I have been studying grammar using Tofogu’s grammer index page (The Japanese Grammar Index) starting with the grammar hub articles at the top of the page.
My approach has been working my way through one of the hub articles until I reach the section, “Beyond the Basics”, at which point I then move into the branching articles labeled as “Related Grammar Points” and listed on the side of the main article page for the topic that I am studying.
When I get to the “Beyond the Basics” section for the branching article I go back to the parent article and then go to the next branching article in the list. Essentially I am focusing on the basics of grammar as a whole to help develop a foundation to build on.
Does anyone have any suggestions for what grammar topic I should study before others?
The following are the main articles on Tofogu’s grammar index page:
Verb Conjugation
Transitive and Intransitive Verbs
Building Sentences and Clauses (finished the “Basics” of main article and the “Basics” は, か, and を branching articles. Currently on the に particle sub article)
Plural and Quantity
Personal Pronouns
Numbers and counters
Nouns
な - Adjectives
こそあど言葉 (ko, so, a, do, words) (Finished the basics for main article and all branching articles)
い - Adjectives
Date and Time
Thanks,
Patrick
Tofugu is a great resource. Do you also do exercises to test your knowledge?
I spent months reading grammar manuals, but when it came to actually using it (for reading and listening comprehension) I felt like there was a huge gap. I am currently attempting to plug the gap by going systematically through the genki exercises (Genki Exercises - 3rd Edition | Genki Study Resources ). Before each exercise, I research corresponding explanations on Tofugu, and any other resource I can find, until I feel like I have clearly understood the grammar point and can do the exercises relatively comfortably.
My take on grammar: “use it or lose it”. Following the order of topics from any established resources like Genki or JLPT seems to be working reasonable well for me so far (currently finishing Genki level 13).
Good luck with your studies!
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Thanks for the advice. I haven’t felt like there has been a gap between what I have been studying in the grammar articles and the VERY little I have been reading from the graded readers along side it. Currently just using Peter Rabbit written in Japanese. I am just taking it slow and so far it seems to be working out. I have seen Genki be thrown around a lot on here so I will look into that should I need more study materials. After my initial post I did look into my JLPT N5 prep book for some direction and may start to follow there roadmap for grammar as well. I just finished studying through the に particle basics and I feel like I have a good grasp on it. I think I would feel confident enough if I were to be given some basic questions relating to it.
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