にほんごですよ。

Japan Day June 3rd

2007-05-31T23:20:00.000-04:00

今週の日曜日、6月3日にセントラルパークでジャパンデーがあるそうです。
まだニューヨークにいる人は行きましょう！

http://www.japandaynyc.org/

What is a good narrative writing?

2007-02-26T02:37:00.000-05:00

What are the qualities/elements of good narrative writing? Name some in comments in English.

If possible make reference to "Matches."　What are the strengths of this piece and what might be the possible areas of improvement?

法隆寺（ほうりゅうじ）

2007-02-26T02:33:00.000-05:00

きょうかしょで法隆寺（ほうりゅうじ）について読みましたね。
法隆寺は　せかいで　いちばん　古い　木のたてものですが、ほうりゅうじのCMを見つけました。

JRという　しんかんせんのかいしゃの　テレビのCMの中にほうりゅうじがありました。

一瞬にして　　飛鳥の時代に　引き戻されるようです
（いっしゅんにして　あすかのじだいに　ひきもどされるようです）

斑鳩　法隆寺
（いかるが　ほうりゅうじ）

「和をもって　貴しとなす」
（わをもって　とおとしとなす）

ここから　生まれた　日本人の　心は　
（ここから　うまれた　にほんじんの　こころは）

今の世の人にこそ　大切なのかもしれません
（いまのよのひとにこそ　たいせつなのかもしれません）

今　再びの　奈良へ
（いま　ふたたびの　ならへ）

このCMで見に行きたくなりますか。

ハーバードの新しい学長（がくちょう）

2007-02-16T17:19:00.000-05:00

今週の火曜日（2月13日）に、ドリュー・ギルピン・ファウストがハーバード大学の新しい学長になりました。学長（がくちょう）は大学でいちばん上の人です。会社（かいしゃ）のいちばん上の人は社長（しゃちょう）ですね。その「長（ちょう）」とおなじ漢字（かんじ）です。

えー、すみません、じつはファウストはほんとうには今年の7月1日に学長になります。だから、まだ学長じゃありませんが、ハーバード大学がファウストをえらびました。「えらびます」はえいごで、chooseです。

ハーバードは371年前からありますが、はじめてのおんなの人の学長だとききました。すごいですね。

ハーバードの前の学長のローレンス・サマーズは2年前に「おんなの人はかがく（science)のしごとの上のポジション（position)のしごとをもらうことができない。それは、たぶんおんなのひとのDNAがちがうからだ。」といいました。大きなもんだいになりました。

だから、わたしは新しい学長はたぶんおんなの人になるとおもいました。それはほんとうになりました。

「おんなの人だから学長になった」とおもう人は少なくないから、私はファウストさんのしごとはたいへんだとおもいます。そして、「はじめての何かの人」はたいへんですね。

ファウストさんは「私はハーバード大学学長です。おんなのハーバード大学学長じゃありません（"I'm not the woman president of Harvard, I'm the president of Harvard."）」といいました。そうですね。

ファウストさんはいい学長になるでしょうか。プレッシャー(pressure)がたくさんあってたいへんでしょうね。でもきっとなるでしょう。

CNNのニュースは　ここ　でよむことができます。

にちようび

2007-02-05T11:00:00.000-05:00

日曜日にクイーンズで　ともだちとローラー・ホッケーをしました。朝９時半から、１２時半ごろまでしました。とてもさむかったから、はじめは　なかなか　からだが　うごきませんでした。（うごきますto move）

すこしして、からだが　あたたかく　なりました。でも、やすむ　ことが　できませんでした。やすむと（when I rested）、すぐにさむくなりましたから。

ホッケーをしてから、だいがくの　ともだちに　あいました。いっしょにフラッシングのかんこくりょうりのレストランへいきました。あまりやすくありませんでしたが、とてもおいしかったです。

そのともだちは、ロングアイランドのポートワシントンにすんでいます。きょねん日本から　きましたが、きのうはじめてあいました。そのともだちは、月曜日から金曜日までよるの１０時までかいしゃでしごとをしていて、とてもいそがしかったです。そして私もロングアイランドへなかなかいきませんから。

そのともだちは　４がつからカナダのトロントへ　いかなければなりません。ひっこしがおおくてたいへんですね。

>>>>>
Rikaichan dictionary for Firefox
を使っていますか。とても便利ですよ。
ブラウザーはFirefoxを使わなければなりませんが、Rikaichanはとてもいいです。

Typing
ちいさい「つ」 repeat the consonant
　とってください。totte kudasai.

「ん」 nn
　ほんをよんで　hon(n) o yonde

ブログをはじめましょう！

2007-01-31T15:38:00.000-05:00

みなさん！

As I told you before, we'll try blogging in Japanese this semester.

But why?

Here are some reasons.

1. It's fun.

It might be intimidiating at the beginning but once you know that you can communicate so much in Japanese, it'll be fun. I hope so. I hope you hope so, too.

2. It gives you a chance to use your Japanese with other Japanese users (native or non-native; in Japan or anywhere) for real purposes.

What's the point of learning a language, if you are not goint to use it? Use Japanese to communicate with other Japaense learners in this class, other classes on our campus or other schools, "REAL" Japanese people in Japan (or anywhere else) who are not Japanese teacher like me.

3. You learn.
That's why you are here, right? You learn from your classmates, other bloggers, readers to your blog, readers to others' blog, etc. Actually you learn from yourself, too. As you write, you might discover things that you were not previously aware of...

Let me know when you think of more reasons...

Requirement:なにを　しなければなりませんか。

0. Know some common sense (I think you are all mature enough to know these. But to be safe, here's some.)

Be aware of risks on the internet including identity theft. Avoid using your real name or other personal information.

Be respectful and polite to others. When your classmates read your blog and leave you a comment, thank them in person or in the commenting section on your blog entry (by leaving a reply to their comment). You can also visit their blog and read (and maybe leave a comment), too.

Don't reveal others' sensitive information such as secret (dirty or not dirty), embarrassing stories, or anything that might harm their reputation or at risk.

Refrain from using abusive language.

１．じぶんのブログを　つくる。
Follow the directions（ブログのつくりかた） below.

２．ブログを　いっしゅうかんに　いちど　かく。
1st post is due by the end (midnight) of Sunday, 2/4.

３．ほかのひとのブログをよむ。
Regularly read classmates' blogs. You might find some of them more interesting than others. But, do try to at least scan what they wrote.

Email URL to me as well as the helpdesk.
I will link your blog to this classblog. You can follow those links or you can use your RSS reader(or aggregator). What is RSS reader?

４．コメントをかく。
If you find your classmate's blog post interesting, you have something to add, you want to ask a question for clarification or for any reason, you can leave a comment.

５．コメントの　へんじ(reply)を　かく
When you get a comment, try to reply to the comment. If you don't reply, they might be discouraged to come back and read your posts again because they might feel they were ignored.

ブログのつくりかた
1) Go to http://www.blogger.com to open your blog.

Select "Setting"s from the top tabs. Click "Formatting" and select "Universal" for "Encoding" so that you can type Japanese.
In order to receive comments from as many people as possible, please select "Comments" and choose "Anyone" for "Who can comment" section.
If you want to know how to type Japanese, please click any of these links listed below and on the right side.

2) Send your blog address to the helpdesk (helpjpcu@gmail.com) and me.

If you have trouble opening a new account, please let me know.
If you already have a blog and if you can use Japanese (e.g., you opened a blog last semester in my class), you do not have to open a new account.

3) Post a blog entry once a week. The first entry is due Sunday, 2/4 .
Let's all introduce yourself in Japanese.

You can answer such questions as

どうして　にほんごを　べんきょうして　いますか。
しごとを　していますか。
せんもん（せんこう）は　なんですか。
なにが　すきですか。
やすみの　ひに　なにを　しますか。
しゅみ　が　ありますか。
どこから　きましたか。
にほんや　がいこくへ　いったことが　ありますか。
いま　なにが　しりたいですか。
いま　なにが　ほしいですか。

There is NO requirement for how long it should be. You can edit as many times as you wish.

What if you have grammar mistakes?
Try your best to be accurate as possible so that your readers will understand. But there is no penalty per se for making mistakes.

wimba　スピーチのフィードバック

2006-12-12T12:52:00.000-05:00

みなさん、

「２０ねんごのわたし」のスピーチをWimbaにいれましたね。みんなよくできました。
みんなからのフィードバックをコピーします。

8 SoEun san:
-She sounded like she had good pronunciation.
-Her accent sounds like a native speaker's, at least to my ears
-Sakubun ga totemo suki desu. ichiban ryuuchou(?) desu kara, hanashikata wa yokute hayai desu ne? watashi wa urayamashii desu.
-I feel she really memorized the entire sakubun. Most prepared one. But a little harder than Elizabeth san's to comprehend.
-This composition is read effortlessly. It doesn't seem like SoEun　san has any difficult with the pronunciation. It sounds almost as natural as the voice files from language lab. In addition, the composition is grammatically accurate (as far as I can deduce). It is the most flawless piece.
-Humorous at several points and good command of the language
-Because she also was fluent...just sounded very "Japanese" as in like a native…
-(no reason)

7 Melissa san:
-Because she uses a lot of te form and a variety of verbs
-Because I thought her speech had a good flow, was easy to understand, and did not have any mistakes or unusual pauses. I thought it sounded natural and was kind of funny at some points where her speech was elevated.
-Ryuuchou desu kara, sakubun mo suki desu. desukara.... urayamashii desu.
-Because the intonation is very clear, and she uses a lot of 'te' forms!
-Good pronunciation- I think?
-Because she has expression in her reading and is very fluent (probably after all those practice runs)
-(no reason)

Dario san:　7 ひょう
- I thought his was hilarious. Funny and enjoyable listening.
-(no reason)
-The speech was funny.
-Because he said to vote for him and also because i thought his idea of being president was pretty clever.
-Because I liked the way he pretended he was really addressing a crowd & he must have practiced a lot because his intonation was pretty good
-Seikatsu wa ichiban omoshiroi desu kara. shigoto wa daitouryou desu yo! watashi wa urayamashii desu.
-This composition was one of the most original. It took a rather playful approach to the assignment, assuming the position of the president of the United States, but still managed to be effective. It is probably the most engaging and enjoyable to listen to.

4 Jaz san
-I also like Jasmina's, even though it was quite long, because it was interesting. She spoke about Japan, and it was believeable. She also justifies a lot of her statements by including a lot of details such as saying why she doesn't want children. She also opened and closed it as if she was in a conversation, which made it more familiar.
-To my untrained ear, the way she speaks sounds very Japanese. I also think it's cool that she says she's going to be living in Japan, because I think that's probably what I'll do once I'm finished with law school.
-A very detailed and lively performance.
-(no reason)

3 Ben San:
-I like his contents the best.
-Besides intonation and stresses, he read pretty naturally, speed-wise
-Because I thought his was interesting because of the things he said he wants to do in the future (buy and learn to fly an airplane).

2 Gregg san:
-I like his, even though the sound of the system made it very scratchy in the beginning. I like his because he attracted my attention by asking questions about his future in the beginning and in the middle. And was able to talk about the future in the present tense; something I didn’t even think about.
-I voted for him because I liked his introduction (how he asked questions first) which made it sound more like a speech.

2 Ifan san
-He used a lot of the vocabulary words, good negative forms, and his life sounds very comfortable
-Because I thought his speed was pretty natural and the composition was interesting

2 Liz san
- Very fluent. Not much of hesitation when speaking.Clear to understand.
-Because her reading very clean (as in each character pronounced) and fluent. she might want to slow down a bit though.

2 Margo san
-(no reason)
- I thought hers was probably the easiest for me to understnad.

1 Penny san
-Though this composition had a few errors, it had a good progression. The story flowed naturally. In addition, I like the realism of this composition. For example, she mentioned having a small apartment because she didn't have too much money. Realism didn't make the piece depressing, though. There are plenty of enjoyable aspects of her life in 20 years, such as going to the ocean with her dog.

1 Pedro san.
-Because I felt his speech was the most fleunt and easiest to understand

はい、じゃあ、おわります。
またらいねん、あいましょう。
あ、そのまえに、きまつしけん（Final)がありますね。
がんばってください。

わたしのおもいで（memory)

2006-11-20T10:06:00.000-05:00

Let's try decribing something you remember.
It can be a thing , person, or place.

れい：わたしのホームステイのせいかつ
わたしは　こうこうせいのとき、はじめて　カナダへ　ホームステイを　しに　いきました。「こうこうせい」は、えいごでhigh school studentです。はじめは　えいごが　あまり　わかりませんでしたから、　ちょっと　たいへんでした。いつも　じしょを　みました。

わたしの　ホストファミリーの　かぞくは、　とても小さい　むら　に　いました。そこは、まちじゃありません。「むら」はえいごでvillageです。Mornighside Heights よりずっと小さかったです。

そのむらに、５００人ぐらいだけいました。とてもすくなかったです。でも、むらのひとは　みんな　しんせつで　いい人でした。95％ぐらいの人は　モルモンでした。わたしのかぞくも　モルモンでした。モルモンですから、コーヒーはのみません。おちゃものみません。わたしは　おちゃが　のみたかったですが、　一ねん　ぜんぜん　のみませんでした。

ホストファミリーの　うちは　ぼくじょうでした。「ぼくじょう」はえいごで　ranchです。わたしも　ときどき　てつだいました。ふゆは　さむくて、hayがありませんでしたから、ホストファミリーの　きょうだいと　いっしょに　まいにち　うしに　baleをあげました。

ちょっとたいへんでしたが、たくさんえいごをべんきょうしましたから、いいせいかつでした。

Maybe once again, I wrote a little too long. I might say that I should have focused on one aspect of my life there. But it gives you an idea of what it can be, right?

Deadline 11月27日（月）

Reflection

2006-10-26T11:10:00.000-04:00

みなさん、

By the time you read this, you probably have taken the midterm.
Since it's good time to look back at your first half of this semester,
why don't we just do that?

For this week's post, the topic is about yourself as a learner.
-Describe one thing you did pretty well in this class; something you feel you are proud to have done. It could be large or small.
-Describe one thing you could try to work on; something you are having trouble with; something you need help with, something you wish it weren't the way it is.
-State how you intend to learn from this course for the rest of the semester.
-Write in English.

So you can be honest to yourself, why don't we be all annonymous?
Don't use your name you've been using. Find some nickname just for this week.

If at all possible, try to be supportive to others in class. Share your concerns, ideas, tips so you can learn better in this course.

Deadline for this post is 十月三十一日（火）.

わたしのにほん（じん）のともだち

2006-10-18T06:03:00.000-04:00

みなさん、

こんしゅうのトピックは、「わたしのにほん（じん）のともだち・かぞく」です。

Pick one person, a friend or a family member, who is Japanese or someone that you would use Japanese langauge with or do things Japanese together. So it could be your roommate who is from New Jersey and likes Japanese food, or your classmate from Japan, for example.

Describe that person, and how you do things Japanese (speaking the language, watching anime togetehr and such).

Please post by 10月23日（月）。

では。

Leftover Rice Workshop

2006-10-12T13:43:00.000-04:00

Japan society は　あした（10/13）　Leftover Rice Workshopをしますよ。

Take-out containers piling up? Made too much food with that 10-cup
rice cooker your parents got you? From furikake to ochazuke, onigiri and
more, CJS is going to show you what to do with all that leftover rice!

Join us in our Leftover Rice Workshop this Friday from 7-10pm in the
Broadway lounge! Get tutorials on how to turn dry leftover rice into
culinary masterpieces and taste our rice creations! (Read: free food!)

Date: Friday, October 13th, 2006
Time: 7:00-10:00 PM
Location: Broadway Sky Lounge

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/japansociety/events.htm

わたしのまいにち

2006-10-12T08:32:00.000-04:00

みなさん、

こんしゅうは　にほんごで　わたしの　まいにちを　かきましょう。

れい：
わたしはまいにち　６じはんに　おきます。
それから　むすめと　つまと　あさごはんを　たべます。
つまは　７じはんに　つまのがっこうへ　いきます。
8じはんに　むすめと　むすめの　がっこうへ　いきます。
むすめは　ストローラーで、わたしは　あるいて　いきます。
ときどき　むすめも　あるきます。

それから　だいがくへ　きます。
にほんごの　クラスを　おしえます。　
ごごに　また　むすめのがっこうへ　いきます。それから　いっしょに　かえります。

かようびとすいようびには　わたしの　ティーチャーズカレッジの　クラスへいきます。
ネットフリックスで　DVDを　かります。
しゅうまつ（weekend)に　ときどき　つまと　いっしょに　みます。

きょうは　もくようび　ですね。
つまは　まいしゅう　もくようびには　グレイズアナトミーをみます。
わたしも　ときどき　みます。

でも、まいばん　むすめと　いっしょに　ほんを　よみます。
よく　アンパンマンを　よみます。

>>>>
Once again, maybe I wrote too long.
Just write what you can and want to write that relates to the theme of わたしのまいにち.

Try writing in Japanese, consult links from previous post (How to type in Japanese )
ask your classmates, friends, me, or whoever you can find.

If your computer is not capable of typing Japanese, you can go to the language lab in Lewisohn.
Their PCs are multi language ready.

But if you still can't frigure it out, type in romaji.

Feel free to comment to others' posts as well.
Also, feel free to suggest a topic for next week via email, blog posts, or in person.

Deadline is Monday, 10/16.

Tokyo Fiesta

2006-10-10T11:32:00.000-04:00

Tokyo Fiesta
とうきょうは　ニューヨークへ　きます。

じかん：　10/27(土）　１：００－７：００
　　　　　10/28（日）　９：００－７：００

ばしょ：　Grand Central Terminal-Vanderbilt Hall

http://www.tokyofiesta.com/index.html

How to type Japanese

2006-10-03T10:01:00.000-04:00

Some of you asked how to type Japanese on the web.

Basically if you have Windows, you have to install East Asian fonts first and change some settings in the conrol pannel. If you have Mac, probably very similar but I honestly don't know. I found some links (below).

Links for Windows users
http://www.nihongo-ok.com/method/011113_winxp1.htm

http://www.mnstate.edu/it/labs/LanguagesFiles/languages/japanese-keyboard-help.htm

http://www.autopenhosting.org/unicode/type-Japanese.html

http://www.msu.edu/%7Ebellbri2/ime.html

Links for Mac users
http://redcocoon.org/cab/mysoft.html

http://library.wcc.hawaii.edu/Computers/Tips_Japanese_Input.pdf#search=%22related%3Alibrary.wcc.hawaii.edu%2FComputers%2FTips_Japanese_Input.pdf%22

わかりました。

2006-10-02T17:46:00.000-04:00

For this week's topic, let's hear about instances where you could actually read, hear something in Japanese outside our class. Or you made someone understand with your Japanese.　So わかりました could be "(わたしは）わかりました。"　or "（someone elseは）わかりました。"

Let me share mine with you.

きのう　エッサベーグルへ　いきました。エッサベーグルはイーストサイドの51ちょうめと　3rd　アヴェニューです。When we went in, the guy at the counter looked at us, and asked "こんにちは？" He asked if we were Japanese by saying the greeting with a rising intonation. We got the bagels and creemcheese and came back to the checkout counter. The man said どうもありがとう（I don't remember if he said ございます afterwards...)。　Then he said, "また　きます。"

また is again. So it was "(You) come again." Because it didn't have "てください" form, it wasn't "(Please) come again."

Of course I could guess he meant to say "Come again." I had an urge to tell him that he should say "また　きてください," but I held it back, my professional/personal obsession to teach...　Contrary to his expectation, I didn't say anything in Japanese. Maybe I should have to make him feel good about himeself speaking Japanese to us. But then I again, I didn't know what to say. If I said anything too long, he wouldn't have understood. And the awkwardness would have continued.

But then again, I do the same thing. I say "Bona cera" to one of the staff in my building just because he is from Italy. It's just a friendly gesture and my naive use of the language.

It doesn't have to be entertaining (mine certainly isn't...) or anything, this is just an example to get you started. Maybe I wrote too much. It can be shorter.

Let's say your deadline for your post is by this Friday.
Also, please feel free to comment on each others' post.

hiroshi

Torii

2006-10-02T17:41:00.000-04:00

みなさん、

Gregg さん mentioned torii in class today. If you are interested, you can check out these entries.
Torii 1, torii 2.

コメントへのコメント２

2006-09-29T19:02:00.000-04:00

Ok, so here's my late comment you made in the entry.

>OilCanBoy さんのコメント...
I can imagine why your mother insisted English only rule at your home. This issue of language development in bilingual environment is interesting to me both as a teacher and a parent....

I admire your decision to take this course even though you have tons of other responsibilities. It's a lot of work for a course that you are not requited to. I hope you make the best out of it.
You mentioned journal work, is it that you are a journalist also? And good luck for your interviews.

>kyasarin さん
Yes, it is a lot for "just for fun." It might not be so useful to know now, but you could have taken Elementary Japanese A in spring which is a 2.5 course and covers up to lesson 8. But it's great that you are taking this course with us. It is time consuming/tough/ etc but you will learn a lot. I hope it will be a nice experience for you in the end.

>anohito さん
Nice nickname. You mentioned Japan's influence on American culture. Why do you think that is? I mean why is it so? Sometimes it's puzzling to me. For example, why would there be Grudge 2 coming here? I just don't understand.

>paul さん
Hawaii is an interesting place where Japanese is not quite a minority and many things from Japan are somehow now integrated part of Hawaii. Or so it seemed to me. An example is SPAM onigiri which blew my mind.

Japanese books or movies, do you have any favorite kinds?

>Soeunさん
Yes, Japanese is very similar to Korean in grammar, vocabulary, etc.
Someone from Korea who studies linguistics told me that sometimes, even if you are Korean, you can't tell if a word is originally Korean or Japanese. A word could have been borrowed by Korean but because it's been there so long everybody thinks it's Korean.

Arashi? I've heard of them. Kimura Takuya, of course. SMAP never seems to run out of gas.

みなさんへのコメントのコメント

2006-09-29T12:07:00.000-04:00

Dear learners,

Thanks for the sharing your story behind learning Japanese in the comment section in the previous entry.

I have to say I really enjoyed reading them. Yes, you had to fill student information sheet on the first day of class and I read those, too but what you wrote on the last blog entry was far more revealing. It's like there was your voice, more or less, and I could hear you, well almost.

If you haven't read what others wrote, please read them through.
My hope is that learning more about each other will contribute to form positive / supportive learning environment for all of you.

I thought I should comment back to your comments but if I did it in the previous entry it will be really long so I think I'll do it here in a new entry.

By the way, it's cool some of you can type in Japanese already. We can try that later, if you are interested.
>Gregさん
Maybe you know it already but there is a course focused on reading taught by Sato sensei.
It is a course for those who have finished 3rd Year Japanese. One way to take it as soon as possible is to do study in a summer program for the 2nd Year then next year, in 2007-2008, take the 3rd Year Japanese. But obviously your background in Chinese should help tremendously along the way.

>Tonkatsu さん,
When I started learning English I wished I could watch movies withour the subtitles. I didn't happen overnight but gradually I began to be able to pick up a word, phrases, sentences. I think it is both motivating and effective way to learn a language.

About the heritage that you have, it just makes me think about the consequences of the actions taken by our former government and how I relate to that.

>koさん
It's interesting to hear you say that Japanese is cooler sounding language. I, as a native speaker of the language, can't ever objectively hear Japanese as a foreign language. So I think it's just interesting to imagine how it might sound to speakers of other languages....

One of your favorite movies is in Japanese? Which one is it? Maybe someone else in the class has seen it, too.

>Liz さん

Wow, so Japanese is really a part of your career plans. That is great!
Environmental issues are definitely global issues and something Japan has had for long time since the 1970's. And, yes the connection with that generation.

>Pedro さん: I
Yes, if you know the language, you would be able to interact with/participate in the culture. You mentioned in class that you were interested in going to Kyoto with KCJS program. There are other programs listed here. I think we will have another information session on study abroad program on 11/10(F). (By the way, there will be one for not Study abroad but Japanese government-sponsored English teacher program (JET program) on 10/20 (F).)

> Jazz/ヤスミナさん
You have multiple interests in Japan. Appearance in Japanese fashion magazine sure told me you were interested in modern pop culture, or one element of it but you have more. Lucky you to be here and able to take courses in history. I would be interested in taking them except I'm a bit scared to do that on top of the coursework I'm doing in TC....

And what a linguist you are to be interested in learning 20 languages. I think you can say that learning Kanji in Japanese will help you learn Chinese better because believe or not more than half of Japanese vocabulary is Chinese origin. Well, I should say words (compound words, to be more precise) made of words written by kanji. They sound very different because they were taken from different dialects and at different era but there is some systematic correspondence, so it should help you a bit.

>kaoru さんのコメント...

Ten years ahead of you? In terms of what? Declining birth rate? Hmmmm. But I can imagine you will be going to Japan to study for sure. There is KCJS and summer programs as I mentioned above in my comment to Pedro san.

Speaking of doctor, one of my students was interested in why so many female doctors who must have worked so hard to be a doctor quit after certain years of practice. She said she would be going to Japan this summer to do some research on that. I wonder how she is doing....She also has Japanese family members.

> Nathalie ：ナタリさん

Korean and Japanese share so much similarities, indeed. Grammar (word order, use of particles, counters, politeness language) influence of Chinese, vocabulary. Actually there has been a boom in Japan for Korean culture (music, TV drama) and more and more people are learning Korean in Japan, too.

> Shimokita さんのコメント...

I think it could be exciting to see how your own resources from exposure and casual learning to Japanese would be reconstructed through learning it formally. I'm sorry it's my interest in second language acquisition babling...

You know, come to think of it I have a friend, well he was a undergraduate student here but lived there for a couple of years and came back and almost finishing law school in Toronto. And I think he said he already has a position or position waiting for him to practice in Japan....He said he would be coming to the Chat Club on 10/6. So maybe you could talk to him then.

Well, this is taking me longer than I thought...
Sumimasen ga, I think I'll write another entry to finish what I started.

こんしゅうの　どようびの　コンサート

2006-09-28T02:23:00.000-04:00

Dear learners,

どようび、あ、あしたですね。
そのコンサートのリンクです。
http://music.newyork-tokyo.com/index.html

コンサートは２じからです。
セントラルパークのRumsey Playfield(East 69th and East Drive)です。

I just thought I should leave you a link for it. Maybe you could find something interesting.

hiroshi

にほんごのクラスのブログ

2006-09-15T11:50:00.000-04:00

Dear learners,

This blog is for our First Year Japanese class. The purpose of the blog is to foster communication among classmates and to provide support for each other as learners. We can do so by sharing your experience, tips, insights regarding learning Japanese and by encouraging and helping each other.

Participation in this blog is part of the "participation" in the course.
But you will not be graded for not writing the right answer. In fact, there will probably no right answer (or comments) for all the things we might talk about.

As this blog is open to the world, please be mindful of protection of your own and others' identity and other sensitive information. Consider using an alias (or nickname) instead of UNI or your real name. If you choose to use your real name, use only one name (not both first and last name) and at your own risk.

Also, be considerate to others in class and act like one. I 'm sure you will, but just to be safe.

So here's what we are going to do. Once a week or so, a topic will be posted on this blog.
Then you will leave a comment on the post.

For this week, tell us why you study Japanese.
Leave a brief comment on why you choose to study Japaense this fall by 12:00 pm, Monday 9/25.

Hiroshi (Yes, I'm using a pseudonym.)