elka's log - Japanese, English, Spanish - doing the impossible

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elka
White Belt
Posts: 45
Joined: Sat Feb 29, 2020 2:36 pm
Languages: Czech (N), English (C2), Spanish, Japanese
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=13706
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elka's log - Japanese, English, Spanish - doing the impossible

Postby elka » Tue Mar 10, 2020 3:34 pm

Hi, welcome to my language log.
Warning - this is a log of a person who is not particularly good at learning languages, is generally a slow learner and has never been consistent at anything apart from watching Netflix and Youtube. End of warning

A little background
Japanese - I've decided that the year 2020 is gonna be the year I will attempt at things that might be challenging. Like learning a "difficult" language from scratch. I've always wanted to learn Mandarin Chinese and Japanese and it was hard choosing one over the other. I picked Japanese mostly because - 1) it is not a tonal language, 2) I've heard the grammar is very logical and has few exceptions, 3) I used to watch Naruto, I really liked listening to the language and it didn't seem to have many hard to pronounce sounds. I don't really have goals, not sure what to expect yet.

English - I've been learning English for about 22 years and I think I've reached B2+ level. English is currently my second priority because I feel like it should be much better since I've been studying it for a long time. I can understand films and TV shows and I can read novels without much hassle. My (secret) goal is to pass CPE one day.

Spanish - I took Spanish at grammar school where I've learned some basics. I took a test about a week ago and the result said A1 level. Yay. But I guess you have to start somewhere, right?

(space for more languages in the future)

How I am studying
Japanese - I did a couple of duolingo lessons to get the feel of the language. I am learning hiragana now (I mean I've sort of learned it already but I read it at a snail's pace) and I'm also learning Kanji using the Anki app. I am planning on purchasing the Assimil course for Japanese soon. I am currently doing the free lessons (on the Assimil app).

English - I once read somewhere that to learn a language, you have to read about 100 books and I think I am actually gonna listen to that advice. I have read 30 books so only 70 more to go.
Currently reading - The collective works of Karl Jung - slightly challenging, I sometimes have to reread the sentence I am reading.
I am also planning on improving my accent because it is horrid. I'm gonna be using the Get rid of your accent app.

Spanish - I try to watch Youtube videos every day because I learn the best by watching videos, films and TV shows (I mean that is how I "learned" English). I have to admit, Spanish is not exactly a priority now, so the improvement is slow but I am enjoying the process.

I am planning on posting about once or twice a week. Let's see how long I can keep this up.

BTW - I am documenting my language learning journey on Instagram. I mean I have started just today. If you can withstand my gezicht and you want to know what I am currently up to, feel free to check out my Instagram at elkalanguagenerd

See you.
Last edited by elka on Sat Apr 11, 2020 12:42 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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golyplot
Black Belt - 1st Dan
Posts: 1726
Joined: Mon Jan 16, 2017 9:41 pm
Languages: Am. English (N), German, French, ASL (abandoned), Spanish, Dutch, Italian, Japanese (N2)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=12230
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Re: elka's log - Japanese, English, Spanish - doing the impossible

Postby golyplot » Fri Mar 13, 2020 12:55 pm

I would not recommend trying to learn both Japanese and Spanish at once. Japanese is very difficult, so it's best to be able to devote your full attention to studying it.

Also, have you tried out Wanikani? It's a site for learning the kanji. It costs $90, but so far I really like it.

Also, be sure to check out Japanese Ammo with Misa's grammar lesson series.
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elka
White Belt
Posts: 45
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Languages: Czech (N), English (C2), Spanish, Japanese
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=13706
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Re: elka's log - Japanese, English, Spanish - doing the impossible

Postby elka » Fri Mar 13, 2020 4:35 pm

Hi, golyplot :)
Thank you for your reply. Really appreciate it.
Learning Spanish alongside Japanese is going well so far I think. Perhaps it is not clear from my intro but I do have the basics of Spanish covered and now I am working on my listening comprehension by listening to podcasts and watching youtube videos. It really is merely a side project. Also, I have trouble staying focused on one thing all the time so when I can't focus on Japanese anymore I switch to Spanish to rest for a bit.
I did try Wanikani but I found it too slow so I downloaded shared Anki deck that has all the Wanikani material but I can learn it at my own pace.
And thank you very much for the youtube link! Will definitely watch it.
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golyplot
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Posts: 1726
Joined: Mon Jan 16, 2017 9:41 pm
Languages: Am. English (N), German, French, ASL (abandoned), Spanish, Dutch, Italian, Japanese (N2)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=12230
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Re: elka's log - Japanese, English, Spanish - doing the impossible

Postby golyplot » Fri Mar 13, 2020 11:30 pm

Wanikani goes a lot faster after the first couple weeks, especially if you optimize it by doing all your radicals and kanji on time. I've been speedrunning it for the last two months. I'm currently at level 12 and it is already a struggle!
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elka
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Languages: Czech (N), English (C2), Spanish, Japanese
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Re: elka's log - Japanese, English, Spanish - doing the impossible

Postby elka » Sat Mar 14, 2020 7:43 am

You are at level 12 after 2 months? Wow! I read somewhere that most people are at level 10 after 3 months.
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golyplot
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Re: elka's log - Japanese, English, Spanish - doing the impossible

Postby golyplot » Sat Mar 14, 2020 12:39 pm

Well, two and a half months.

The theoretical fastest possible leveling time for most levels is 6 days and 20 hours per level, but that would require you to shift your sleep patterns by four hours every week or get up in the middle of the night a lot, so it's not really practical. The fastest practical leveling time is one level per week, and that's what I've been doing the whole time. I level up every Friday morning like clockwork. It's not that hard if you understand how the system works. Here's a guide you should read that explains a lot about WK.

As for the average person, I don't think there's any numbers for how fast "most" people level. Everyone goes at their own pace, depending on their own circumstances. There are some people who've been at it for years and are only in the single digits and others who level every week like me.
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elka
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Languages: Czech (N), English (C2), Spanish, Japanese
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=13706
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Re: elka's log - Japanese, English, Spanish - doing the impossible

Postby elka » Fri Apr 03, 2020 5:46 pm

Umm..ok, so now I know what to expect when learning Japanese. Blood, sweat and tears, that's what. I never expected that learning a language can be so challenging. It takes me a long long time to really remember 1 kanji character and I need to learn at least 2000 of these things, apparently. No idea if that'll ever happen, although I try to stay positive even during these difficult times.

Here is what went on from my last entry:
Spanish
1) I focus on Spanish more now as my second priority after English.
2) I tried Pimsleur and found it boring
3) I have purchased a book in Spanish and English and also an audio version and I intend to go through it, extensively probably.
Basically, I am trying to find a system of how I personally learn languages. For instance, I know members of this forum praise Anki a lot and yes, it is a powerful tool, but it is really boring to me and so is Assimil kind of. I have observed however that I enjoy reading and listening to native material in Spanish (or any foreign language for that matter) even though I don't really understand much of what is being said/written. So I guess this is how I am going to learn. I vaguely remember reading something about an L/R method which is basically how I am studying right now if I understood the method correctly.

Japanese
1) I try to study a little bit every day. I am currently working on getting more comfortable reading hiragana and katakana because that is what I feel is hindering my ability to further progress.
2) I do Wanikani about twice a day. It is slow but the problem isn't in Wanikani but it rather is located between the chair and the keyboard (the problem is me, in case you didn't quite catch that).

English
1) Do you remember how I said I plan on reading 70 more books in English? Well, I have read 20 pages so far, up top...
2) I am trying to work my way through Practical English Usage. It is really fascinating. I am especially fascinated by the idea that C2 learners actually probably at least passively know all the material that's in the book? Like how? Honestly..

All in all, I haven't progressed much in any of the languages I am trying to study but you know what else, it is the apocalypse. Yay.
Hopefully, I will get to improve my languages more in the coming days.
See you in my next (very successful) language log entry.
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Arizakai
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Re: elka's log - Japanese, English, Spanish - doing the impossible

Postby Arizakai » Fri Apr 03, 2020 6:37 pm

elka wrote:Umm..ok, so now I know what to expect when learning Japanese. Blood, sweat and tears, that's what.

Yes, but they are tears of joy, without a doubt. :lol: Good luck with your language study. ;)
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Super Challenge 2022/2023:
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Italian books: 0 / 5000 films: 0 / 9000

elka
White Belt
Posts: 45
Joined: Sat Feb 29, 2020 2:36 pm
Languages: Czech (N), English (C2), Spanish, Japanese
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=13706
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Re: elka's log - Japanese, English, Spanish - doing the impossible

Postby elka » Sat Apr 04, 2020 1:43 pm

Indeed :D Thank you, Arizakai
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Cavesa
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Re: elka's log - Japanese, English, Spanish - doing the impossible

Postby Cavesa » Sat Apr 04, 2020 3:16 pm

Welcome to the forum! I'm curious about your language journey, and am looking forward to reading more, especially about your Japanese :-)

If you're still willing to give a Spanish coursebook a try (to get from A1 efficiently to the more fun levels), there are actually a few excellent choices on the czech market. The Czech publishers make mostly trash for the French learners, few things for the Italian ones, and have barely noticed the existence of Portuguese. But Spanish is surprisingly well served, with some of the coursebooks being of top quality internationally (too bad the publishers will probably never think of making a different version for another market).

There are three series, that connect the traditional approach with some of the advantages of the modern one, are very systematic, with tons of exercises, and have a rather straightforward approach I really like. They don't try to be as colourful and "realistic" as the more mainstream books, but that is actually an advantage, for a learner who wants real authentic stuff aside of their coursebook anyways.

Učebnice současné španělštiny, published by Cpress. Nice dialogues, well organised, tons of exercises. Two tomes. The first covers A1-B1, the second goes supposedly from B1 to C1. Well, I wouldn't be THAT optimistic, but the books are still very good and this is the only self study oriented book for the higher levels that I've seen (apart from Assimil, but that is a different kind of coursebook).

Fiesta, published by Fraus. This one is meant for highschools. But it is extremely self study friendly, and very ambitious. The learning curve is rather steep but still not too much, I'd say. The layout is more modern,but the authors haven't resigned on the traditional qualities. This is actually the series I started with ages ago. And I am waiting for an opportunity to continue, with the second half of volume 2. And yes, I am approximately at B2 and the volume 2 out of 3 still has useful stuff for me, now imagine the 3rd book.

Španělština pro pokročilé samouky. The Leda series X pro samouky is famous and overall very good, even though sometimes a bit dry. This book, however, is a newer version of Španělština from a different series by the same publisher, not a follow up to the basic Pro samouky. It starts from the beginning, sure, but it progresses fast and supposedly up to C1, with lots of exercises. I was seriously considering buying it, but I had gotten a whole bookshelf of resources already.

And sorry for a lot of unsolicited advice, I rarely get an opportunity to recommend these books :-D But I've noticed you disliked Pimsleur (so did I), mentioned being A1, and wanting to use native input as much as possible. Books like these are a wonderful structured supplementary tool, because they don't pretend to be fun at all costs, the contents are not diluted. Could be helpful against the tendency to become awesome at the passive skills, with the active ones lagging behind. :-) But sure, if you're not interested, I'll edit (and significatnly shorten) this long post, to not hijack your log :-)
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