Hey all!! I’ve been committed to learning Japanese for the past couple years, and have reached N2 level so far in terms of reading, writing, and listening comprehension (still gotta work more on speaking though). I’ve found a regimen that’s really helped me stay consistent and absorb new content on a regular basis, especially as someone with ADHD. I thought I’d share it here for anyone just starting out, or unsure how to proceed. Long post ahead but I wanna describe best I can!
Disclaimer that not every study method is gonna click with everyone and that’s okay! I don’t claim this is foolproof bc there’s really no such thing unfortunately. If youre a COMPLETE beginner, memorize hiragana and katakana first; you’ll need that knowledge to proceed.
So vocabulary! I use anki, but I don’t use premade sets. I make my own for each category, basing my approach on JLPT levels
Starting out, I just focused on JLPT N5 nouns, adjectives, and verbs, dividing each category into their own set. You can find words to add by searching each of the JLPT levels; Ive recently gone on jisho.com, putting ‘n5’ and so on in the search bar. Even if you get further you can always add new words you come across to older decks
To improve my ability to remember the kanji as well, I structure my cards like this, using 動物 as an example. Two cards for each word, basic and reversed. Front is ‘動物 (どうぶつ)’, back is ‘animal’. One card shows up as the kanj/kana alone, one card is the English word alone. For the former, guess the translation. For the latter, do the opposite, *but also try writing the kanji for yourself* without turning the card over. You can do this with the whiteboard or paper. Keep going until you can more or less write it out, doesnt have to be perfect. This may seem overwhelming at first, but it gets easier as you go and notice more patterns in radicals and such. Once you have the pronunciation down, remove that ‘どうぶつ’ so you can get used to associating said pronunciation with the kanji. (if you ever forget, put the kana back until you remember again)
Rinse and repeat for all words in each deck. Takes a while to make them I’ll admit, but for me none of the premades worked well, which is why I made my own and structured them this way. How many new cards you get per day for each deck is up to you; I do 5 personally. Once you get through all the new cards, do the same thing with N4 and so on once you feel ready. Keep all your preceding decks so youre retaining that knowledge alongside the new content. Don’t worry, eventually those old cards will have gaps of several months or even years before they show up again
It’s important to keep up and make doing your cards a habit, even if you decide not to go over any new words that day. Reviews WILL pile up if you dont for a while, especially as you add more. for me this is the #1 thing that motivated me to stick with it. Looking at 300 cards due is no fun, so once I power through its a reminder that it’s easier if I stay up to date
I add kanji decks as well, but those are premades since I’m not as concerned with memorizing every onyomi kunyomi and stroke order for everything, since that’s gradually absorbed with the vocab cards. I just focus on meaning
So that’s a 100% no cost method for vocabulary; onto grammer!
Much shorter explanation for this one, as it boils down to just use Bunpro lol. Using Bunpro has the advantages of anki in terms of regularly practicing and learning, but what makes it especially effective is that you have to type and complete practice sentences, tailoring the reviews to you. It potentially can get you through a *lot* of grammar in a short time. Sentences are in Japanese, so more practice reading right there. Again, try to make it habit, the reviews will pile up here as well. However, Bunpro does give you the option to pause reviews if need be
It does cost a subscription, but honestly it’s pretty affordable. And this may be the only part of this regimen you spend any money on
For both apps, I recommend using them on a phone instead of a computer. As someone with ADHD who before tried over and over to learn, the hardest part was getting started everytime, taking out that book, booting up my computer, etc etc. With everything on my phone, I can practice wherever. On bus/train rides, in bed, between classes, on lunch break, whatever. Just a few taps and the app is open and ready to go
If I’m not feeling it, I might just do a few reviews instead of completing all the ones due so even a little can be knocked off the list. 5 minutes is still better than 0!
There’s the basics of the method, now onto some supplementary stuff you can try to apply what you learn:
– Listening to japanese radio when you can. Probably won’t understand much at first, which is fine. It’s good to just get your ear trained on listening, especially in an everyday context
– Watching Japanese tiktok lives. Tiktok is pretty popular in Japan, and you can use this to your advantage! Hear how the language is used naturally by native speakers. Take a look at the chat and see how much you can read, see how its casually written online! Plus you’ll probably see a lot of cool places and cute animals 🙂
– Watching anime or other media *that you have already seen* with Japanese subtitles. This will help in building up an ability to recognize structures and conjugations without thinking about it. I, for example, have seen Madoka Magica from start to finish probably like 50 times at this point lol. So I knew what to listen for. Eventually you can graduate to new content
– If you have any irl spaces, check them out! If you’re in college, there may be a club focused on Japanese culture/language. Mine has been a great place to meet people and get some conversation practice in with both fellow students and native speaking professors!
Whew, long post like I said, but that’s what I’ve got! I hope this ends up being helpful in some way for anyone out there! And I’ll happily answer any questions 🙂
Good luck and happy studying!