Where should I go from here

[beto-bautista]

Don’t worry about the long post I’m actually really glad that people like you take the time to explain in such a detailed manner, it just makes me want to try harder so eventually I can become one of you guys.

I agree that learning a little bit of everything is key, that being so, thanks for all the insight you’ve just shared with me, I was actually looking for vocabulary apps so you just hit the spot, I’ll check it out right away! And about Genki I think I will take your advice and just go with it, after all I do think my English level is pretty good, guess I just got scared with the idea of learning another language with books on a language different than my native one.

Thanks a lot for your help, it’s much appreciated!

[VegasVed]

If you want a textbook:

• Japanese from Zero (relatively cheap and suited to self-study)
• Japanese the Manga Way (entertaining if you like manga)
• Tae Kim (free, good, also available for free as an app)
  Note: Genki did not work for me. I found it very dull.

Applications:

• Human Japanese (this is fantastic for grammar and overall; cheap)
• LingoDeer (free and quite good for overall study)
• Satori Reader (highly recommended for reading and listening practice. Lots of useful features)
• Skritter (some people, including myself, will tell you repeatedly that writing is necessary. This is the app you need for that)
• iKnow for vocab
• JapanesePod if you want lots and lots of listening practice

Language exchange:

• HelloTalk
• HiNative
• iTalki (also good for affordable lessons)

There are a lot more good ones for reference purposes.

[VegasVed]

I would seriously recommend against Genki.

[AfroInJapan14]

AGAINST genki?!? dude what the hell?
Whats your beef against Genki?

=Edit=
Ah you found it dull. Dude, if you love the language and really wanna learn with a good resource Genki is the way to go, the love of the language alone should be enough… do you really need cheap gimmicks and flashing lights to keep you focused on studying?

[Ninkastmin]

Sí, no te preocupes.

Es que dices bueno lo pondré en inglés porque hay más gente acá que lo lee y no todos entienden el español, pero como ya puse mi respuesta, ya equis.

Pues te diría que te eches todos los tres primeros niveles tranquilo, yo me tome creo que 18 días y hasta que no hayas acabado el tercero, no pagues, no tiene caso.

Date de alta en wkstats ahí puedes seguir tu progreso, te va a decir precisamente cuántas cosas has estudiado, de ahí mismo y para que no te imagines… Estos son hasta el momento los elementos que tengo desde Gurú para arriba

309 Rad. 640 Kanji 1968 Vocab.

Spoiler alert, es un chingo.

Yo me registré en esta pagina por el 2014, pero empecé el nivel 1 en Enero, entonces llevo acá poco más de 4 meses, así te haces una idea de cuánto puedes aprender, tú mismo vas a ir haciendo una rutina de estudio y te diré que yo no paso acá más de hora u hora y media al día, porque ya vengo cuando sea que me toquen hacer mis revisiones. Este sitio te lleva de la manita, está padre eso. Y en proporción horas de estudio/cantidad de cosas aprendidas, yo no conozco otra página mejor.

Es decir, son como 2100 los kanjis que hay que saber para llevar una vida por allá sin problemas, no? ya llevo más de la cuarta parte, y si le echas los kilos, aquí hay mucha gente que acaba en un año, qué es un año en una vida? chíngatelo, de una vez, estás chavo. Yo me esperé apenas a ahorita que terminé la carrera, nah, no tiene caso, lo hubiera hecho antes. El japonés es difícil, hay gente que se la pasa 10 años y no tiene fluidez, y de pronto pum, llegas tú y en un año ya te sabes los kanji, y en otro año más ya llegas a un nivel decente de conversación, de genio no te bajan, XD

Checa el foro, hay mucha gente que se van haciendo amigas, se apoyan entre sí, se ponen a hacer carreritas para sacar un nivel por semana , aquí mismo encuentras la motivación que posiblemente no encuentres afuera en tu casa o con tus amigos.

Sale, suerte

[gahllib]

Everybody’s already said it already but Genki I is comprehensive and effective for Japanese self-study, and I’d personally recommend it over Minna no Nihongo. BUT, there’s one important thing to remember with Genki:

It’s only the best choice if you use the workbook.

The textbook is not designed to be used alone; more than half the practice exercises are in the workbook, and the two combined cover every kind of input and output– reading, writing, listening, speaking, grammar, vocab, and kanji. If you do the textbook and workbook (and that includes using the listening practice in the accompanying cds for BOTH books), then I say Genki is the best choice. If you’re only using the textbook, than Genki is probably no better than Minna no Nihongo.

Best of luck!

[Walter-it]

@gahllib

but Genki I is comprehensive and effective for Japanese self-study, and I’d personally recommend it over Minna no Nihongo. BUT, there’s one important thing to remember with Genki:

It’s only the best choice if you use the workbook.

The textbook is not designed to be used alone; more than half the practice exercises are in the workbook, and the two combined cover every kind of input and output– reading, writing, listening, speaking, grammar, vocab, and kanji. If you do the textbook and workbook (and that includes using the listening practice in the accompanying cds for BOTH books), then I say Genki is the best choice. If you’re only using the textbook, than Genki is probably no better than Minna no Nihongo.

Best of luck!

Different people learn in different ways. I don’t mind Genki, but I wouldn’t feel outraged if someone else doesn’t like it. To each their own

[idiomargot]

@Walter-it

To each their own

Totally.

I can see how Genki is “good”. Bunpro too. But my experience of using them is like…

[AfroInJapan14]

I completely agree! Using the textbook without the work book makes no sense, its like reading a story with all the question marks and commas missing. Its doable, but its gonna feel like something is missing.

Minna no Nihongo is actually trash. That worthless book is laughably bad. We were made to use it during University, terrible.

But to each their own.

[AfroInJapan14]

I guess it literally comes down to how much you enjoy studying

like the method of grammar being taught to me doesn’t bother me at all, the whole adventure of learning new grammar alone and then using it in daily life is what excites me.

I guess that`s why my speaking is N2 but my reading is N3 LOL

[idiomargot]

@AfroInJapan14

I guess it literally comes down to how much you enjoy studying

Well, if it’s textbook studying then ugh, but if it’s application studying like anki sentences or the way lingodeer’s set up then I really like it. I can’t wait until they add more advanced lessons. I’ve also recently started translating amazon reviews and it’s a lot of fun to pick them apart.

[mztik]

Guys, there’s no point in suggesting Genki anymore. OP already said he considered it, but would like to learn from Spanish instruction. Minna no Nihongo is the other popular popular series with translations done in multiple languages. OP has a much better chance at that or to learn from a Spanish resource online.

@beto-bautista

I’ve considered buying Genki, but I feel like I should try getting a spanish book as it is the language I’m most comfortable with, sadly I’ve seen none lol.

[Ncastaneda]

I’ve used both Minna No Nihongo (reached about 1/3 and dropped) and Genki I (finished but ended up sick and tired of it). I think they were great tools up to some point, and then knowing a bit more moved to something else. So any method you decide to start with, you might as well start now.

You could look into this if you are convinced to start with a textbook, there are some options mentioned here as well.

The Best Japanese Textbooks, Reference Books, and Dictionaries for Beginners

In the end, you have to start somewhere. And while there’s the textbook way of learning grammar, there’re other ways. Here’s one for going from basic grammar to gradually introducing immersion as a way to get used to learn by exposure (you see, don’t get it, you look into a grammar reference guide, now you get it, you move on).

Actually even though I didn’t continued with Genki or MNH myself (I did it while following Kira Sensei’s videos), I would say it’s a “less resistance” path in the beginning… later you might find that learning grammar without much context can be difficult or tedious, and reading and exposure would provide a better way to continue learning.

There’s only so much you can do with a couple hundred of kanjis… There’s a LOT you can do with some basic notions on grammar.

[VegasVed]

This seems unnecessarily aggressive and presumptuous. The fact that I do not like a resource you like does not mean that you get to question my love for the language. I’m not remotely interested in finding out what made you believe I require “flashing lights” in order to study.

I am not obligated to like the resources you do.

[CyrusS]

Let’s all stay calm. There are pros and cons to Genki, and @beto-bautista is free to try it if he so chooses. This thread is for making him recommendations, not arguing about whether or not Genki is good. Stay on topic, and keep it polite.

[dianarz]

@beto-bautista

but I feel like I should try getting a spanish book as it is the language I’m most comfortable with,

¿Has tomado o piensas tomar clases? Supongo que las escuelas de japonés en México deben de usar libros en español, ¿no? Si no te interesan las clases por lo menos podrías checar algunas escuelas e investigar qué materiales de estudio utilizan, aunque también tendrías que checar qué tanto te servirían para autoestudio.
Yo empecé a estudiar Japonés con ayuda del Inglés, y ahora se me hace más confuso estudiar en Español, así que me he quedado con el Inglés, y por lo que veo muchas personas hispanohablantes también eligen hacerlo en Inglés porque hay más variedad de recursos
Alguna vez fui a una feria de Japón en CDMX y había una editorial vendiendo libros para estudiar Japonés (en español), así que si tienes oportunidad de ir a algún evento de ese tipo que tenga que ver con Japón, a lo mejor encuentras algún libro o material que te sirva. Claro que depende de dónde vivas, si es una ciudad pequeña a lo mejor no hay eventos así, pero si vives en CDMX, Guadalajara o Monterrey los hacen “seguido”.
¡Suerte!

[Ncastaneda]

Yo dejé de buscar métodos en español, basicamente porque son mucho menos, y tienden a ser de peor calidad. Las editoriales que hacen material para occidentales los hacen en inglés o incluso en portugues (una comunidad muy importante en Japón) antes que en castellano.

Si tienes un dominio alto de inglés, no insistas más en buscar material en castellano, incluso aqui en WK a veces hay nemotécnias o referencias a cultura norteamericana y palabras poco empleadas en inglés, pero son pocas y fácilmente superables. EL beneficio que sacaras de los materiales en inglés es mucho más, simplemente por la calidad y variedad de ellos. Lo mismo con las comunidades. Yo al menos no conozco ninguna gran comunidad de estudiantes de japonés en castellano …

Para lo que más uso el castellano es realmente para las nemotecnias que yo me hago. Si la que presentan en WK en inglés no se me queda… muchas veces me hago una mucho más memorable en castellano.

En fin, si tienes inglés para participar en foros y entender las lecciones de WK, los libros Y algunos canales de youtube son recursos que no puedes dejar pasar (Japanese Ammo with Misa / Cure Dolly)

[beto-bautista]

Guys! I’m really grateful for all your insight and help with the books, but I do think we should try to get along I’ll keep thinking about wether or not to buy Genki, because as you say @gahllib its better for me to buy both the textbook and workbook, but right now I’ll like to keep looking between books and continue with all the tips and advices you guys have been telling me about.
@VegasVed Thanks a lot for the detailed info! You’ve just given me a lot of resources and I do think Genki is not for everyone and it shouldn’t be, sorry for that one guy who criticized your opinion.
@CyrusS Thanks for trying to keep this thread friendly, after all, more than anything what I want is to get better at Japanese, but also to meet a lot of people in the process.

@dianarz Si he pensado el tomar clases, el problema mas que nada es que salen muy caras si son particulares y aunque existen varios centros culturales para poder aprender la lengua, se me pasaron las fechas y ahora tengo que esperar para el siguiente semestre. Hablando de los libros, no he encontrado muchas opciones y al parecer como lo comenta @Ncastaneda tienen mala reputación o no tienen. De cualquier forma, muchas gracias por toda su ayuda.

[fl0rm]

It’s been suggested a few times already, but I’m also going to nominate LingoDeer (app), especially since someone else mentioned that it can be used in Spanish.

You mentioned that you’re relatively new to Japanese (one month of trying various resources) and that means it won’t seem too simple for you to find it helpful.

It starts slow, but it covers a lot of important things with regular educational-app-fun reviews, you can get something useful out of it even if you only have five minutes, and it doesn’t overlap too much with WaniKani.

[AfroInJapan14]

TRanslating amazon reviews sounds like a lot of fun actually! I like deep diving into Japanese Twitter and just translating random stuff