As in all things language learning, what’s most important is that you have a habit that you can stick to.
It doesn’t really matter if you watch your movies all the way until the end. Spend a little time each day reviewing and watching more. If you’re going to study through movies, commit to it.
Throw in word lists, similarly interactive transcripts and post-video reviews, and you’ve got a well-rounded lesson in each video.įluentU can be accessed in your browser or through the iOS and Android apps. Interactive quizzes integrate video, audio, images and text for a complete learning experience, and “speaking questions” let you practice your speaking skills, as well.
It tops this off with a review system that takes full advantage of the video library. You can replay any sentence as many times as you need, toggle Japanese, romaji and English subtitles on or off at will and add any word to your flashcards right from the video player. It features interactive captions with contextual, on-demand definitions and a video player designed for learning Japanese. The program lets you focus on learning Japanese, rather than managing your flashcards or looking things up in the dictionary. If you’d like to be more efficient, you can use FluentU, which was designed to address exactly this problem. You’ll spend a lot of time and energy organizing your learning, rather than actually learning. Whenever you encounter a new word, you’ll have to identify the sound and look it up in your dictionary. The disadvantage of this method is that it requires a ton of discipline. This involves looking up new words, getting a solid grasp of how they’re used, and regularly reviewing them, either in your notebook or through a flashcard app. Otherwise, you’re going to be stopping the movie a lot. I recommend this for intermediate or advanced Japanese learners. Perhaps the most effective (but most intense) way to study is to fully digest and review every word. For example, you can watch a scene at a time, going back and playing it until you have a handle on what the characters are saying. Movies aren’t as much fun to watch when you’re confused about what’s going on.Īfter a first viewing with subtitles, you can watch the movie again without them or break it up into chunks. There are a number of different ways to go about studying with movies.Īs I mentioned before, you may want to go with subtitles the first time you watch a film so that you’re not completely lost within the first five minutes. When learning is fun, you’re naturally more motivated to keep studying.Īnd finally, you learn about Japanese culture. If you really want to communicate and connect with Japanese speakers, then it really helps to know more about Japanese film. While you’re practicing listening comprehension and expanding your vocabulary, you’re also enjoying a good flick. You can start and stop wherever you’d like and you can have subtitles if you need them so that you’re not completely lost. Thanks to the miracle of DVDs, you don’t have to rewind or fast-forward and you have total control over the viewing experience. The wonders of our technological age make it easier than ever to learn through movies. You may also get different sets of vocabulary, depending on what kind of film you’re watching.
You’re exposed to different accents, registers, styles and ways of speaking.
Movies also give you a wide variety speakers to listen to. This includes gestures, facial expressions, conversational etiquette, and social customs and that are also part of a language. You get to see the language in context, which leads to a deeper understanding of it. Or at least the way it’s spoken in movies, but that’s real enough. There are several advantages to learning a language through movies rather than textbooks.įirst of all, you’re learning real, natural Japanese the way it’s actually spoken. (Download) Why Learn Languages through Movies and Films?
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