How to practice JLPT alone

Japanese Language Resources
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Hello !
I’ve been studying japanese since august using a combinaison of duolingo, a grammar book, wanikani, anki, bunpro and renshuu (I’m done with N5 grammar on those). I’ve recently started reading some graded reader or beginner books following some recommendations from this forum, and I feel like I’m making good progress !

I may try to pass N5 in July, but I’m wondering how I should practice.
Are the JLPT tests available here legits (especially the listening part) ? JLPT Test
Also, what are some good exercise books (not textbooks) ? There are two Japanese bookstores in town that have a many of those.

Thanks !

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The Shinkanzen (not to be confused with the shinkansen high speed trains :wink: ) master books are a good and often recommended way for studying for the JLPT. They have books for the different sections of the test, so you could just buy the ones where you feel like you need the most practice. They include both explanations and tons of practice questions

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Shin Kanzen Master does not have N5, only N4 and up.

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I don’t have personal experience with it, but I’ve heard good things about the Nihongo Sō-Matome series and they have books for every JLPT stage. You can search for JLPT N5 or 聴解N5 on Youtube to find mock listening tests. You could also check out the channel Nihongo no Mori for helpful videos geared towards JLPT students at any level. Whenever you’re starting N4 and above I’ll strongly recommend for the Shin Kanzen Master series mentioned above. I’ve been very happy with the N2 books.

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Hey, I remember seeing those ones at the bookstore ! I’ll take a closer look. Thanks !

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I highly recommend the N~ 読む／聞く books. They go over grammar, reading, and listening with practice questions just like you will see in the real exam
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Soumatome has a book that covers every part of the test in one book for the N5 level and you work on just a couple pages a day, which is honestly all you need for N5.

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Oh, had no idea about that, thanks for the correction

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So Shin Kanzen Master doesn’t have N5-specific versions.

Edit I was thinking of a different resource when I said Ability UP doesn’t have N5.

Specifically for the N5, Soumatome and TRY! are some of the best resources.

Really though, the N5 is a skippable test. It only tests for 100 kanji, 1000 vocab and a couple dozen grammar. I would learn in the context of planning for the N4, because at least you’ll finish that with the ability to enjoy some native content.

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Indeed, I saw many messages stating that N5 didn’t mean much since it was fairly simple and basic.

It’s okay, my eventual goal is to reach n4 and then we’ll see. Still, the N5 exam would be a nice milestone on the road there.

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I just took the N5 a few weeks ago, and one resource that helped me a lot was this JLPT Study Guide book. It has lots of example problems for all the sections, as well as listening practice you can download for free.

I haven’t personally tried those, but that site/app is usually a good resource. You could also try this video, which is from the official practice test. Do as much listening practice as you can find.

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Ah, this book is also available in a bookstore near work. Thanks !

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Yes! The Nihongo Sō-Matome is great! I really recommend it :slight_smile:

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