Japanese Songs! The Power of Youtube

こんばんは！

今日は日本語のじゅぎょうにうだうを聞いてるので、これブログポストの中もうだうがあります。一うだうは "Counting People" うたうです。にうだうは "Learning Japanese Vocabulary"うたうです。りょうは忙しくて、たのしかたです。聞いてください！

いっしょにうだいませんか。

In class today, because we listened to a Japanese song, I decided also to put songs to this blog post! The first one is a song to help you remember the "counters" for number of people. The second one is just a fun, catchy song that has lots of Japanese vocabulary (some words we don't know too) to help you learn and remember new vocabulary. Please listen and sing along!

Valentine's Day Edition: I love my family!

みなさん、

ハッピーバレンタインデ！Happy Valentine's Day!

今日は私はりょうしんにでんわをかけました。父と母がとても大すきです。でも、りょうしんはテキサスにするんでいるので、あまりあっていません。

In light of Valentine's day, I called my parents today. I love my mother and father very much; however, because my parents live in Texas, I do not get to see them often. 

私の家族は３にん家族です。兄弟がいないので、一人っ子です。でも、たくさんしんせきです。いとことそぼとそふに中国住んでいる。私はちょっと会いたいです。

A little bit about my family and me:

There are 3 people in my family: my mom, my dad, and I. Because I have no siblings, I am an only child! (さびしです). However, I have many relatives. My cousins, grandma, and grandpa live in China. I sort of want to visit them. 

みなさんは家族は何人ですか。兄弟がいますか。何人兄弟です。Don't forget to tell them you love them today and wish them all a happy valentine's day too! 

FUN FACT:

Japanese Eating part II: Manners Matter!

日本語の文化：Japanese Eating Manners!

Alongside knowing what typical Japanese-style meals are like, it's good to know what is considered "good" table manners when eating out or in a host-family's house in Japan.

Here are a few pointers when eating in ホーストファムリのうち or 日本語のレストラン：

• Remember, it is custom for Japanese people to say いただきます(I humbly receive) before a meal and ごちそうさでした (It was a feast) as signs of respect.

• Wipe your hands and face with a steaming hot towel おしばり。

• Don't stick your chopsticks up in the air!

• Don't hold the same piece of food with another person

• Slurp your noodles :) 

Here's a video that shows these mannerisms in more detail!

じゃ、また！

Semester 1, Week 1, Post 3

What's In a Japanese Style Meal?

こんばんは！

In light of our Chapter 9 topic [Restaurants and Invitations], I wanted to write about typical Japanese meals (日本ごのりょうり).
Traditional Japanese breakfast and Western breakfast are very different.
日本語の人はあさごはんよく味噌スープやたまごやごはんやよりやさかなや食べます。
Japanese people usually eat miso soup, rice, egg, and fish in breakfast.
ひるごはんをよくおべんとうやランチ食べます。
During lunch, Japanese people usually eat from bento boxes or lunch sets.

ばんは大きごはんを食べます。よくてんぷらとさしみとすしを食べます。Dinner is the largest meal. Japanese people often eat tempura, sashimi, or sushi.

それから、日本語のごはんはヘルシーって、カロリーがひくいですから, とても好きです。
日本語のごはんはおいいしいです。今、食べものがほしいです。
Because Japanese food is healthy and low calorie, I really like it. Japanese food is so tasty, I really want to eat it now!

じゃ、また！

P.S.今週の金曜日にEdo (Witherspoon Street の日本ごのレストラン)にZee groupmatesとばんごはんを食べに行きます。とてもうれしいです！

Friday of this week, I will be going with my Zee groupmates to Edo, a Japanese restaurant on Nassau street, to eat dinner together. So excited!

Semester 1, Week 1, Post 2

New Semester, New Goals! (Week 1, Post 1)

こんばんは！

それは新年です。私は新しいGoalのがあります。This semester, I will learn from my mistakes last semester and work even harder this semester to become more fluent in Japanese.

Below are my goals for writing, speaking, listening, and extra cultural understanding:

Goal #1: Write in blog two times a week to practice/review the Japanese we learned in class (ie. grammar, vocab, sayings, etc). One post should contain something about Japanese culture; the other can be about anything I want that utilizes new vocabulary, new grammatical phrases, and old grammatical phrases that I have learned.

ブログ毎週三から七まで書いて、日本語をべんきょうします。
Additional types of blog posts:
-new Japanese vocabulary I learned outside of class
-funny Japanese videos
-good anime/manga suggestions
-describing cities in Japan/popular places in japan
-food critique on Japanese restaurants

Blog post contents:
-Keep them short (<10 sentences, or ~2-3 paragraphs)
-Should mostly be in Japanese (can be at most half in English)
-Include new Kanji that we've learned

Time commitment: 20 minutes for each blog (1 hour total per week minimum).

Goal #2: Review workbook homework before due dates (receive extra help):
Go to Sato-sensee's office hours twice a week: 12-12:30pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays

さとう先生のオフィスに火曜日と木曜日に行きましょう。

Time commitment: 15-30 minutes each meeting (30-1 hour total per week).

Goal #3: Improve speaking (become more natural, have more accurate pitch patterns, practice speaking new vocabulary and grammar) and listening:
Go to Shibata-sensee's office hours once a week to review Thursday's PE shadowing assignment + practice speaking. Fridays, time TBD.

Time commitment: 15-30 minutes per week.

Goal #4: Listen to Japanese podcast. 15-20 minutes a day--walking to and from Japanese class.  

日本語のポッドキャスト毎日15分聞きます。

Time commitment: ~2 hours per week.

Goal #5: Review Japanese on weekends. Review powerpoints/notes and summarize on blank sheet of paper (for midterm and final exam). Finish any extra "Listening Activities" and "Workbook Activities" on weekends. If have questions, check with Shibata-sensee/Sato-sensee during weekly office hours.

週末に日本語をたくさんべんきょうします。

Time commitment: 1-2 hours.

Total time commitment: ~5-6 hours/ per week (extra)

Ultimately, I want to be at a place where I can speak Japanese confidently and without hesitating in between phrases/sentences. I hope to have a thorough understanding of Japanese grammar/particles/conjugation so that I can speak and write with as much accuracy as possible. Lastly, I find Japanese culture fascinating, beautiful, and interesting so I hope to learn as much as I can about it.

日本語の文化はとても忙しくって、きれいです。私は日本語が大好きです。