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Post by menakatep on Apr 5, 2014 8:12:50 GMT
Hi everyone! I'm new here but found this website through watching Abby's videos on Youtube. Anyway, my question is actually about the transition of words from passive to active vocabulary. I can recognize some 450 words, give or take, but can't seem to call upon them when thinking to myself or speaking with someone. So, perhaps what I'm really looking for is a description of your own experiences with this frustration! Haha Looking forward to making some friends here! Thanks, Logan  |
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Post by Jembru on Apr 5, 2014 11:43:56 GMT
I'd say at this stage in your studies, the very best thing you can do to get your brain to start recalling words, is to try something like anki. We talk about anki in a bit more detail here, but it will allow you to input the words you've been learning and then you can test yourself until they are in your head forever. Before I discovered anki, I used to have notebooks where I'd fold the page down the middle and write the English on one side and the Japanese on the other. You could do that if you prefer, although I found it more time consuming than allowing anki to decide when I need to review a word. What anki won't necessarily do, is teach your brain that the words you're learning are part of a language, so while you'll be able to recall the words well enough to write them, or even pass your tests if you're doing Japanese in school, it might not help you to develop your speaking and listening skills. Of course, we all learn differently and some people seem to automatically develop these skills however they study, but certainly in my case, anki knowledge is somewhat 'stagnant' unless I support it with other study methods. I wouldn't worry too about that until you've increased your vocabulary a little more, or at least reached a stage where you feel you can comfortably recall words. |
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Post by menakatep on Apr 5, 2014 14:22:33 GMT
Ok! I've been using Memrise.com for vocabulary words and both Skritter & Slime Forest Adventure for learning Kanji. I watch some J drama in Japanese without subtitles then listen and rewatch. I also listen to a few podcasts when I'm in the car just so that I am constantly hearing it! What should I listen to? Is this a wise choice or is this content so out of my league, that beyond hearing the rhythm & flow of the language, it won't do me any good context-wise? At this point, I'm able to hear where a lot of words begin and end as well as sentence particles if I'm familiar with it. I read in another thread about mimicking speakers that you hear and I naturally find myself doing that when I pick out words that I understand. I just want to make sure I'm doing all that I can to help mysel along.  |
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Post by Jembru on Apr 5, 2014 15:42:08 GMT
So it's not so much that you don't remember the words you DO know, but rather you can't use them in sentences? In that case, you really just need to be patient and keep building your vocabulary. 450 words is still very low. Estimating exactly how many words you need to learn to be able to communicate in a language isn't easy. It's definitely no where near 100% of the total words it contains, and is probably around 90% of the total words used in everyday life by native speakers. I've seen all kinds of estimates, but this one is quite typical. I'm not sure I agree though. I have over 3000 words on anki and started using it late in my studies, so I can assume I know a good number of words before I started using it, yet my Japanese is very clumsy and I definitely can't always express what I mean, even in a non-grammatical way. Still, someone with a more creative brain than mine, maybe could manage on 2,500 words ^^ There is no harm at all in listening to native speakers. The more you expose yourself to the language the better. Just keep chipping away and don't expect overnight miracles, and you should be fine. |
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Post by menakatep on Apr 5, 2014 16:01:47 GMT
Thanks That makes a lot of sense actually! I think I'm actually having an easier time remembering Kanji than the actual japanese words because of all these crazy mnemonics I've been using. Sometimes when I'm speaking in English, if I say a word I know the Kanji for I try to "see" it in my head even if I look stupid when I stop talking for a moment. I should probably find a word frequency list on japanese and input them to memrise! Know of any good ones? Sorry, I have massive amounts of questions sometimes but usually no one to ask!I think I was just feeling insecure with how I was going about learning. Do you guys ever do a google hangout, or something of that nature, to practice japanese or just talk or is everything stationed here at the forum? |
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Post by chocopie on Apr 5, 2014 16:25:28 GMT
I also listen to a few podcasts when I'm in the car just so that I am constantly hearing it! What should I listen to? Is this a wise choice or is this content so out of my league, that beyond hearing the rhythm & flow of the language, it won't do me any good context-wise? At this point, I'm able to hear where a lot of words begin and end as well as sentence particles if I'm familiar with it. I read in another thread about mimicking speakers that you hear and I naturally find myself doing that when I pick out words that I understand. I just want to make sure I'm doing all that I can to help myself along. I don't think listening to podcasts is a bad idea. At the very least you'll pick up some pronunciation and intonation. I'd recommend listening to general daily life podcasts that aren't too fast spoken. radio.hotcast.info/ has a female presenter who enuciates very clearly and speaks relatively slowly too. Topics tend to revolve around food, drink and culture so lots of general use vocabulary comes up. |
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Post by menakatep on Apr 5, 2014 18:04:44 GMT
Oh my gosh, I love it! She's fantastic to listen to! Thanks a lot, Chocopie! :3
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Post by Underlig on Apr 5, 2014 19:16:05 GMT
As Jemburu said, Anki is awesome for remembering vocab, I try to use words I know as much as possible by using them when talking to myself, it makes me remeber them so I guess it's a good way |
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Post by Bokusenou on Apr 5, 2014 19:54:10 GMT
Different things work for different people, but for this kind of thing I use Anki. When making cards I use sentences which contain the word, and always say the sentence aloud when reviewing. This gives me some context, as well as gives my vocal muscles practice in saying the word, which tends to help me remember words.
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Post by Jembru on Apr 6, 2014 23:31:21 GMT
Do you guys ever do a google hangout, or something of that nature, to practice japanese or just talk or is everything stationed here at the forum? There isn't a specific group, but several of us have one another on skype. I'm always on the lookout for people to practice with, because I'm limited to when I can get online. The more contacts I have, the more chance I have of finding someone willing to chat with me. So if you want my skype, just drop me a PM and we can exchange details. If you happen to have minecraft, I'm a big fan of that game if you want to hang out in Japanese while doing some mining and crafting! If you want more contacts, someone a bit more available, or closer to your level, you can try our study partners thread. If you aren't too bothered if it is text only, you could also try our chatroom. We're not as active in there these days, but if you want to try to set up some regular meetings, drop us a post in the chat thread. Hopefully there'll be something there to meet your Japanese practice needs! |
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Post by menakatep on Apr 7, 2014 15:05:33 GMT
Do you guys ever do a google hangout, or something of that nature, to practice japanese or just talk or is everything stationed here at the forum? There isn't a specific group, but several of us have one another on skype. I'm always on the lookout for people to practice with, because I'm limited to when I can get online. The more contacts I have, the more chance I have of finding someone willing to chat with me. So if you want my skype, just drop me a PM and we can exchange details. If you happen to have minecraft, I'm a big fan of that game if you want to hang out in Japanese while doing some mining and crafting! If you want more contacts, someone a bit more available, or closer to your level, you can try our study partners thread. If you aren't too bothered if it is text only, you could also try our chatroom. We're not as active in there these days, but if you want to try to set up some regular meetings, drop us a post in the chat thread. Hopefully there'll be something there to meet your Japanese practice needs! Yes to all of those and a doubletriple yes to Minecraft! I'll p.m. you my Skype username as well! Thanks Logan :3 |
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Post by Jembru on Apr 7, 2014 20:27:43 GMT
That's great! We should definitely think about setting up times when we can get onto chat. If only I could access it from work, I could be in there more often. It's such a shame. I'm pleased you like Minecraft! I haven't played in a while, and I'm not very good at it, but I love the game, so will try to get on at some point. Little Gaijin plays too, so maybe we can rope her along too! Oh before I forget, yours truly put together a handy vocabulary list for playing Minecraft, You can find it (and some other minecraft-related chat) here: forum.gaiwa.co/thread/43/minecraftThis is in the bi-lingual section, but you can join in with English only if you prefer for now. It's entirely up to you. There are of course loads more words that come up while playing. If I know them, I'll tell you in-game, but don't count on me knowing ^^ |
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