明日 (ashita - yesterday), TextFugu had a cyber 月曜日 (getsuyoubi - Monday) sale and the forever membership was 33% off!! This means I finally obtained my FOREVER membership to TextFugu for only $80 instead of the usual $120. Yessssssss!! Now I'm not limited to the free content only (which I still have plenty left of) and will get all updates forever. Really excited about this!!! Couldn't pass it up. :D
Work has been steadily kicking my butt, considering my last post was like 2 weeks ago. :/ Have still been doing the Drag n Drop ひらがな exercise daily and so far my best time is 1:06. So trying to stay in it slightly even though I haven't had a really good study session in awhile.
Anyway, touching base and happy to now have TextFugu in all it's complete glory at my disposal.
Japan or bust and またね!!
11.15.2011
ひらがな: Reading, Writing and Memorizing
I really breezed through a nice little chunk of TextFugu today and got a chance to see that I'm really quite comfortable with ひらがな. Even more so that I previously thought. Woo! It feels really nice.
To review, I started the real meat and potatoes of ひらがな in terms of TextFugu 今日 (kyou - today)! Koichi-san first mentions that a variety of resources will be utilized to teach the reading, writing and memorization. These include both TextFugu and outside (free) resources. (All the ones I saw today were awesome!)
You first are introduced to three common 日本語 words - sushi, sake and karate. With these examples, Koichi-san illustrates that reading and writing ひらがな is really pretty easy once you know the 仮名. He points back to the ひらがな chart to show for example that sushi is made up of su and shi or すし. It's really as simple as that. Koichi-san also mentions the common Western pronunciation of these three words and points back to all the pronunciation practice preceding this point so they will be pronounced correctly.
How to Study ひらがな
First 10 Hiragana: あいうえお、かきくけこ
From there, you are introduced to the first resource - Anki. This is a flash card program that utilizes card decks created by Koichi-san. Practiced the first 10 仮名 using Anki. (The vowels and the K-line.)
Next up was this really cool resource called Drag n' Drop Hiragana and again initially just got the first 10 仮名 in place correctly.
Lastly was the first 10 Hiragana practice worksheet (TextFugu) that quizzed first to write the correct Romaji counterparts given the 仮名 provided and then to do the verse - write the 仮名 for the Romaji provided.
Hiragana 11-20: さしすせそ、たちつてと
First was the start of another TextFugu worksheet, the Personal Kana Sheet. Initially put the first 10 ひらがな into place, then immediately added the next 10 which are the S and T lines.
Next was more Anki for the S and T lines.
Next was the site RealKana which I've used and visited before via ToFugu. It's really cool how you can add the different styles here to quiz yourself on recognizing multiple written styles of ひらあな (as well as カタカナ but that's for another time.) Anyway, quizzed only on first 20 仮名 this time around.
Lastly was the First 20 Hiragana Practice worksheet. (TextFugu)
Hiragana 21-30: なにぬねの、はひふへほ
First added the next 10 仮名 (N and H-lines) to the Personal Kana Sheet.
Anki for these 10.
First 30 Hiragana Practice worksheet. (TextFugu)
RealKana again for all 30 (V through H-lines)
I feel like I made a nice amount of progress today refreshing what I already knew. I was really surprised with my speed on the various worksheets. I also kept doing all 46 ひらがな on the Drag n' Drop site and the best time I've gotten so far for all of them is 1:15!!!!!!!
It was a great day for my 日本語 journey!! I'm feeling so jazzed about it, especially after 今日!
I'm overdue for bedtime again...
またね!!
To review, I started the real meat and potatoes of ひらがな in terms of TextFugu 今日 (kyou - today)! Koichi-san first mentions that a variety of resources will be utilized to teach the reading, writing and memorization. These include both TextFugu and outside (free) resources. (All the ones I saw today were awesome!)
You first are introduced to three common 日本語 words - sushi, sake and karate. With these examples, Koichi-san illustrates that reading and writing ひらがな is really pretty easy once you know the 仮名. He points back to the ひらがな chart to show for example that sushi is made up of su and shi or すし. It's really as simple as that. Koichi-san also mentions the common Western pronunciation of these three words and points back to all the pronunciation practice preceding this point so they will be pronounced correctly.
How to Study ひらがな
First 10 Hiragana: あいうえお、かきくけこ
From there, you are introduced to the first resource - Anki. This is a flash card program that utilizes card decks created by Koichi-san. Practiced the first 10 仮名 using Anki. (The vowels and the K-line.)
Next up was this really cool resource called Drag n' Drop Hiragana and again initially just got the first 10 仮名 in place correctly.
Lastly was the first 10 Hiragana practice worksheet (TextFugu) that quizzed first to write the correct Romaji counterparts given the 仮名 provided and then to do the verse - write the 仮名 for the Romaji provided.
Hiragana 11-20: さしすせそ、たちつてと
First was the start of another TextFugu worksheet, the Personal Kana Sheet. Initially put the first 10 ひらがな into place, then immediately added the next 10 which are the S and T lines.
Next was more Anki for the S and T lines.
Next was the site RealKana which I've used and visited before via ToFugu. It's really cool how you can add the different styles here to quiz yourself on recognizing multiple written styles of ひらあな (as well as カタカナ but that's for another time.) Anyway, quizzed only on first 20 仮名 this time around.
Lastly was the First 20 Hiragana Practice worksheet. (TextFugu)
Hiragana 21-30: なにぬねの、はひふへほ
First added the next 10 仮名 (N and H-lines) to the Personal Kana Sheet.
Anki for these 10.
First 30 Hiragana Practice worksheet. (TextFugu)
RealKana again for all 30 (V through H-lines)
I feel like I made a nice amount of progress today refreshing what I already knew. I was really surprised with my speed on the various worksheets. I also kept doing all 46 ひらがな on the Drag n' Drop site and the best time I've gotten so far for all of them is 1:15!!!!!!!
It was a great day for my 日本語 journey!! I'm feeling so jazzed about it, especially after 今日!
I'm overdue for bedtime again...
またね!!
11.14.2011
Combination ひらがな
Combo ひらがな are technically two separate 仮名 but they are quite common and considered one sound.
These have two parts, naturally.
The first is a 仮名 from the 'i' row. (ie き, し, ち, に, み, り, etc) + one of the 仮名 from the Y-line - や, ゆ or よ. The 仮名 from the Y-line appears smaller than it's preceding 'i' row 仮名, to indicate that they are attached to one another.
A couple of examples are:
きゃ - kya, じゃ - jya, にゅ - nyu, みょ - myo, りゃ - rya, りゅ - ryu and りょ - ryo
I practiced the combination ひらがな using the linked video.
Koichi-san advises that with the completion of this section about combination ひらがな, the pronunciation of all the ひらがな has been covered for the most part. This will definitely make reading and writing easier!
I have a decent handle on reading and writing already but never bad to get some refresher on the pronunciation of things. Always nice when you sound more natural and less like a gaijin. ;)
I need to get on to bed but looks like the next part of TextFugu is practice actually reading ひらがな. I really look forward to this. Again, I have a great basis with ひらがな already but my weakness right now is the time it takes me to first convert the symbols to the sounds then if I don't know the word, the additional time it takes me to look it up. Especially during my vacations to California, while shopping at Mitsuwa Marketplace, I found ample opportunities to read product packaging but sometimes it would take me so long to convert what I was reading that sometimes I'd just flip the product over to read the 英語 on the back. Not what I want to have happen!
I'm looking for opportunities to get faster with my ひらがな reading.
**Random observation/brain pick: Another obstacle I often have when trying to read 日本語 product packaging is when a line of text suddenly changes from ひらがな to 漢字. I know very few 漢字 so far so sometimes it made the ひらがな I was able to read up until reaching it virtually useless.
Hoping to change that sooner than later!
またね!
These have two parts, naturally.
The first is a 仮名 from the 'i' row. (ie き, し, ち, に, み, り, etc) + one of the 仮名 from the Y-line - や, ゆ or よ. The 仮名 from the Y-line appears smaller than it's preceding 'i' row 仮名, to indicate that they are attached to one another.
A couple of examples are:
きゃ - kya, じゃ - jya, にゅ - nyu, みょ - myo, りゃ - rya, りゅ - ryu and りょ - ryo
I practiced the combination ひらがな using the linked video.
Koichi-san advises that with the completion of this section about combination ひらがな, the pronunciation of all the ひらがな has been covered for the most part. This will definitely make reading and writing easier!
I have a decent handle on reading and writing already but never bad to get some refresher on the pronunciation of things. Always nice when you sound more natural and less like a gaijin. ;)
I need to get on to bed but looks like the next part of TextFugu is practice actually reading ひらがな. I really look forward to this. Again, I have a great basis with ひらがな already but my weakness right now is the time it takes me to first convert the symbols to the sounds then if I don't know the word, the additional time it takes me to look it up. Especially during my vacations to California, while shopping at Mitsuwa Marketplace, I found ample opportunities to read product packaging but sometimes it would take me so long to convert what I was reading that sometimes I'd just flip the product over to read the 英語 on the back. Not what I want to have happen!
I'm looking for opportunities to get faster with my ひらがな reading.
**Random observation/brain pick: Another obstacle I often have when trying to read 日本語 product packaging is when a line of text suddenly changes from ひらがな to 漢字. I know very few 漢字 so far so sometimes it made the ひらがな I was able to read up until reaching it virtually useless.
Hoping to change that sooner than later!
またね!
11.11.2011
Dakuten!
Woo! I made it back 今夜 (kon'ya - tonight!) I almost put it off but I pressed on and here I am. :)
今夜, I studied dakuten. Dakuten are either the sideways quotation marks or circles added to certain ひらがな lines to expand the 46 symbols and create even more sounds.
Dakuten only apply to the K, S, T, and H lines of ひらがな. The H line is special in that both types of dakuten can be applied. If a 仮名 in the H-line has the sideways quotes it turns from an H sound to a B sound. On the flip side, if a 仮名 in the H-line has the circle it turns from an H sound to a P sound.
As far as the K, S and T lines, only the sideways quotation dakuten is used. This changes the sounds to G, Z and D respectively.
The 'magical pattern' is still followed as before but there are a few exceptions to the pronunciation. They are:
In the S-line, し becomes じ - pronounced ji.
In the T-line, ち becomes ぢ - pronounced dzi and つ becomes づ - pronounced dzu.**
**Koichi-san says the ぢ and づ 仮名 are rarely used, but still a good idea to know how to pronounce them in the event that you come across them.
I watched the videos for the dakuten lines 三 times each and then played the T-line ones a few more times to try and get that dzi and dzu pronunciation down. I learned most of this already with My Japanese Coach on the DS, however I don't remember there being stress on the fact that these two were really a D+Z sound. Probably not covered due to their rare usage but yea.
That's about it for tonight. I just keep rattling through the lines over and over out loud. Practice makes perfect. ;)
またね!
今夜, I studied dakuten. Dakuten are either the sideways quotation marks or circles added to certain ひらがな lines to expand the 46 symbols and create even more sounds.
Dakuten only apply to the K, S, T, and H lines of ひらがな. The H line is special in that both types of dakuten can be applied. If a 仮名 in the H-line has the sideways quotes it turns from an H sound to a B sound. On the flip side, if a 仮名 in the H-line has the circle it turns from an H sound to a P sound.
As far as the K, S and T lines, only the sideways quotation dakuten is used. This changes the sounds to G, Z and D respectively.
The 'magical pattern' is still followed as before but there are a few exceptions to the pronunciation. They are:
In the S-line, し becomes じ - pronounced ji.
In the T-line, ち becomes ぢ - pronounced dzi and つ becomes づ - pronounced dzu.**
**Koichi-san says the ぢ and づ 仮名 are rarely used, but still a good idea to know how to pronounce them in the event that you come across them.
I watched the videos for the dakuten lines 三 times each and then played the T-line ones a few more times to try and get that dzi and dzu pronunciation down. I learned most of this already with My Japanese Coach on the DS, however I don't remember there being stress on the fact that these two were really a D+Z sound. Probably not covered due to their rare usage but yea.
That's about it for tonight. I just keep rattling through the lines over and over out loud. Practice makes perfect. ;)
またね!
11.09.2011
Damn it's been a long time!
Yea, so... When I said 'tomorrow night' in my last post on 十月 (juugatsu - October) fifth, my intentions were definitely not to post again until 十一月 (juuichigatsu - November) ninth!!
I have been so busy with work and by the time I get home and get my 犬 (inu - dog) taken care of and whatever else I have to do, I just haven't had a lot of motivation to sit down here in the study cubby and get to work. Brain strain, I say. Seems like I'm mentally exhausted and just veg in front of the TV.
Well, I received news last 金曜日 (kin'youbi - Friday) that my company has been sold and now we have new ownership. Depending on what it takes to get things stabilized again (we haven't been profitable in awhile), who knows whether I'll still have a job in the coming weeks. o_O Pretty scary stuff.
However, I've been working hard this year to get my spirituality in order and be on better terms with my Creator. With that being said, I'm trying hard to put my worry and concern in His hands and make the best of the situation. I know He will not bring me to something I can't get through and that is that.
All of that considered, I realized the other day that there is really a hidden (so to speak) opportunity here for me to get back on track with 日本語. This language could really take me somewhere if I can become fluent. Not just for pleasure but in terms of my career.
New motivation if you will. ^_^
So here I am.
Tonight, I went back over all the ひりがな pronunciation again, concentrating specifically on the R-line and the very subtle (at least to me) differences between す and つ.
Feels really great to be back here. Gotta try not to let the brain strain/mental exhaustion beat me down to the extent that it's another month before I'm back here again.
Anyway, until next time...
またね!!
I have been so busy with work and by the time I get home and get my 犬 (inu - dog) taken care of and whatever else I have to do, I just haven't had a lot of motivation to sit down here in the study cubby and get to work. Brain strain, I say. Seems like I'm mentally exhausted and just veg in front of the TV.
Well, I received news last 金曜日 (kin'youbi - Friday) that my company has been sold and now we have new ownership. Depending on what it takes to get things stabilized again (we haven't been profitable in awhile), who knows whether I'll still have a job in the coming weeks. o_O Pretty scary stuff.
However, I've been working hard this year to get my spirituality in order and be on better terms with my Creator. With that being said, I'm trying hard to put my worry and concern in His hands and make the best of the situation. I know He will not bring me to something I can't get through and that is that.
All of that considered, I realized the other day that there is really a hidden (so to speak) opportunity here for me to get back on track with 日本語. This language could really take me somewhere if I can become fluent. Not just for pleasure but in terms of my career.
New motivation if you will. ^_^
So here I am.
Tonight, I went back over all the ひりがな pronunciation again, concentrating specifically on the R-line and the very subtle (at least to me) differences between す and つ.
Feels really great to be back here. Gotta try not to let the brain strain/mental exhaustion beat me down to the extent that it's another month before I'm back here again.
Anyway, until next time...
またね!!
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