study Japanese in university using the Genki series of textbooks.

I'll be TA-ing a beginner's course covering the first half of Genki I next year, and I'd like to put together a useful but not comprehensive list of resources for my students, because I would have really benefitted from such a list when I was a student. The reason I'm not just copying Nukemarine's guide is a) it's too long, b) I'm too unfamiliar with most of it to be able to recommend anything, and c) I'd like to hear from you guys about what worked and any advice you have.

Most obvious things to add would be:

RtK and the review site, and this forum
Anki
Tae Kim
Benkyo.co

Anything else you feel should definitely be included? Please give me a short description and a web link, if possible!

Thank you!!

ktcgx Wrote:study Japanese in university using the Genki series of textbooks.

I'll be TA-ing a beginner's course covering the first half of Genki I next year, and I'd like to put together a useful but not comprehensive list of resources for my students, because I would have really benefitted from such a list when I was a student. The reason I'm not just copying Nukemarine's guide is a) it's too long, b) I'm too unfamiliar with most of it to be able to recommend anything, and c) I'd like to hear from you guys about what worked and any advice you have.

Most obvious things to add would be:

RtK and the review site, and this forum
Anki
Tae Kim
Benkyo.co

Anything else you feel should definitely be included? Please give me a short description and a web link, if possible!

Thank you!!

Are you only looking for online resources? If so, I often use this dictionary:

http://jisho.org/

Also this website when I need to type in Japanese but on a computer lacking the right fonts:

http://www.inputking.com/ (try to ignore the stupid dating service ads at the sides)

This website is useful for converting kanjified text into kana alone or romaji:

http://nihongo.j-talk.com/

[RawToast]

Nice conjugation aid (takes roumaji input)
http://www.japaneseverbconjugator.com/

ChokoChoko N5 reading practice
https://chokochoko.wordpress.com/the-gre...ner-level/

I just looked through my bookmarks, see what I've been using, and, aside from Jisho.org and kanji.koohii.com and some Anki decks, there's literally no educational resource I've actually been using. It's all links to various Japanese blogs and forums (that have nothing to do with language learning), native media and literature. Most of which is not okay to post on this forum.

I do have all kinds of bookmarks to study materials, of course, but the only thing I've actually been using is Anki. So I'll list some Anki decks I guess. Only decks I've used aside from my own decks, only things I can recommend:
1. https://ankiweb.net/shared/info/1269450669 (Nayr's deck)
2. http://forum.koohii.com/showthread.php?p...#pid180277 (Japanese the Manga Way deck, they will need the book for it - alternatively, the Tae Kim deck is okay too)
3. https://ankiweb.net/shared/info/1102215805 (Core 2k/6k Optimized Japanese Vocabulary)

If they use these four (or, if they were to pick two, go with the first two), AND pay attention in class as well, AND develop an interest in native resources, they'll be well on their way to Japanese fluency.

http://www.alc.co.jp/ for Eijiro. Used to be free for full Eijiro, now you have to pay for it, but it's still good as it is.

http://dic.yahoo.co.jp/ or you could use https://kotobank.jp/ -- it's the same thing, for the most part. Excellent online dictionaries, edited by professionals, so better than EDICT-based ones. EDICT isn't bad, tho.

http://www.nihongonomori.com/ has a lot of free lessons in video form.

http://happylilac.net/yousi-genko.html for some really good DIY 原稿用紙.

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/easy/index.html NHK's Easy News. Something for them to aspire to.

http://www.coscom.co.jp/index.html CosCom's website has some good free resources, too. (They're the people who make Kanji Odyssey, but other useful books.)

Tae Kim is good, but don't forget http://www.imabi.net/ as well, by one of the regular posters here, too. (IIRC.)

Bookwise, it's really hard to go wrong with "Japanese the Manga Way," because it does a really good job of explaining.

I'd also recommend "Understanding Basic Japanese Grammar," too (JTMW is better IMO, but may not be available where you are).

"All About Particles" isn't a bad choice, either, for those who are having difficulties with particles.

If you want to get them writing, 日本語日記ノート is a good way to jump-start writing with really basic exercises aimed at beginners, and goes up to advanced beginners. Daily writing is a really good habit. (See also, lang8.com)

Finally, the どんなとき grammar dictionary is pretty useful, in that it covers a ton of material in one volume. Depth is kind of "meh," but it's the sort of book you buy, and then use for 4-5 years. And it's cheap.

ADBJG is useful, too. It's really good on depth, but not so good on price. JTMW covers all of the same material + a lot more for less.

EDIT: Almost forgot: for those that don't want to mess with Anki yet, the Campus Word Book タン-40B is a really good notebook for jotting down vocab. Kanji, kana on the left, meaning on the right. Easy word lists for those that want to do it analog. Because you will have people who don't want to mess with Anki.

Was about to mention Lang-8 as well, seems like someone beat me to it. Definitely try and get them to do this, I wish I had made more of a habit of doing it earlier.

If they have Android phones: Kabuto (dictionary), the Tae Kim app, Kotoba-chan if you want some extra word practice from a different source.

For Apple phones: Midori was my favorite dictionary until I switched to Android

readthekanji.com
^It's $5 a month, but it is fairly useful, and it doesnt really limit how many people are logged in at once

See if your Japanese program can get their hands on a set of graded readers (like this one: http://shop.jpbooks.co.uk/product.php?id_product=7730)
They have them for about 4 different levels, and if you can get students reading a lot of them it can really help in the beginning with reading if they aren't used to it. Plus you might learn a bit about Japan

There are Genki decks out there for Anki, although I've often found they are a bit outdated. There is also a Tae Kim deck out there

Youtube-->Genki Japan
^hilarious resource for some simple vocabulary


I found the AJATT blog to be useful to me earlier on when I was forming my personal studying philosophy. I didn't quite take to all his ideas, but he definitely had an overall positive aspect on how I look at studying the language, and to an extent has been very useful.

Wow, that's a lot of suggestions, which is great ^_^

I will have a look through all those suggestions, I'd like to suggest everything and maybe I will be able to, but I think the course co-ordinator doesn't want the students to feel overwhelmed. So I might just have to choose a top 5 at first.

But keep the suggestions coming!

And thank you all so much!

It's probably a good idea not to overwhelm people at first. Also, I'm sure that some of the stuff I recommended would be great for 2nd or 3rd semester students, but may overwhelm 1st semester students. There really is a TON of stuff out there resource-wise. The tricky bit is knowing how to use it right. (Always the trickiest bit!)

Yup, that's why I wanted people's personal recommendations and why they found things helpful

rich_f Wrote:It's probably a good idea not to overwhelm people at first. Also, I'm sure that some of the stuff I recommended would be great for 2nd or 3rd semester students, but may overwhelm 1st semester students. There really is a TON of stuff out there resource-wise. The tricky bit is knowing how to use it right. (Always the trickiest bit!)

I think this is good advice. I'd also tell them about rikaikun though. That really freed me up to access written material on the internet.

zkanji (dictionary for Windows)

https://www.erin.ne.jp/en/
The Erin's Challenge series is a good complement to textbook study, basically a set of video skits and a ton of learning tools to supplement each skit. It's a great way to train your listening comprehension.

For first year students, they probably will want to stick to the basic skits for the most part. The advanced skits and examples of natural speech are at full natural speed with vocabulary that isn't watered down, but for the same reason they can still get use out of the site for a few years. (Or if they're really dedicated they could learn the need vocabulary for the other videos in their first year, it's certainly doable if they want to prioritize listening comprehension.)

Oh yeah, I forgot about Erin's Challenge. That's a pretty good series. The skits are slightly cheesy, but it's more up-to-date than Yan-san. (Yan-san is pretty awesome in its own right, but it's pretty dated now.)

[RawToast]

rich_f Wrote:Oh yeah, I forgot about Erin's Challenge. That's a pretty good series. The skits are slightly cheesy, but it's more up-to-date than Yan-san. (Yan-san is pretty awesome in its own right, but it's pretty dated now.)

I remember the last time I checked out Erin's Challenge I found the skits were harder than those in Yan-san; although, it has been over a year since I last watched the skits.

Anyhow, you don't get the cheesy intro