Japanese Fundamentals 3

This course is a continuation of Japanese Language Class 3 and designed for beginning level to upper-intermediate learners who understands the hiragana system and have some basic understanding of the Japanese language. The course focuses on practicing common expressions useful to describe daily activities and future plans, while also learning basic structures of verbs and verb sentences. The course will also introduce useful particles and continue reviewing and practicing basic particles from previous classes. Prior knowledge of hiragana and katakana is required to take this course:

Through this course, students will be able to:

Demonstrate familiar and basic expressions and phrases.

●Demonstrate a variety of greetings useful in daily conversations.

●Demonstrate sharing daily activities, future plans, and past events

●Examine 15 essential particles, conjunctive particles and the kara (から）particles

●Examine basic sentence structures, particularly verb sentences and create original simple sentences.

●Demonstrate asking questions about when, where, who, what and why (いつ、どこで、だれが、なにを、なぜ）.

●Examine some practices, beliefs and attitudes that characterize Japanese culture.

Week 1: Course overview, self-introduction, & self-assessment　

Week 2: Basic numbers, counters, days, months, and weeks 

•今、なんじですか。

•きょうは なんにちですか。

•きょうのひづけは なんですか。

Week 3: Daily Routine 

•いつもなんじに おきますか。 

Week 4: Asking about plans 

•らいしゅうのよていは なんですか。 

Week 5: Looking closely at Verbs 

•どうしと どうしの かつよう

• いつ　どこで　だれが　なにをする。 

Week 6: Past Events 

•きのうは なにをしましたか？ 

Week 7: Review 

Week 8: Final presentation OR Meet and Greet with Japanese volunteers

Assignments for this course are optional but strongly encouraged. They are meant for you to review, practice, and check your understanding of the topics covered in class. 

• The weekly assignments typically take in the form of either speaking practice or a review quiz. 

• Please note that to qualify for a Certificate of Completion, you need to complete at least 6 assignments (There are no passing grades for these assignments - you just need to complete them). 

Your Learning is My Teaching

As much as I possibly can, I would like to make this class to be about you. I will be asking a lot of questions throughout the sessions to get to know you and to understand what you're looking for in this course. Please consider joining each session a little early so we can spend some time getting to know each other. I do not hold any office hours, but I will open the zoom class 15 minutes before class, and also leave the class open 15 minutes after class in case you have any immediate questions, or simply would like to stay to chat. 

Many Forms of Participation

This class respects and honors all learning styles, preferences, and spaces. Participation can take many forms. Maybe you feel you learn best through interactions and actively participating. Or perhaps you are like me who likes to listen and digest first before participating in the discussion. Maybe you just had a busy day, and you would rather just listen in. I would like you to choose a learning mode that works for you. Please consider trying different approaches to see what your preferences might be for the day. Here are some participation guidelines I would like you to follow during class: 

• Please leave your mic muted during the lesson unless you have a question or you are participating in an activity. Turning your camera on during class is optional for you. 

• You can respond and communicate through chat box, mics, or any other modes you prefer during class (instructor’s response time will vary depending on the chosen mode)

• Please raise and leave your virtual hands up when you are open to answering questions and speaking up in class (function found on reaction).

Reflection Form

The reflection form is an important element to make this course unique and meaningful. After every lesson, you will be asked to submit a reflection form that includes questions about your understanding and satisfaction of the lesson. You can also use this form to ask any questions about the content of the lesson. The form also asks questions that will help me customize and plan future lessons.

Contact information of the instructors will be included in our welcome email. 

• The most efficient way to reach me is email: keikoyokoyama@hotmail.com, or to the program manager;  ikuko@jasdfw.org. We will respond to all questions within 48 hours (please give us additional time if there's a weekend in between).

• If there is an emergency and you do not hear from me right away, please email the program manager, who may be able to get in touch with me for you. Contact information: ikuko@jasdfw.org