Hi guys, i finished genki 1 and I’m starting the second book of genki.
I’m also in a Japanese school 4 hours a week (better than nothing…)
Just with a single book i feel like ive learned tons of new informations (maybe too much to retain…), I’m always trying to write in Japanese to the people i know, the problem is:
When I write in Japanese i have the time to think about the grammar, what should I pick, what should I say etc.
When you talk its a total different story, you can’t think if the grammar is correct, you can’t remember that particular paragraph in genki and then say what you need to say.
It’s just me that I’m not probably keen on languages or it’s ok to struggle like this after 6 months of learning a new language?
I’m still struggling with English after 30 years 😅😅, not sure if I’m retarded or what else.
3 comments
I’m struggling with talking to people in my native language lol.
Sometimes my mind thinks in English and I have to remember Czech language words… I get stuck/stutter mid-sentence a lot 😀 That’s what happens when you talk with people online more than IRL xd
Yeah – six months in and Genki 1 doesn’t really get you very far. It’s a good start but no where near enough to expect to be fluent in speech. Just keep practicing with lots of input (reading, listening) and keep trying output (writing, speaking) and you’ll get there. Think years though, not months.
Reading and listening is always going to be easier than writing and speaking. In particular (unless you live in Japan) you are much more likely to come across Japanese written and audio material than you are likely to have the opportunity to write and (especially) speak.
Listening and reading (a lot)…can help…specially if you reaad without stopping to think of what you just read, with 90% comprehension (meaning barely looking up words)
I realized after just genki 1 you might not be there….but speaking is one of those skills that are harder to improve…but improving your comprehension as mentioned above can definitely help since you will be able to understand Japanese without having to stop and translate in your head (think of interpreting rather than translating)…but when you can think.that fast in your head you will have a better chance to speak better…but it will take time