Studying Japanese

I wanted to study Japanese in college--but never got around to it. It was probably one of my biggest mistakes from those four short years (of which there was no shortage). I enjoyed studying Korean, I occasionally still have nightmares about Mandarin Chinese, but I feel a distinct tinge of regret whenever I think about the opportunity I missed to get a good foundation in the Japanese language at the University of Washington.

A I U E O

In preparation to return to Japan next year, I recently made a commitment to myself to spend at least an hour each day studying Japanese. I own a copy of Rosetta Stone Japanese, and am hoping to finish at least one or two units a week.

There are several other great online resources for beginners studying Japanese, including the NHK's Japanese Lessons, the Japan Foundation's Erin's Challenge, and for the nostalgic Let's Learn Japanese starring Yan-San as he explores Japan in the early 1980's! Nihongo Master is a great way to learn and practice Hiragana and Katakana, they currently introduced a pay-wall for the majority of their content beyond learning basic reading, but they are still a good resource.

I also recommend the online dictionary Denshi Jisho, however, I often end up using the free dictionary program Tagaini Jisho instead since it doesn't require an internet connection. I hope that you will pray for me and encourage me to take time each day to study Japanese! If you know of any other good Japanese resources online or worth purchasing, let me know--I am potentially interested in picking up a copy of the Genki Japanese language learning books, which are a little more formal that what I have been using so far.

There is a lot to be said for old fashioned flash cards, reading children's books and watching Japanese YouTube videos. I hope to be at a level soon where I can start to appreciate some of the vast amount of resources available in Japanese online.

What resources have you found to be helpful?