Theoretical and Largely Useless Refinements to the Classification System
I’ve been thinking a great deal about the classification system used in “Extensive Reading in Japanese” – it’s not that there’s anything wrong with it, it’s more that I’m never satisfied. The two major...
View ArticleGiving Up My Reliance on the Dictionary
I started trying out extensive reading over a year ago, but a dread of unknown words and a language learning sensibility shaped by training in intensive reading meant that I wasn’t really able to give...
View ArticleTranslated Books and the Extensive Reader
When I was at Powell’s picking up used books, many of the ones I bought were books that were translated from English – Murder on the Orient Express, Treasure Island. I’ve resolved to stop buying books...
View ArticleMy Tadoku Manifesto: Why I Started Extensive Reading And Why You Should...
I’ve been thinking about a post on Ryan Layman’s blog about how he recommends avoiding children’s books. It’s apparent I take precisely the opposite approach, but that post made me spend some time...
View ArticleAbout Word Counts
I forgot to mention one thing in yesterday’s manifesto: I keep track of my progress by the number of words I’ve read. My initial goal, like that of many other beginning extensive readers, is to read a...
View ArticleBuying books online, part 1 (of, undoubtedly, many)
One of the biggest problems with extensive reading for people studying Japanese is that having ample amounts of reading material is the cornerstone of the whole experience, but it’s hard to get that...
View ArticleThe Benefits Of Reading Without A Dictionary
“Don’t use a dictionary when you’re reading” is the first of the three extensive reading principles my friends told me about — and yet it took me months to stop using one. I rationalized it, telling...
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Tadoku and Vocabulary Acquisition: Forcing Serendipity
I’ve written before how three months of reading without a dictionary was necessary for me to develop the ability to quickly figure out words from context; as it happens, it also took me about three...
View ArticleOrdering New And Used Japanese Children’s Books Online
Ordering New Books Ordering new books is a pretty straightforward process, but the price you’ll pay can vary wildly: I’ve listed four options here, and for the record I’d probably go with Kinokuniya...
View ArticleTadoku Is For Everyone!
One thing I worry about, as the tadoku contest becomes more popular, is that beginners will take a look at who’s participating and what many of the top scorers are reading, and conclude that tadoku is...
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