Okay so.. I took the N4 this month, and I felt it went smoothly and am quite confident I passed. I rigorously studied and finished Genki II on the days leading up the the test so I felt kinda burned out. Took a break, and I have not done any active studying in the past 3 weeks.
Now, I feel like I want to get back into it again, but I suddenly have no idea where to start lmao. My Japanese routine these days looks like this: ~10 mins of Anki (still finishing up N4 Tango, reviewing Kanji), ~1-2hr of podcasts per week, and occassionally watching dramas.
I’m thinking of picking up a new book but am not sure which is good. I also considered maybe picking up a novel instead. Anyway, my next goal is of course to take the N3, but I am thinking of tackling it by July of next year. (To add, I might also be going to Japanese language school in April next year to further accelerate my learning).
TLDR: Do you guys have any tips on what to tackle first? Any material suggestions after Genki II? I’m thinking of moving to Nihongo Sou Natome N3, but I don’t think I can afford to buy the whole series yet. Is it any good?
いつもありがとうございます。
10 comments
My advice would be to set bigger goals than the JLPT. For example learn X amount of vocab, learn to read the joyo kanji, read Y number of books. Goals that will actually bring you significantly towards fluency.
Sao matome is a fine series, I prefer the shinkanzen master series though. I think they provide better explanations.
One thing a lot textbooks sleep on is onomatopoeia words. There are a few books out there that will teach you the most common ones. It’s something I’d recommend for use in speaking and you will likely see them quite a bit in novels, especially for younger audiences.
After finishing N4, I think you are at a good place where you can definitely work on reading. The problem is most content is still gonna be pretty hard. Any of the manga you already know of or want to read I will say is 100% not the best stuff to read for you at your level. Try コロコロコミクス. It’s a monthly release of comics that is entirely for elementary age students. There are also lots of books aimed at younger kids like the 10歳までseries and the five minute stories series out there.
Quartet 1 is more or less focused on N3. The Soumatome series is just as it states – a general review.
I’d do Quartet, then move on to Somatome or Shinkaizen
>I’m thinking of moving to Nihongo Sou Natome N3, but I don’t think I can afford to buy the whole series yet. Is it any good?
Cook at home instead of eating out a few times, it’s not that expensive. You can order directly from Amazon Japan.
Many people prefer the Kanzen Master series, but I’m kind of mixed.
For preparation of the next JLPT, I go Anki (Kanji meaning with Koohii) -> Sou Matome Kanji Nx (for Kanji reading and combinations) -> Sou Matome small vocabulary book -> Kanzen Master Grammar/Reading/Listening -> Sou Matome small booklet JLPT questions -> JLPT practice test
It helps to consume Japanese media meanwhile
What podcasts are you using? I’m working through Genki 1 independently myself while learning kanji on the side. I don’t have any good audio learning resources.
Tobira maybe difficult at first but it’s great overall, it improved my reading ability a lot and I also suggest 完全マスター文法 and 読解. Tango vocab book is also good and I think you should not waste your money on Sou Matome.
I think your goal should be to consume as much of the language is possible. Set goals to for example understand shows or youtube videos without subtitles. Set goals to have conversations with japanese people without having to stumble over your words etc. More useful goals rather than some test that doesn’t really mean anything
hi, i am planning to give n4 this December, my current lvl is n5 (almost) do i have enough time to prepare for it and can you give me some tips to be prepared by the time exam arrives. (i kinda struggle with vocab mainly in n5)
Just get the Sou Matome series. The whole thing got me N3-N1. Def can recommend.
I just finished Genki as well.
I also did the N5 Sou Matome for a quick brush up, an assuming later versions are similar, I’d recommend against it as a primary resource. It’s basically a list of grammar and vocabulary with some multiple choice questions. Example sentences and explanations are virtually non-existent. It makes the assumption that you’ve already learned the material somewhere else and all of the practice is laser focused on the JLPT format. I don’t know if the later levels or if Shin Kanzen is different, but I assume they’re similar since they’re primarily test prep books and not textbooks.
Personally I’m continuing with Quartet as my primary learning resource, while continuing to seek out level appropriate input in various places.