I am self-studying japanese using Genki as my primary resource (with [this website](https://sethclydesdale.github.io/genki-study-resources/lessons-3rd) for exercises) and i’m also using Anki, WaniKani, and Kanji Study (android app) to memorize kanji/vocab.
I’m only on chapter 5 of Genki so i still have a long ways to go before i even understand sentences that aren’t ultra simple. But i’m excited to try to read/watch some real media.
Realistically, at what point should i attempt to consume some real japanese media? Should i aim to complete all of Genki I? All of Genki II? Obviously i could *try* to consume some media, but i don’t particularly want to be spending 10 minutes on every single sentence looking up every kanji and conjugation and grammar point to understand it. I will obviously need to look up some stuff, i just dont want to spend 5-10 minutes reading every single sentence.
Lastly, can you recommend some manga and TV for beginners when i finally reach that point?
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There’s Crystal Hunters which is a manga made for Japanese learners. You could probably start reading that right now if you wanted.
I mean the sooner the better, as long as you pick the right material which you can learn from, then starting now isn’t really an issue. If you jump into reading a novel it would be overwhelming and wouldn’t really help, but if you focused on elementary books for examples with easier japanese, illustrations, it would be a lot easer.
I can only tell you what I did
After Genki II I started with books for native speakers, but not adults. I read 魔女の宅急便 which is “Kiki’s Delivery Service” which, IDK, might be for 3rd graders or something.
I wish I had adult reading level but, gotta keep grinding.
Anyone starting Japanese should do so right from the beginning. Start off with kids shows or books, the most basic ones have few words so it’s easy to follow and won’t flood you with information.
Do it now. Try to focus on simple stuff at first. Don’t look everything up all the time, just pick a bit that looks interesting here and there. Watch something you’re already familiar with in native audio with native subtitles. You won’t understand much, but you will, with time, pick up a better ear for the language and you’ll start to notice patterns. As you progress you’ll notice more and more.
Chi’s Sweet Home is a very sweet little series about a kitten, there’s definitely baby talk in it but the episodes are short and easy to understand even if you don’t know a single word of Japanese. There is a manga as well.
This YouTube channel is also a good very very early beginner source: https://www.youtube.com/@ComprehensibleJapanese
Ok, you answered the question of “How much do you want to have to look up?”. In which case, the next answer is, you”re going to have to stick to everyday situations. So, no shounen manga or anything aimed at any age over 10. And even then, you might still have difficulty.
Really, you need to get close to N3 level- that means going through the intermediate stage for anything interesting. Otherwise, what you’re capable of reading at this point is going to be things for kindergartners- yes, that’s how low completing BOTH Genki books will get you. Remember, native material is for people who are surrounded 24/7 by Japanese, and have grown up in Japan. Adult learning material gives you some short it’s, but not nearly as much as you might think. Especially since textbook language is NOT what native language is.
It’s good to start surrounding yourself with Japanese media early on (listen to Japanese music, read r/NHKEasyNews, look at r/JapaneseInTheWild etc.), but native materials will only really start becoming effective study resources from when you approach the end of Genki II.
Look at children’s books and TV shows if you want, but personally I find them boring as I am not a child, and the language you find in them is surprisingly difficult as Japanese kids already know a lot more of the language than you.
ASAP 🙂
any time you like, it will just be more or less time consuming
you can’t optimize all this stuff in advance, nor will other people’s experiences be the same as yours
try it, evaluate it for yourself, and decide when and how much to do that feels good for you. there’s no wrong answer
Basically as soon as you can.
If you push it off until you’re “Ready”, you’ll never do it. You’ll just cycle through textbooks forever, because the secret is nobody ever feels ready.
You can start with easier Manga and kids shows like, *today*. Do it alongside textbook stuff.
yesterday
The first game i finished in japanese took me 2 years because I had to look up every line. Nowdays i have plateaued because although i play lots of japanese games I can usually guess the meaning of an unknown word in a sentence and don’t look it up. Its usually better to just push through with something you find interesting as you will learn more from it and the interest might keep you from dropping it.
subtitled anything is good for beginning to develop listening skills. Gag manga or anime is good cause it usually has a physical element to it so you can grasp the context without text, manga also generally has furigana. if you have access to jp tv, NHK childrens shows are good for learning. picture books are not great, the lack of kanji tends to make them less approachable for new learners.
Here are some free resources to read for learners around [N5](https://dokushoclub.com/free-reading-resources/n5-free-reading-resources/) and [N4](https://dokushoclub.com/free-reading-resources/n4-free-reading-resources/). They are all rather easy to let you practise reading in another language with a lot of support for learners e.g. furigana and pictures to help with reading comprehension.
Once you feel more confident in your reading abilities, here are my [recommendations for starting with manga](https://dokushoclub.com/2022/04/14/start-reading-manga/).