Older Learners

Great post. I’m 60 plus on the outside, but 38 on the inside. It’s VERY challenging. Things don’t stick in the brain well…I surely have forgotten more Japanese then I know. No rush though. It is good for the brain. At 59, I suddenly remembered the forgotten fascination I had with Japan in my 20’s. We visited in 2018 and wish to return to hike in rural Japan. While no Japanese was needed for our first trip, it would be needed in rural areas. I am learning the language because of a deep interest in the culture and because it is fun. I tried classes, but the young people learn so fast, I ended up feeling bad. Now I use Duolingo, Mango (free at many libraries in the US and my fav.), Pimsleur (also thru the library), Drops for vocabulary (free for 5 minutes daily) and WaniKani. I take a conversation class with a class in England. (Understanding and speaking is soooo hard.). I’m checking out Human Japanese after reading about it on this post. (It seems very clear. It doesn’t assume you know English grammar. Nice aesthetically, too.) I also have a Japanese penpal.
Next goal is to go to a home stay, immersion program in Japan. But I want one with older adults! It needs to be FUN.
It is NEVER to late to learn anything. EVER.

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I had never considered the library for apps and online tools! I’ll have to look into that. I think I will add “It’s good for the brain” to my list of motivational reminders…

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A bit late to the party but I’m 41 and I always wanted to learn a language that did not use the roman alphabet for the challenge.
I went to Japan about 15 years ago (time REALLY flies) and really had a great time so I thought I could learn Japanese one day.
I took a couple of lessons, but between work, family and general laziness, I didn’t follow through. I stumbled upon Wanikani a few months ago and though I would try the free levels. I found it was really cool because I was able to do lessons and reviews during breaks at work, or any time I wanted really.
It replaced almost all mindless browsing I would do during the day and it is also a peaceful moment in my day.

I am only level 7 today and will hopefully continue to progress. I do not have any expectation or pressure to speak Japanese fluently soon or any time, I can take my time and that’s on advantage of being an older learner, I think. It’s not a chore to learn a new language, it’s a pleasure.
I don’t find it more difficult to learn today than 20 years ago. On the contrary, I think I know how to learn now that I’m a bit older.

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A bit off topic maybe but maybe not as the audience might be interested …I
'm reading this book right now…From strength to stength, finding success, happiness and deep purpose in the second half of life by Arthur C Brooks…
Talks about how our intelligence changes from fluid intelligence in our 20s to cystallized more integrative knowledge as we age.
I’m finding my work less and less rewarding and am hoping to jump on “the second curve” as he calls it. It’s a very interesting book and recommend it to anyone who is feeling like their job just isn’t what it used to be and is looking for a different challenge…
So anyway, just a book recommendation…

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I’m watching Love is Blind: Japan now with Japanese and English subs using Language Reactor (such a cool extension!) and I was wondering if you had any idea why the names of the people are in Katakana instead of hiragana or Kanji?

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Oh wow thanks just checked out Satori Reader and signed up!

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Hi I just want to say “hi” and I’m definitely in the older side, 63. Nice to not feel quite so much like an outlier.

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You can shut off the furigana for words you’ve learned through WK in satori reader. Which is big.

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It’s nice that satori reader can track and act on your wk progress, but to me what’s far more valuable is the extremely nuanced explanations of each word/phrase/sentence.

It’s not simply a reader with nice integral dictionary to give you the meaning and reading of individual terms. It’s not just “X means Y,” but “X means Y, and here it’s being used to imply a sense of Z. Contrast this with how it’s being used to connote something slightly different, W, a few sentences below.”

It captures the nuanced and grammatical connotation of a word or phrase in context, as it’s being used in this exact situation. These translations are extremely well written.

Best of all, all of this is hidden away by default. You can just get on with reading what you already understand, but if you’re at all confused about a grammatical construct or whatever, you can just click on the part that confuses you, or on the icon to reveal an excellent translation for the entire sentence. It’s incredibly well done.

The cherry on the cake is integral audio for everything and integrated study aids, etc.

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I don’t! I noticed that too, for some of them, but didn’t consider why; I just assumed it was a style choice on the part of some people. I have heard that sometimes katakana is used for names with very difficult kanji; maybe the show decided to go that route for consistency? It’s an interesting question. Google tells me nothing.

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Oh, actually here’s a Quora thread that gives some insight: https://www.quora.com/Do-Japanese-people-ever-write-their-name-using-Katakana-Is-it-in-the-official-papers-too

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Not for me. I don’t have arthritis. My job was cushy chemist.

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haha, i have a similar job but I was a big sports enthusiast, still am i guess…figure skating, downhill skiing, horse jumping, gymnastics, running…my body has taken some serious hits over the years. I seemed to like sports that specifically involved falling on my ass.

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It’s definitely good for the brain! I started Japanese at age 68 because EVERYONE on both sides of my family ended up with dementia by the time they were 80. I decided I was NOT going to let that happen to me, and I was already having a LOT of senior moments. Within six months of starting Japanese study, the memory lapses had stopped completely! So, yes, Japanese is very good for the older brain!

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That’s fantastic! I did not know that learning a language helps with memoria lapses. At some point I wanted to learn piano for the same effect but it was too tiring to keep track of two lines of score and too many fingers :joy:

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I had heard that learning a new language builds new brain synapses, so I thought a harder language would do better than an easier language. Japanese seemed like a tough language, so I started that, and now I keep studying Japanese because it’s fun. My brain is doing just fine, better than ever. So it’s worth it!

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Sounds like my approach to life :rofl:
I’m not expecting to turn in a pristine body & mind at the end, I’d like to have had plenty of use out of them (both)

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Which is exactly why my body is in the shape it’s in! I’ve had an exciting, active life, and now I have busted up knees, bad lungs (non-smoker), and arthritis. Worth every minute of it!

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I’m cross posting this from my book club, but if you ordered physical manga and can’t read the darned tiny furigana: So I went to my shop and found my Optivisor, which is for working on really small stuff. I think it was $60-70 when I bought it and it’s $50 now but there’s a knock off for $25 on Amazon! Guess what? PERFECT for reading manga as an old person! Those furigana are clear as a bell with this on, LOL! Here’s the knock off: https://www.amazon.com/Headband-Magnifier-Head-Mounted-Binocular-Magnification-1-5X/dp/B07M7H3P95

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I can’t help but hear this song in my head reading your comment :smile:

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