#japanese diary
2022年5月31日
ただいま帰りました！I’m back from Japan, and just in time for the May Japanese goals update! As usual, my actual study time in May was limited, but thanks to spending two weeks using strictly Japanese, I think that there was some improvement. My son certainly learned a lot of new vocabulary, even if he didn’t learn how to share…
With my trip, last month’s study looked a bit different than normal, but I will to include the different ways I actively worked on improving my Japanese during my trip.
ただいま帰りました！日本から帰ってきたばかりので、丁度5月のアップデートに間に合いましたね。いつも通り、勉強の時間が少なかったけど、日本語しか使わなかった2週間のおかげで、なんとなく日本語の勉強を進んでいました。うちの息子は特に語彙力をアップしましたが、他の子どもと仲良く遊ぶのはまだまだ…
ALTMy Goals at the Beginning of the Month
- Intentionally speak more formally (since I usually only speak casually at home)
- Teach my 2-year-old more vocabulary
- Pick up pointers from Japanese moms for talking to kids in Japanese
- Watch as many movies inspired by shoujo manga as possible on Netflix
How I Studied This Month
- Speaking & Listening - Conversations with relatives, friends, other moms & children at the park, everyone (lol), with an emphasis on the proper level of formality
- More Listening - News, Netflix movies & anime
- Kanji - Reading all the signs
What Were My Strengths?
- Speaking & Listening - Able to keep up conversations with others with little trouble, generally able to keep up a formal conversation
What Were My Weaknesses?
- Kanji - I could always stand to learn more kanji
- Vocabulary - During conversations, having to have someone explain a word I didn’t understand in the context or not having the right word to explain something to someone else can interrupt the flow of conversation
Things to Try Next Month
- Grammar - Review N3 grammar points using YouTube videos
- Kanji & Vocabulary - Mine kanji and vocabulary from manga, articles, and other reading materials as I read them
- Listening practice - Listen to podcasts during my work commute
- italki lesson - If I can find the time (lol) I would like to try some italki lessons, to help with my deficiencies in speaking and listening
The rest of the year will be pretty boring compared to May, but I feel inspired by my time in Japan, and motivated to keep learning, for myself and my son.
How are your studies going? Wishing you the best of luck!
これから今年は5月と比べるとつまらなく感じるかもしれませんが、日本の旅行のおかげでモチベーションが上がって、これからも日本語の勉強を頑張って続きます。自分の為に、それとも息子の為にどんどん日本語の能力を上達したいと思います。
皆さんの勉強はどうですか？皆さんを応援しています！
