@tokidokitokyo / tokidokitokyo.tumblr.com
didn’t really get much studying done because i was in classes all day. one of my professors gave us all books (readings for my thesis seminar) which might be one of the best halloween treats i’ve ever gotten
happy halloween!
I fell into a bit of a reading rut in the last month or so and I'm starting to think that light novels may just not be my thing (at least for now). I tried two separate ones but dropped both after the 50-page mark. Meanwhile, I happened to pick this book up at a secondhand shop a few weeks ago because I remembered seeing it in a bestseller display earlier this year (and the cover was cute 😊) and reading it has been a delight, even past the 50-page first hurdle I seem to have created. This book is definitely the longest I've tried reading to date, but I'm going to continue to enjoy it as much as I can.
Ways to Improve Japanese Reading Skills! 👀 PS: Learn Japanese with the best FREE online resources, just click here https://www.japanesepod101.com/?src=tumblr_infographic_reading_skills_072524
my trick for getting through grad school is learning to navigate the quadrants with all their nuances
Geminiに食わせてみたら、とても深い解釈を添えてくれました。
上半分
下半分
全体のメッセージ
この画像は、困難な状況に直面している人々に向けた励ましのメッセージです。
上半分は、「あなたはできる」、「あなたは勝利するでしょう」、「あなたはこれをやり遂げるために必要なスキルをすべて持っています」 などの肯定的な言葉で構成されています。これらの言葉は、困難な状況に直面していても、自分を信じて諦めないことが大切であることを伝えています。
下半分は、「学ぶ唯一の方法は失敗することです」、「あなたはコツを掴むでしょうが、今はただやり抜いてください」 などの現実的な言葉で構成されています。これらの言葉は、困難に直面する過程で失敗することは避けられないことを伝えています。しかし、失敗から学び、諦めずに努力を続ければ、必ず成功することができるというメッセージも含まれています。
画像の解釈
この画像は、十字架と英語の言葉が描かれています。十字架は、キリスト教において、イエス・キリストが処刑されたという象徴です。キリスト教徒にとって、十字架は苦難と犠牲の象徴であると同時に、希望と救いの象徴でもあります。
この画像における十字架は、困難や苦難を象徴していると考えられます。英語の言葉は、困難に直面している人々に向けた励ましやアドバイスとして解釈することができます。
この画像が誰に適しているか
この画像は、困難に直面しているすべての人に適しています。特に、目標を達成するために努力している人、失敗から立ち直ろうとしている人、孤独を感じている人に役立つでしょう。
この画像の活用方法
この画像は、ポスターやカードとして印刷したり、ソーシャルメディアで共有したりすることができます。また、困難に直面している人との会話の中で使ったりすることもできます。
その他
この画像は、インターネット上で広く共有されています。作者や作成目的は不明です。
結論
この画像は、困難に直面している人々に向けた励ましのメッセージです。「あなたはできる」、「あなたは勝利するでしょう」、「諦めないでください」 などの言葉は、困難な状況に直面していても、自分を信じて諦めないことが大切であることを伝えています。
Title: にゃんこ四字熟語辞典 (にゃんこ よじじゅくご じてん) Nyanko (Cat) Four-Character Idiom Dictionary
I checked this book out from the Japan Foundation Libby app mostly because it had a cat but also because I'm interested in four-character idioms aka yojijukugo. And it's such a wonderful book! Mostly it's photos of cats, attached to common four-character Japanese idioms, with brief explanations in Japanese. You're supposed to remember the idioms because of the photos of the cats, but even if you learn nary a single idiom, the cats are worth it for this book. 20/10 highly recommend. I want to buy my very own copy!
I just finished reading a very fun book called 人生で大切なことは泥酔に学んだ (The important things in life I learned by getting wasted) by 栗下直也. It's a collection of essays about a bunch of 偉人 who also happened to love drinking in abundance. The author's style is really fun and humorous and the book itself features a lot of people that were of interest to me (writers). Some of the trivia about them was really hilarious but also quite shocking.
It's only April and I have already read about 10 books in Japanese this year. The pile is still huge though...
The middle of September is the time for the Japanese tradition of moon viewing. It's said that the September moon is especially pretty and round in Japan and of course there are some delicious related foods for the occasion as well.
I've gathered some articles and blog posts about 月見（つきみ）that were written for learners of Japanese in simple language. Most of these stories have a reading level fitting for JLPT N5 and N4 readers. If you are interested in learning about the traditions in Japanese, have a look - all texts are freely available online!
This text is 8 pages long, graded as A2 and is available as a direct PDF download through the link below.
Hirogaru Nihongo's article is only a few sentences short, but they also include a video on Tsukimidango and there's a reading comprehension quiz at the end.
Meika Sensei's blog for beginner readers has short, simple sentences that each add a bit more information. There is also a version for intermediate readers.
The blog post by Kazue Ono has two parts, one aimed at beginners and one for intermediate readers. It's a good practice to start with the beginner text and then try and read the more difficult one as well.
Honorable mention for Matcha Magazine: Their article isn't only for Tsukimi, but all Japanese traditions and celebrations taking place from September to November. Their articles include some translations in the main text to help with following along.
does anyone have any recs for native websites/apps (=not made for learners) that are fun to read? i’m not interested in the news....i’m considering getting a magazine subscription from honto but i figured i’d ask what ppl are reading before i decide for sure 🤔
my go-to is usually note, which is a big blogging website where people write about random stuff. there's a lot of different categories, personally i really enjoy the やってみた section since it's fun seeing what people tried doing (i saw someone write about how they made coffee out of acorns on a whim which was pretty funny), but there's also art, fashion, childraising, pets, travel, if there's a category for it they probably have it
はてなブログ is a similar blogging platform where people talk about random stuff too. i've used it less so i know less about it but there's some fun reads in there
アメーバ is another blogging platform but ive never been on it i just know it because it's kinda well-known
NHKハートネット (specifically the みんなの声 section) is a cool forum-like place where they ask people to share their experience with certain topics, usually about their 悩み, and people have very interesting stories to tell
青空文庫 is pretty famous so you mightve heard of it already but it's a big digital japanese library, it has a lot of classics and fables and stuff like that. i remember reading 走れメロス off there a while ago
this one's not quite the thing you'd read everyday but ひきこもり村 is a forum for ひきこもり and many of the posts (at least last time i looked) show a very human look into everyday people's lives and can be pretty philosophical
and this is just a gigantic archive of this one japanese counselor's online diary entries from 1999-2010 which i just find fascinating to sift through
also, this is a PS since it was mentioned in your original tags, but i was able to download the honto app and i dont live in japan?? i went to this link on my phone and downloaded it from there
anyway i'd be interested to see what other native sites/apps people use too! :>
wow thank you!!!! wow i'm so excited to go look at all of these omg....noteですぐ垢作っちゃうよw
Syosetsu: People publish their short stories on there and sometimes they even get published from what I have heard.
Pixiv might be most known for art but many also publish stories and short manga on there.
Tree-novel is similar to Syosetsu. People can publish their own writing, be it essays, short stories, novels, etc.
A Summer Day, a web novel, is no longer being updated since it was just extra content for the game Loop8 which came out in 2022 but might still be fun to read through. There are 27 chapters in total.
hey japanese langblr I bought some light books to reas and i wanna know what the best way to learn from those would be and also how to help my vocab retention / size cause I struggle with that a lot. thanks
Congrats on getting your first books in Japanese!
May I ask, if you already have some experience reading in Japanese, e.g. through textbooks, easy news or graded readers? If it's your first time reading a full book in Japanese, it will be hard in the beginning, but don't let that discourage you!
If your book is considerably above your current abilities, approach it like an object of research: Take notes on unknown vocabulary and look up the grammar in use. Translate sentences you struggle with. It may take you a while to work through your book this way, but you will acquire a thorough understanding of the text.
If your book is just below or on par with your current abilities, you will be able to read it comfortably with just a few unfamiliar words per page. This allows you to practice understanding words through context. Since you are not looking up words or grammar, you will finish the text quickly this way but you will need to rely on your own reading comprehension skills for understanding the text.
Both approaches to reading are valid and which one fits best for you depends not only on the difficulty of the text but also on your personal language skills and of course your own goals for reading in Japanese.
weird question,but does anyone have any advice on how to think of things to talk about when you're trying to learn a new language? I'm trying to get better at Japanese by posting on HelloTalk everyday, but I've fallen behind because I just can't think of anything to post about? I'm pretty boring lol Does anyone else have this problem??
Depending on your level the website J.Test今月の話題 could be a handy resource for you: https://j-test.jp/wadai
Each month they publish texts on a different topic in simple Japanese. The first text is aimed at beginner to lower intermediate learners and is slightly shorter. The second text is for intermediate to advanced learners and is slightly longer.
These are the texts for February 2024, with a text on stamps and postage for beginners and a text on artificial intelligence for intermediate readers, both of which list vocabulary the reader may not be familiar with on the right side, so you can study the words in advance.
At the end of each section there are not only the reading comprehension quizzes you see in the pictures, but also discussion questions, for example: "あなたは、生成 AI を活用することに対して、どう思いますか。" = "What do you think of the use of generative AI?". So this resource gives you information on various topics in Japanese, the vocabulary you need to talk about them, and prompts to channel your thoughts all in one. It's completely free, and although there's usually a bit of a delay with the uploads each month, I can really recommend it!
Omg this is so cool!! I need to give it a try
Starting in Sept. 2024, the Seitokai Book Club is splitting into two (2)--a manga book club and a novel book club. We've decided to do this to better service our members.
After a tough vote and a tie-breaker, our inaugural Japanese Novel read for Sept. 2024 is 君は月夜に光り輝く. This book follows two classmates, one of which is diagnosed with a terminal illness that causes her skin to glow under the moonlight. She glows brighter as her time of death nears. This book has currently been graded at an upper intermediate/N2 level on Natively.
Come join us in the discord server! We can't wait to see you.
Get some more info below:
Hi!
Sometimes, life gets the best of me and I'm not able to make my usual announcement post on here about what the current Seitokai book club read is. However, I do actually update it on the master Google Doc (links to associated vocab lists included), my Natively profile, and on the Seitokai instagram. These include the books from the start of the club in 2022 until present day.
If you're not particularly interested in the vocab lists or you hate accessing Google Docs bc it takes up Google Drive space, you can also see it on THIS NATIVELY LIST.
Or if you're thinking "ALL OF THOSE OPTIONS SUCK, I'M NOT LEAVING TUMBLR!," fair enough, I can't argue with that. You can always DM me, send an ask, or even @tokidokitokyo might make a post about it as well.
This month we are reading スキップとローファー!
Mitsumi Iwakura is a sparkling high school student who moved from the outskirts of Ishikawa Prefecture to high school in Tokyo after graduating from junior high school. Mitsumi grew up in a depopulated area, with only eight students in her class. However, on the day of her entrance ceremony, she gets caught in the commuter rush and gets lost, and her life plan is quickly frustrated. A tall and handsome boy who was worried about Mitsumi calls out to her and decides to go to school with her every day.
Join us for this read in Seitokai's Discord!
Feel free to message me or @onigiriforears for information!
1. Finish the grammar book im currently using
2. Finish my first novel in Japanese (I'm making good progress!)
3. Catch up on all of my outstanding flashcards for kanji vocab + grammar (more than I'm willing to admit until I accomplish this lol)
Pleased to announce that I have accomplished goal #2 and finished reading my first novel in Japanese!! This is a big milestone for me and I'm proud. キッチン was the first book I read by a Japanese author in English, and now it's the first novel I've read in Japanese. I've made a full circle.
I am really looking forward to the next novel, and the next, and the one after that 📚☕
hey japanese langblr I bought some light books to reas and i wanna know what the best way to learn from those would be and also how to help my vocab retention / size cause I struggle with that a lot. thanks
If you are looking to learn vocabulary from books, I was told a while ago that you don't need to learn every new word you encounter in a novel/book. Not all of them are used frequently, and some of them are mostly used in literature. I've tried sentence mining from books, but it can be a long and tedious process, so try it out and see if it's for you, if vocabulary is your goal. Just be aware that it makes the process of reading a lot longer.
If you want to read for pleasure (and learn on the way), I would avoid sentence mining, and start simply reading. You can try reading a sentence and see if you know all of the words in it. If you come to a word you don't know, you can try to guess from the context of the sentence. If you cannot guess, you can try looking it up. At this point you can note it down or just continue reading. You can also note down words that come up often, and make a short list of vocabulary to learn.
If you find there are lots of words you don't know and you are having difficulty with the meaning of what you are reading, try taking a break. The book might be above your level, which makes the reading process harder. Or you might not be used to the process of reading in Japanese. Either way, after the break come back and see if it's any better. Break it up into small chunks so that you aren't overwhelmed. Even one page or one paragraph a day is a good goal when you are starting out reading. Try to get into the flow of reading and hopefully things will begin to come together.
If you try a few times and you just aren't into it, maybe put it aside for a longer break. Try coming back in a month and see if it feels more comfortable for you.
I hope these tips help! I wasn't great at reading right away, and I couldn't read everything I tried easily right away. I found reading for vocabulary mining was not at all the thing for me. Find what is right for you and good luck!
