for Learning Japanese

By Richard Morales


Japanese is often considered to be one of the hardest languages to learn It is not easy, especially for speakers of Western languages who are not accustomed to the subtleties and almost musical quality of Japanese. After a while, though, you will start to appreciate the beauty and uniqueness of this language. The problem for some people is that they think Japanese is so hard they never give themselves a chance to learn it. Learning languages is a natural human ability, one that we all share! You just have to be willing to work hard and put in the time. There's no reason why you can't become fluent in Japanese if you are willing to give it your best effort. If you read and apply some of these tricks, you can make your Japanese study a little simpler.

First of all, you can learn a lot by simply watching Anime! This is probably the most fun homework assignment you will get when you decide to learn Japanese. Anime are animated shows and movies that are created in Japan. It's now easy to find Anime almost anywhere in the West, whether dubbed in English or in the original Japanese version with subtitles in English. It shouldn't be hard to find Anime; you can find free versions of it online, or you can rent or buy some at a video store. Simply turn on the option that lets you listen to the show in the original Japanese and read along. This is a very natural way to start learning the meaning of words and how people use them in phrases and sentences. You may even forget that you are studying a language you'll be having so much fun! If you watch Anime you will start to develop your own preferences; some good ones to look for are Fullmetal Alchemist, Cowboy Bebop or TriGun.

Take it easy in the beginning. Work on getting a functioning vocabulary first and then work on more subtle nuances later. Each language in the world has several words that represent the same idea or object. Many words people don't use in everyday day language or sound strange when used in a conversation so your job is to use a small few of the most common words that gets your thoughts across. When you start to recognize when it is appropriate to use one word over another in a given situation is the time that you can start to build a more complicated vocabulary. Being able to comprehend the small differences words that are similar is a major step in learning a language and is a signal that you have advanced past the beginner's level.

If you have Japanese audio tools, you should also use them when you doing something other than studying. It's great to listen and study while you are consciously trying to learn, of course. You can also learn automatically, however, allowing the subconscious to take in the knowledge. So you can have your tapes or mp3 programs playing while you do other things, whether it's cleaning the house, cooking or taking a drive to the store. Letting yourself hear the words and phrasing over and over again will do wonders for your learning. This is the way your mind works; a lot of what it takes in is automatic, so why not use this to your advantage? You could try what is known as sleep learning, letting the recordings play as you sleep!

Japanese is a worthwhile and commendable language to study. You may have some difficulties when you start studying Japanese, but once you really learn it, you will remember it and then you'll have a whole new language! If you ever want to travel to Japan or become familiar with its culture, learning Japanese will really help you! Imagine being able to watch anime without needing the subtitles.Wouldn't that be fun? If you ever want to travel to Japan, it would be a lot easier and more enjoyable if you knew the language. You might also have an easier time learning other Asian languages if you decide that is something you want to do. It's unquestionable that learning another language can only help you!




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