日本語の勉強、頑張って！！ (Watch Japanese TV)
In my last post, I explained how Rosetta Stone was the best thing that’s ever happened to me in my journey to fluency in Japanese.
Yes, that statement still stands.
However, since I have finished Level 1, and do not have enough money to buy Level 2, I will be Rosetta Stone-less for now. However, that doesn’t mean I should give up on Japanese, right?
Right. So, what am I doing to study now?
Anything and everything, to put it lightly.
Before I came to Japan, I looked for websites to help me learn Japanese. Most of the websites I went to all told me “surround yourself with Japanese. Listen to Japanese music, and watch Japanese TV.” If you’re like me, this advice doesn’t seem to be enough. I thought, “But, how is simply listening to music and watching TV going to help me?? I can’t understand what they’re saying!! It’s impossible to become fluent in Japanese simply by listening to Japanese!”
Well, I wasn’t necessarily wrong, but I have to admit, watching TV has helped me.
Because I have Japanese class, I am able to learn new words and sentence structures. This, coupled with TV and music, is a great combination because you’re continuously picking up those same words and sentence structures. Also, watching TV (particularly shows with a live panel) really helps because you’re constantly hearing different ways of speaking (accents, speeds, etc) and different ways of using the words and phrases you have already learned.
Japanese can be a confusing language because even if you know what a Japanese word means in English, you still might be using it the wrong way.
For instance, “分かった”(wakkata) and “知ってる”(shitteru) both mean “I know/I understand” but figuring out when to use either word, as far as I know, is trial and error. Watching TV has helped me figure out when to use each and in what situation because I’m listening to native-speakers use those words.
At first, I didn’t think watching TV was helpful, but I know it most certainly is. Its a gradual process that you won’t notice for a while, which is why I hated the idea to begin with.
Even as I type this, I am listening to/watching Japanese TV.
Because I have been watching Japanese TV for about 2 months, sentences that used to sound like gibberish are actually sentences with words that I can separate. To make a point, I’ll use an English example.
Instead of “Whatingredientsdidyouusetomakethatcakeyesterdayitwassodelicious!
I can hear “What ingredients did you use to make that cake yesterday? It was so delicious!”
Haha, I hope that makes sense!
And also, because I am able to separate the words, I am hearing new words that I haven’t previously learned. I can hear it, spell it, and look it up in my Japanese dictionary.
Soon, you’ll start to be able to repeat after the person talking on the TV, even if you don’t know all the words! This helps with pronunciation and intonation.
The point is, listen to Japanese when you can, and you will notice a difference. Keep in mind, noticing the difference will not be immediate.
I think the key with studying any language is patience. Take it one day at a time, be persistent in your studies, and you will reap the benefits!
Of course, I will try to follow my own advice and remember: patience 
