Learn Kanji

Book Review: Japanese Graded Readers: July 20th, 2010

The Japanese Graded Readers Series is aimed at providing a fun and informative way to practice basic Japanese vocabulary and reading/listening comprehension. With it’s colourful illustrations and easy to read text, the Japanese Graded Readers Series sure beats the heck out of wading through boring lists of vocabulary and grammar.
Word Of The Week: Kaiwa (会話): July 15th, 2010

Our Japanese word for today is – Kaiwa (会話) meaning conversation. The first kanji (会) means meeting, meet, join or party and has the readings – カイ, エ, あう, あわせる and あつまる. We’ll be using the カイ (かい) reading for today’s word.
Japanese Terms Explained for Beginners: July 12th, 2010

So you just started learning Japanese and you’re wondering what all these crazy new terms are that you’ve never heard of before? To get you started I’ll kick you off with a quick explanation of some of the more popular terms.
Learning Japanese: Do It Your Own Way: June 10th, 2010

Everyone learns a different way. It’s an obvious statement but one that bears thinking about when you’re attempting to learn a language. For example, if you’re studying at school I guarantee that no-one bothered to ask you about how you wanted to learn Japanese?
Learning Japanese: Never Give Up: May 25th, 2010

Whether you’re a beginner, advanced or somewhere in between, at some point in your Japanese studies you’ve probably “hit the wall”. I’m sure you know the feeling – you’re over it, you don’t want to see another kanji or verb conjugation as long as you live.
Review: Kodansha Kanji Dictionary: May 15th, 2010

Although my life is dominated by the very latest electronics and my general distain for all things paper-based is infamous; Jack Halpern’s Kodansha Kanji Learner’s Dictionary stands out as my must-have kanji learning tool. I must admit I love this dictionary. I love the way it looks, feels and how it helps take away some of the pain along the path to memorising 2000+ kanji.
Word Of The Week: Choushoku (朝食): May 5th, 2010

This week’s Word Of The Week is – Choushoku (朝食) meaning breakfast (formal). There are two other versions of breakfast – 朝飯 (Asa-meshi) and the more polite 朝ご飯 (Asa-go-han). Why are there so many words for breakfast? If you think about it in English we have the same situation as breakfast can be known as “brekkie”.
Similar Kanji: Icicle vs Eternity: April 19th, 2010

In terms of similar kanji, 氷 (icicle) and 永 (eternity) are very close. They’re clearly not indistinguishable but at normal reading size they can be difficult to tell apart especially for beginners. If we threw in 水 to the mix, which is the kanji for water, we could thoroughly confuse ourselves – so I think we’ll just stick with these two for today. ^_^
Word Of The Week: Monogatari (物語): April 13th, 2010

This week’s Word Of The Week is – Monogatari (物語) meaning story or tale. Monogatari is made up of two kanji – 物語 (ものがたり). The first kanji (物) means thing or object and has the readings – ブツ,モツ, もの – although we’re only interested in the もの reading for today’s example.
Review: My Top 5 Kanji iPhone Apps: April 10th, 2010

The iPhone app store is chock full of every imaginable application but quantity doesn’t always mean quality. While there is plenty of choice for Japanese students, many of the apps are of questionable quality and design. I have listed an overview of my top 5 Kanji learning apps, which is based solely on the trial and error of hundreds of applications since the iPhone debut in 2007.