Yokoso (Welcome) to your free, intensive self-paced Japanese course! This free online course (created by one of ATDP’s veteran instructors, Junko Hosoi), will provide you with a fun and effective multi-modal approach to learning the 46-primary hiragana characters of the Japanese alphabet. After taking this free course, you should be able to read and write the primary alphabet letters and will be prepared to take the First-Year Japanese course this summer with Hosoi sensei (sensei = teacher). Competence with the material in this self-paced course is required for your enrollment in First-Year Japanese. You may complete this course at any point between January and May; however, keep in mind that the contents of this free course will be used for a pre-assessment for the First-Year Japanese course on Saturday, May 20th, 2023.

This self-paced course is structured to take approximately 2-weeks, at minimum, to complete. It is recommended that you start this course no later than May 5th, 2023 in preparation for the pre-assessment.

Materials Needed:

• Pencil
• Pens (three different colors)
• Notebook (* if you plan to take First-Year Japanese, please keep work completed in the notebook for course)
• Access to websites and videos with sound (headphones recommended for improved listening)

Note to Student:

Some of the activities may seem repetitive, but repetition is very important for improving your memory especially when you are learning a new language! The more you are exposed to the language, the more familiar you will become with the letters and sounds. The course includes multimedia lessons (e.g., writing, reading, songs, listening). It is important that you practice each mode of learning, especially when you are learning a new language, so you are exposed to the language in different ways.

If you come across any questions as you complete the free online course, please contact Meg Stomski at meg.stomski@berkeley.edu and/or Carrie Brown at carriebrown@berkeley.edu.

Interested in continuing on to First-Year Japanese?

This free self-paced course has been provided as preparation material for the Academic Talent Development Program‘s First-Year Japanese course in our Secondary Division program. Should you be interested in continuing on with the class, we would love to have you! Check out our guide for Secondary Division and fill out an application today!

(30 minutes)

1. Read the website about Japanese writing system: Japanese Writing System
2. Listen to the Hiragana song.

(1 hour)

1. Go to the following websites and study the hiragana charts

   Hiragana Chart 1 (only the first 46 letters あ to ん in the top section, not the bottom two sections (Ga to Kyo).

   Make sure to click the sounds to hear the pronunciation. When you are studying the hiragana letters, make sure you are starting to recognize the letter and its sound. It may help to repeat the pronunciation out loud to yourself three times after hearing each letter.

   Hiragana Chart 2 (only the first 46 letters あ to ん on the left side)

(1 hour)

1. Review the hiragana charts. You should start to recognize the letters with the associated sounds. Try repeating the pronunciation to yourself three times after hearing each letter.
   Hiragana Chart 1
   Hiragana Chart 2
2. Test yourself on hiragana recognition with completing Hiragana Drill Q1 and Q2. (Note: testing yourself can help improve your memory!)
3. Listen and follow along to the Hiragana song.
   If you do not feel comfortable singing, try saying the hiragana letters together with the song! Saying the letters out loud with the song will help with your memory.

(1 hour)

1. Study the stroke order & sound of the first 15 primary hiragana characters (あいうえお、かきくけこ、さしすせそ) by watching the video below and practice spelling them 5+ times each in a notebook. I recommend going through each letter 5+ times in one row of your notebook before moving onto the next letter in the next row.
   Until 2:40 in the following video: Writing Hiragana – Stroke Order

(1 hour)

1. Review the hiragana charts.
   Hiragana Chart 1
   Hiragana Chart 2
2. Listen and practice the Hiragana song.
3. Review the stroke order & sound of the first 15 primary hiragana characters by watching the video below and practice spelling them 5+ times each in your notebook. (あいうえお、かきくけこ、さしすせそ）
   Until 2:40 in the following video: Writing Hiragana – Stroke Order

(1 hour)

1. Review the hiragana charts.
   Hiragana Chart 1
   Hiragana Chart 2
2. Listen and practice the Hiragana song.
3. Study the stroke order & sound of the 16th ~30th primary hiragana characters (たちつてと、なにぬねの、はひふへほ) by watching the video below and practice spelling them 5+ times each on paper again with a different color. For example, if you used a black pencil yesterday, use a blue pen today.
   From 2:42 in the following video: Writing Hiragana – Stroke Order

(1 hour)

1. Review the hiragana charts.
   Hiragana Chart 1
   Hiragana Chart 2
2. Listen and practice the Hiragana song.
3. Study the stroke order & sound of the 16th ~30th primary hiragana characters (たちつてと、なにぬねの、はひふへほ) by watching the video below and practice spelling them 5+ times each on paper again with a different color. For example, if you used a black pencil yesterday, use a blue pen today.
   From 2:42 in the following video: Writing Hiragana – Stroke Order

Congratulations, you are halfway through the self-course! By now, you should feel comfortable doing the following:

• Be able to read the 46 primary hiragana (recognize the letters and sounds)
• Sing along with the hiragana song
• Beginning familiarity with writing the 30 primary hiragana letters あいうえお、かきくけこ、さしすせそ, たちつてと、なにぬねの、はひふへほ

If there is an area you do not feel comfortable doing make sure you are going back to the lesson and review!

(1 hour)

1. Review the hiragana charts.
   Hiragana Chart 1
   Hiragana Chart 2
2. Listen and practice the Hiragana song.
3. Study the stroke order & sound of the last 16 primary hiragana characters (まみむめも、やゆよ、らりるれろ、わをん）by watching the video below and practice spelling them 5+ times each in your notebook
   From 5:38 in the following video: Writing Hiragana – Stroke Order

(1 hour)

1. Review the hiragana charts.
   Hiragana Chart 1
   Hiragana Chart 2
2. Listen and practice the Hiragana song.
3. Study the stroke order & sound of the last 16 primary hiragana characters by watching the video below and practice spelling them 5 times each in your notebook with a different color: for example, if you used a black pencil yesterday, use a blue pen today. (まみむめも、やゆよ、らりるれろ、わをん）
   From 5:38 in the following video: Writing Hiragana – Stroke Order

(1.5 hours)

1. Review the hiragana charts.
   Hiragana Chart 1
   Hiragana Chart 2
2. Listen and practice the Hiragana song.
3. Make 46 flashcards for the 46 primary hiragana characters (the hiragana letter on one side and the English on the other side) and study them until you can read at least 30 characters without looking at the English alphabet cue at the back of each card
   Study tip: Practice in a short time but multiple times: practice before and after breakfast, before and after lunch, and before and after dinner, total 6 times

(1.5 hours)

1. Review the hiragana charts.
   Hiragana Chart 1
   Hiragana Chart 2
2. Listen and practice the Hiragana song.
3. Study hiragana あ~ん with the flash cards again until you can read at least 40 characters without looking at the English alphabet cue at the back of each card.
   Study tip: Practice in a short time but multiple times: practice before and after breakfast, before and after lunch, and before and after dinner, total 6 times
4. Practice hiragana あ~ん recognition with the following online game
   Hiragana Drag and Drop game (instructions at bottom of link)

(1 hour)

1. Review the hiragana charts.
   Hiragana Chart 1
   Hiragana Chart 2
2. Listen and practice the Hiragana song.
3. Study hiragana あ~ん with the flash cards again until you can read all 46 of the primary characters without looking at the English alphabet cue at the back of each card.
   Study tip: Practice in a short time but multiple times: practice before and after breakfast, before and after lunch, and before and after dinner, total 6 times
4. Practice hiragana あ~ん recognition with the following online game
   Hiragana Drag and Drop game (instructions at bottom of link)

(1.5 hours)

1. Review the hiragana charts.
   Hiragana Chart 1
   Hiragana Chart 2
2. Listen and practice the Hiragana song.
3. Study hiragana あ~ん with the flash cards again until you can read all 46 of the primary characters without looking at the English alphabet cue at the back of each card.
   Study tip: Practice in a short time but multiple times: practice before and after breakfast, before and after lunch, and before and after dinner, total 6 times
4. Practice hiragana あ~ん recognition with the following online game
   Hiragana Drag and Drop game (instructions at bottom of link)
5. Practice hiragana あ~ん recognition with the following online game
   Hiragana Drag and Drop game (instructions at bottom of link)

(30 minutes)

Try taking the self-assessments (time yourself) as if you are taking a real quiz. Try to take the assessments closed-book. It may help to take the assessment multiple times if you received a grade below 90%.

1. Hiragana Benchmark 1 Self Assessment (with clue box, top of page)
2. Hiragana Benchmark 2 Self Assessment (without clue box, bottom of page)

Congratulations, you have completed the self-course! By now, you should feel comfortable doing the following:

• Read 46 primary hiragana letters and sounds
• Sing along with the hiragana song
• Beginning familiarity with writing the 46 primary hiragana letters

If there is an area you do not feel comfortable doing make sure you are going back to the lesson and review!

Note: for those of you planning to take the placement assessment on May 20th, you will need to have at least a 90% passing rate on the material covered on Self-Assessment 1 (the assessment with the clue bank). You will need to have at least a 90% passing rate on the material covered by Self-Assessment 2 by the first day of class.

• Genki Hiragana Quiz
  Additional practice quiz for reading and writing to review the material covered in this course
• Genki Hiragana Chart with Sounds and Strokes
  Additional Hiragana chart with sounds and writing strokes
• Genki Hiragana Flashcards on Quizlet
  You will need to make an account on Quizlet to access the flashcards (you can make an account for free). Although written flashcards are highly recommended to help with your memory, having flashcards on the go to supplement your learning may be helpful