Hey guys,
Does anyone have any tips/resources to suggest for getting over the massive difficulty gap that seems to exist between N4 to N3? Any resource that is aimed at N5/4 level is way too easy, but anything labeled as N3 level (that I have found so far) seems hugely difficult and discouraging.
Admittedly I am a bit of a weird ‘student’, as I used to live in Japan for a few years and have a mix of formal and informal learning. I would like to structure my progress again, but I’ve very much reached a plateau at this stage.
The other kicker is that I am also quite time-poor and don’t have the spare time to consume huge amounts of content (binge anime/mange/dramas etc etc). I get that immersion is the best way to learn (been there, done that lol) but I am chasing something a bit more structured and progressive now that I need to maximise my time.
Bit of a rambled post, but if anyone has any suggestions or tips I’d be very grateful to hear them!
Thanks heaps.
4 comments
Their is no single method to get from N4 to N3, because during that time you’ll need vocab, grammar, reading, listening and (maybe) speaking practice. Many people take to textbooks to do it, but that won’t get your reading, listening, and speaking abilities up. You will definitely want to include reading and listening to your regimen.
The most efficient way, I believe, is to go about 30% hard study (textbook, vocab cramming, etc) and about 70% immersion (manga, anime, drama). Yes it takes time, but you’ll learn very fast this way, and it will stick.
I passed JLPT N3 in 6 months but it took a hell of an effort and I had to sacrifice a lot of things like hobbies and also my well being. I got my audio input 30 mins in the morning and 1 hr at night from radiko and YT. I also did Tobira, read NHK news daily, Tango N3 vocab book and 新完全マスター読解 and 文法. I used to listen to Japanese at every opportunity.
In my experience, reading simple stories at that level helps A LOT! Are you already familiar with graded readers? They will help you reaffirm words you already know while teaching you some new ones through context. Try these ones:
* [Free Tadoku Books](https://tadoku.org/japanese/free-books/): best free graded readers, both fiction and non-fiction
* [YomuJP (Tadoku Dōjō)](https://yomujp.com/n4/): easy free non-fiction, articles, close to textbook language
* [There are also many purchasable options.](https://dokushoclub.com/2022/02/12/graded-readers/)
The important thing is that the stories should be easy. You can definitely learn from reading difficult books as well, but reading a lot of short and easy books will help you bridge that gap faster.
Satori Reader. It is specifically made for that level.