Koolawant's 素晴らしい Japanese Log

[koolawant]

I've never realized how motivating and fun weekly goals are!

Weekly Stats
Episodes of chibimaruko watched: 15/15 (100%)
Book pages intensively read: 93/50 (186%)
Number of kanji learned: 17/5 (340%)
Bonus: 88 pages of manga read; 40 minutes speaking

Daily Break down:
Thurs: 3 episodes, 10pgs
Fri: nothing
Sat: 1 epi, 3 kanji, 10pgs
Sun: 1 epi, 3 kanji, 10pgs
Mon: 4 epi, 2 kanji, 10pgs
Tues: 1 epi, 3 kanji, 10pgs, 42 pgs Manga
Weds: 3 epi, 3 kanji, 10pgs, 46pgs Manga
Thurs: 2 epi, 3 kanji, 33pgs


Listening: **each episode is 21 minutes long** My listening continues to improve overall. I am more engaged with media and willing to sit down and watch for longer spurts since I comprehend more. I pick up vocab from every episode based on context and some sayings, or understand how to say a phrase in a more natural way. The norm. Although 15 episodes doesn't seem like much it's actually hard to fit into my schedule. I want to do more than the minimum next week.

Reading. Most of those 93 pages came from reading the same 10 pages over and over again. I highlighted every word I didn't know on the third go-around and although less than I expected it came to about 70 something words. Through reading the same passages everyday I would say about 98% of them are committed to memory and I have a much better idea of what's going on. I've moved onto the next set of pages. My main goal for reading is expanding vocabulary and this seems to work well. Surprisingly, even reading through the 6th time I wasn't bored at all. Perhaps I've stumbled upon a new effective way of improving comprehension and vocab? Only time will tell

Kanji; I've surprised myself here. I was sitting in Chinese class when the professor says "I think writing more than 3 times per character ( a day) is largely ineffective." As a person who would sit there and write out each kanji 50 times a day (normally 10 kanji a day) this blew my mind. So I started writing each new kanji 4 times a day, but unlike before I revisit them everyday and write them again 4 times, so on and so forth until the column is finished. It will take 10 days to finish a column. This is proving to be insanely effective (combined with reading it everyday as I pull kanji from my current reading source and not from a textbook) for memorizing. It has always been important for me to not only be able to read kanji but to write them. This new method is making kanji fun for me and it only takes me about 10 minutes at a pace of about 2-3 new kanji a day. I'll see how long this lasts as my kanji learning comes in highly intensive spurts in which I'll learn hundreds at a time and stop for long stretches.

Manga has just been a relaxing extensive read for when I have free time

I'm moving in weekday-weekday patterns (i.e. thurs-thurs) so my week will shift by one day every new cycle. Not intentional but I'll keep as is for now; I don't mind.

Next weekly goals 2/23-3/2
15 Episodes
60 Book pages
5 new kanji

[koolawant]

It's ya girl back with another update

Weekly States
Episodes of chibimaruko watched: 21/15 (140%)
Book pages intensively read: 100/60 (167%)
Number of kanji learned: 21/5 (420%)
Bonus: 157 pages of manga read; 100 minutes speaking

Weekly Breakdown
Friday; 3 epi, 3 kanji
Saturday; 3epi, 3kanji, 10pgs
Sunday; 1 epi, 1 kanji, 20pgs, 27 manga
Monday; 3 epi, 3 kanji, 20pgs
Tuesday; 3 epi, 4 kanji, 10 pgs
Wednesday; 3 epi, 3 kanji, 9 pgs 50 manga
Thursday; 2 epi, 3 kanji, 10 pgs, 30 manga
Friday; 3 epi, 1kanji, 21 pgs, 50 manga

Fri; 40 minutes speaking 
Wed; 60 minutes speaking

Listening; Much happier with my listening stability this week, I aimed for 3 episodes a day (1 hr.) On one hand I feel like an hour a day is nothing in the grand scheme of things but 1 hr is better than nothing I suppose. No noticeable improvement, but to be very fair I spent a year living in Japan with a Japanese family so I receive a ton of input. Although words I do know can escape me from time to time, its the disparity in my vocabulary that's hurting me that most

Reading; Every time I read the same page I swear I understand something better every time! Rough guess, but within the 30something pages I've been reading over and over again, I've come across roughly 5 unknown words per page. Each chapter has a different story which means different vocab which means this number will stay more or less consistent. For a 200 pg children's novel that's roughly 1000 unknown words in this book. Manga remains as a beacon of light as my source of extensive reading while I slog away at my book.

Kanji; I'm not sure how that number is higher than last week unless my math is not adding up. I try to do one a day but can end up doing much more. Fun fact, the 40-something new kanji I learned in two weeks came from the first 8 pages of this book! Still not sure when I'll waiver so I'm keeping the weekly minimum low.

In the intermediate stage the lack in vocabulary is the worst part. Grammar is virtually of no issue as it's uncommon I come across completely alien grammar. The rest I need to learn is not in very popular use and used/seen sparingly so that is of no concern. But I feel like I need thousands of new vocab word to start making heads and tail of things. I try to look at the small picture instead of the big picture because I'll likely need another 3-5k words until I can call myself, and actually be, really advanced. Not a small number by any means.

Next week
15 episodes
60 book pages
5 kanji

[koolawant]

Last week was a wash so we'll restart

This week (Mon-Sun)
100 book pages
15 episodes (or 5 hours listening)
5 new Kanji
5 new grammar

Still waffling around trying to find a non srs or goldlist way to remember vocabulary.


Chinese
I haven't mentioned it yet, but in highschool I took two semesters of Chinese. I was likely a shaky A2 at the time but dropped it because there wasn't much support at my school for it. I attempted to take it my freshmen year in college but dropped it after two weeks because it was too much on my course load. As a junior (current year) I took it up again this semester and since the beginning of February have been going to Chinese class 4 days a week (and will be until the end of may). I hesitate to put it in my signature because I don't know if I really want to pursue another language right now. My main concern is getting Japanese to hopefully a strong B2/weak C1 by august so I don't want to spend much time out of class on Chinese. Also, unlike many on the form I have little to no interest in being a polyglot or anything like that. Yet, Chinese has been nagging me for a few years.

Who knows, maybe I'll pursue it seriously after my course ends, maybe I won't. But as of now, I can't afford to spend any time on it outside of studying Japanese.

[koolawant]

I've had a change in heart. While I love engaging with native material, and have learned quite a bit, I think I need to go through another intense grinding stage. During the summer I came back at halfway through N3. I spent 2-4 hours a day for two months and completed all N3 grammar and kanji. I started on N2 but gave up at the very beginning. I am still hovering at a low N2 level.

Instead of using native materials as m focus, my goals from now until June 1st is to complete; N2 grammar and Kanji (Sou Matome) and complete N3 vocabulary book by the same company (2000 words, I know a good amount but I will memorize all the words I don't know from start to finish.) after this, from June 2nd until Aug 12th (the day before I return to Japan) I will come back to native materials and do massive input. It will be my summer so I will not be in class and I intend to cut back dramatically on work (I have already saved enough money for this).

I am positive this is what I need to do to advance my Japanese, and push through this intermediate slope I've be stuck in for months. I'm not going to like it though

This should get me to a comfortable N2/low N1 level by the time I return. I will either sit the N2 or N1 in December this year.

New Weekly Goals (Tuesday-Sunday)

Grammar; complete week 1
Kanji; complete week 1
Vocabulary; 180

[koolawant]

Grammar; complete week 1 :::: completed
Kanji; complete week 1 :::: completed
Vocabulary; 180 :::: 200/180 completed

For those of you interested, the books separate the units into what it wants you to do per week. In the grammar book that's about 24 new grammar points, and in the kanji book that's about 90-96 kanji a week. I review kanji everyday by rewriting all of the previous ones (explained before, I write each kanji 4 times for 11 days until their column is completed) before moving onto the recent ones. Grammar is going to need more time because a lot of them are extremely similar with only slight changes in nuance. Take 行けないことはない and 行けないこともない for example. Plus grammar has always been my weakest point so this area will need constant babysitting.

Next week (Monday-Sunday)
Grammar; complete week 2
Grammar; review week 1
Grammar; complete week 1 quiz
Kanji: complete week 2
Vocabulary; 180


Total vocabulary learned ~06/01 :::: 200

[koolawant]

Last Week
Grammar; complete week 2 ::: completed
Grammar; review week 1 ::: completed
Grammar; complete week 1 quiz ::: completed
Kanji: complete week 2 ::: completed
Vocabulary; 180 ::: 200/180 completed

Brain is mush. Will give a proper detailed update of this experiment at the end

Next week
Grammar; complete week 3
Grammar; review week 1
Grammar; review week 2
Grammar; complete week 2 quiz
Kanji: complete week 3
Vocabulary; 180


Total vocabulary learned ~06/01 :::: 400

[kujichagulia]

面白い日本語の日記ですね！頑張ってください！ペラペラになりたいから私も頑張ります！

[koolawant]

@ kuji thanks!

I didn't post a sunday update because it will more or less be the exact same thing every week until I'm finished my 8wk intensive study. Just about at the halfway and I'm feeling the mental drag but I can power through.

To keep my listening from backsliding I have been watching dramas, cue the new signature below.

Until 6/1 I'll pop in with periodic updates but will be giving my final thoughts on the 8wk (I actually did the math and realized it's like 11 so clearly math isn't my string suit )

I'm really missing reading novels but I know that I will return to them soon, they just have no place in my intensive study. I can't wait until I finish this June 1 and will transfer over to phase 2 of "learn everything before return to japan" and start the massive input stage.

620 new words from when I started until today.

[koolawant]

Today I finally found a bilingual Japanese-English Picture dictionary! This is perfect timing because I am finishing the N3 2000 essential vocabulary book this week.

Trudging along through week 5, a tiny bit behind but I can catch up.

830 new words from when I started until today

[koolawant]

Finished the N3 Vocabulary book. It's such a satisfying feeling to finish a book! Out of the 2000 words I pulled 859 from the book. some of these words I had no clue, others I recognized but wanted to know them better. Overall no surprise there. I know the first 2000 words very well but the remaining words in my vocabulary and wildly scattered from intermediate to advanced. This is most likely because of the time I spent living in japan and the need for me to develop "survival" Japanese in order to get around. Now I must go in and fill these vocabulary gaps.

I've now moved on to the visual dictionary that has 6000 words. I may be able to finish it before I leave, but not sure yet. I went on the old site and read a log asking people how many new words they learn a day and was amazed at the people who do 100 words a day. Honestly, I know that that is something I can do and keep up for a few months. Maybe it'll be my next challenge but I have to work myself there. For the past few weeks I have been doing 30 words a day, and recently bumped to 50 a day.

Not much of an upgrade on kanji and grammar. But, I do know that while I'm understanding grammar much better it'll be a while before it's activated in my speech. I'm always willing to slot new and better vocabulary in but for some reason it's very hard for me to impliment new and better grammar in my speaking. Not worried though, another year in Japan will certainly iron out my speaking. Arguably, it's still my strongest skill.

Edit; dang typos