休んですみませんでした (Sorry for the Break)

最近、忙し過ぎて、ぜんぜんブログが書けませんでした。ごめんなさい。

Recently I've been so busy I haven't been able to write any blogs. I'm sorry.

夏のクラスの後、1週間、教会に子供と志願しました。毎日、私と子供はお菓子を食べたり、聖書をよんだり、クラフトを作ったり、歌ったり、おどったりました。
1日に3時間だけでしたが、それでも、私は、疲れすぎて　ほかに何もできませんでした。

After my summer class, I volunteered with children at church. Everyday we ate snacks, read the Bible, made crafts, sang and danced. It was only 3 hours a day but I was so busy I couldn't anything else.

それにしても、私とフィルは一緒に、1週間に3-4回運動したり、友だちに会ったり、デートしたりと、多忙に過ごしました。

Nevertheless, Phil and I worked out together 3-4 times a week, hung out with friends, and went on a date. It was a very nice way to spend our time.

あと、YouTubeのビデオを作りました。もうすぐ、ブログにそれを更新します。みんなが気に入ってくれたら、いいのですが。

Also, we've been making YouTube videos. Soon, we will have an updated website. We hope you like it.

にぎやきな週 (Busy Week)

先週の木曜日に私の夏の大学の授業を始まりました。Bibleについてのクラスです。木曜日は作文のしめきりでした。私のはよくなかったけれど、せいせきのたった5％ですから、しんぱいしません。授業は楽しいです。先生は大胆に 読むし、学生はしんせつし、しゅくだいとテストはかんたんなんです。あと、Bibleを読むのがすきなんです。授業は1月間しかないです。短いですね？


今週は私たちはとてもにぎやきになりました。土曜日にフィルさんのりょうしんと町の図書館にじぜんに晩御飯を食べに行きました。日曜日に2回きょうかいにBibleを子供に教えに行きました。月曜日は休みですが、フィルさんはまだ仕事がありました。でも、フィルさんの仕事の後は夫婦である友だちとパーティがあって、晩御飯を食べました。火曜日にも友だちと晩御飯をたべました。その友だちは6月に日本と中国に旅行しますから、私たちは旅行についてそうだんします。それから、水曜日は女友たちの夜遊びです。私と女友だちの2人はBBCのばんぐみを見て、ワインを飲みました。1週間に1回見てみます。本当にフィルさんは家でテレビゲームをします。毎木曜日に協会のグループに会います。一緒にBible を勉強することで仲のよい友達になりました。

その写真は月曜日の休みのパーティ。

Last Thursday my summer class started. It's about the Bible. On Thursday there was a paper due. Mine wasn't very good but it's only worth 5% of my grade, so I'm not worried. The class is fun. The teacher reads dramatically, the students are nice, and the homework and tests are easy. Also, I like reading the Bible. The class is only one month. Easy, right?

This week we were very busy. On Saturday, we went with Phil's parents to the town library for a charity dinner. On Sunday, we taught Sunday school at church twice. Monday was a holiday but Phil had to work. But, after he finished work we had a party with friends and ate dinner. On Tuesday we ate dinner with another friend. This friend is going to visit Japan and China in June, so we talked to her about traveling. Then, on Wednesday we had a girls night. Me and two of my friends watch a BBC program and drink wine together. We try to do it once a week. Usually, Phil plays video games at home. Every Thursday we go to church group. Because we study the Bible together we have become close friends.

ゴジラの映画のパーティと楽しいゲーム (Godzilla Party and A Fun Game)

今学期は日本の時事問題の授業を取っています。授業に災害と原子力と持続可能性についてですので、1954ゴジラを見らなければいけません。ゴジラは核爆弾が大きらいですなんです。だから、授業の友だちは私たちの家に映画を見に行きました。映画はめっちゃ古いですが、楽しかったです。ピザを食べて、ゲームをしました。

This semester I am taking a Current Topics in Japan class. The class is about disasters and nuclear power, so we have to watch the 1954 Godzilla movie. Godzilla hates nuclear bombs. So some friends from class came to my class to watch the movie. It was really old but fun. We also ate pizza and played a game.

ガームは”Scribblish"といいます。めっちゃ楽しくて、簡単です。小さい紙と鉛筆が要ります。６人いたら、ひとり６枚紙をもらいます。まず、皆さんは文を書きます。それから、右の人が左の人に６枚の紙をあげます。次は文を読んで、その文が書いてある紙を一番後ろにして、新しい紙にその文で示された状況を絵で描きます。絵を描いた後、またその６枚の紙を渡します。次は絵を見て、その紙を一番後ろにして、新しい紙に絵を描いて説明します。新しい紙がなくなるまで、くりかえします。なくなるまで繰り返したら、文を読んで、絵を見ます。めっちゃ変わりますね。

ゲームを試してもらえるといいんですが。

The game is called “Scribblish.” It’s really fun and simple. You need small pieces of paper and pencils. If you have six people, everyone gets six small pieces of paper. First, everyone will write a sentence. Then, give all six pieces of papers to the person on the right or the left. Next, read the sentence, put the paper with the sentence on it behind the other papers, then draw the sentence on the new piece of paper, and then pass the papers again. Next, look at the picture, put the paper with the picture behind all the other papers, and then describe the drawing on the new piece of paper. Keep repeating this until there are no new pieces of paper. Now, read the sentence and look at the drawings. It changed a lot, didn't it?

I hope you can enjoy this game.
Written by Bethany & 鈴木美和子さんは翻訳を手伝ってくれてありがとう。

Learn Japanese In 10 Minutes!!

!!!!!Learn Japanese in just 10 minutes a day!!!!! NOT

There's no easy way to learn Japanese. I hear they are making a cream but...until then you're just going to have to learn it the hard way. I've been studying for 4 years on and off and here are some things I do to help learn vocabulary, practice grammar, and memorize kanji.

Also, if you want to read furigana on websites there are extensions you can download for your browser.
Chrome IPA Furigana Firefox Furigana Insterter Windows Ruby

Or you can type a URL into this website.

Learn Vocabulary
App: Anki Flashcards
Cost: Free for Droid, $15 for iPhone
How: Download this on your phone/computer and then download the shared deck "Genki 1&2 Vocabulary." These flashcards cover the same vocabulary as the Genki textbooks including all of the stuff from the back of the book where you learn kanji. Each vocabulary word has two cards, one with English on the front and one with Japanese on the front. Each time you view a card, it will give you up to four options of when you want to review that one again based on how easy it was for you.
Why: You can practice anywhere, anytime. Has a great search function when you forget a word you know you should know.

App: JED Japanese English Dictionary
Cost: Free for all
How: Download and look up a word. You want to know the word for 'night'? It's yoru and this is the kanji. Also, here are other words related to 'night,' such as 'night and day,' 'nightmare,' and 'later that night.' Click on the word for a break down of the kanji, and sometimes you'll also be given a list of conjugations and/or example sentences.
Why: It's just the best. Period.

App: Genki Level 1 2nd Edition
Cost: Free for all
How: Flashcards and multiple-choice game for the first Genki textbook. Sadly there is no app for the second Genki book.
Why: Good for beginners

App: Obenkyo
Cost: Free
How: Study hiragana, katakana, kanji, vocabulary, and particles and then test yourself on what you've learned. Also, great grammar explanations.
Why: Great for practicing for the JLPT

Practicing Grammar 
Get a notebook app on your phone/computer whatever and organize the grammar you know. Put everything about how to use adjectives together, and so on. Refer back to this list when you're doing homework or writing in Japanese so you can make complex sentences. Don't do the bare minimum when doing grammar homework. Don't try to get a perfect score. Use all the grammar you can in every sentence and learn if you are right or wrong and how to combine everything properly.

Memorize Kanji

I've heard it said that you should learn the radicals first and maybe that helps but that's not how I do it. I started learning to write the kanji in the back of the Genki book in classes as well as learning to recognize the kanji in the chapter dialogues. Make a list of the kanji you're supposed to know and write them over and over until you know them and then never write the hiragana again.