The latest version of Japanese practice app "Think in Particle"

Hi everyone,

Some of you are already using it in class, but the latest version of my practice app, "Think in Particle," is now ready. So today I'd like to share, once more, the thinking behind the app and what you can do with it.

I've tried to sum up what I see as the essentials — not just for using the app, but for learning Japanese in general. It ended up being a long email, but I'd be really happy if you read it through.

■ What the app is for

In Japanese, particles move the sentence forward. And that is the single most important thing for improving your Japanese.

Then, within that direction, the ending of the predicate at the very end of the sentence gives you finer control.

"Did you do it, or not? Do you want to do it? Is it red, was it red, or are you going to make it red?"

• Particles control the direction a sentence moves in
• The ending of the predicate controls it even more finely

Once you can handle these two things yourself, you'll gradually be able to use Japanese freely. That's the idea behind the name "Think in Particle."

✅️This feel for particles also improves your listening.

As soon as you hear a noun and a particle, you'll be able to predict which way the sentence is heading and what kind of predicate is likely to come next.
A feel for particles is essential not only for speaking, but for listening too.

■ What you can do with the app

【Four types of practice】

① Particles: Practice connecting one noun to several predicates with the right particle.
Even with the same noun, the particle you attach changes the direction the sentence goes, and with it, the predicate that can follow. You'll experience this for yourself.

② Verb conjugation.
③ i-adjectives and na-adjectives conjugation

You'll see how forms branch out from the same stem just by changing the ending, and then practice using those forms in sentences. Once you have this down, you'll have a map that keeps you from getting lost even when you starts to learn more complicated grammars and conjugations later on.

④ Counting particles
The aim of practicing the 17 counters and dates is not simply to "be able to choose the right counter." It's to get a feel for how Japanese tends to express things.
That tendency is this: Japanese is a language where the important information comes later.
You'll build that feel through simple sentence patterns.

[ Things to keep in mind as you use it ]

My specific recommendations on how to use the app are further below, as they're quite long.

■ Mindset: practice for using the language, not for "finding the right answer"

When you think of studying a language, you might picture solving questions and looking for the right answer. But what we're really aiming for isn't being able to pick the correct answer — it's "being able to build what you want to say into a Japanese sentence yourself."

Of course, in reality there are "sentences that don't work" and "sentences that work, but only in unusual situations."

Normally, "apples don't eat people," and "the sky doesn't go to the sea."

Language is also something you can play with freely, but at the same time it's a tool for communicating with other people. How freely can you play within the rules we share? To me, that's what language learning is practice for.

This app isn't a quiz for checking answers. It's a place to practice: you choose, you make mistakes, you understand the system a little at a time, and you choose again.

■ The big picture: with four sentence types, you can say almost anything
Japanese sentences can be divided into four types based on their predicate: noun sentences, verb sentences, i-adjective sentences, and na-adjective sentences.

If you can use just these four types, you'll be able to express far more than you probably imagine. Even sentences that look difficult, when you break them down, turn out to be these four types combined with particles and changes to the ending.

All advanced grammar is built on this foundation too. My lessons, my textbook 『しくみでまなぶ にほんご』 (Learning Japanese Through Its Structure), and this app are all built on these four types.

A quick practical note

■ Access

For now, the app is available only to people taking my lessons and/or to paid subscribers. If you're interested, I'd love for you to sign up as a paid subscriber or book a lesson:)

In the future, I plan to make the app available with a login. Once you log in, you'll be able to share your learning records with me. Based on those records, I'm also planning to build a system that lets each of you focus on your own weak spots.

I really hope this will help you practice in a way that suits you better, not only through the lessons.

■ Feedback
There's still a lot to improve in this app.
Please tell me anything at all — "this part is confusing," "I'd like this kind of practice," "isn't this answer correct too?" You can reply to this email or tell me during a lesson. I'll keep improving the app based on what you tell me!

Thank you for reading this far.
I look forward to continuing to learn with you.

The app link and detailed instructions follow below. If you're taking lessons only, I'll share the link with you individually by email or in class!