In your study of the Japanese languageHave you ever thought “I want to learn how to speak Japanese quickly. or I want to speak Japanese fluently”?You study Japanese grammar and vocabulary every day, but when you try speaking in Japanese, the words and grammar you have learned don’t come out at all.Even if you have the opportunity to talk with Japanese people, you may have experienced that your mind goes blank and you are at a loss.I am sure that some of you have experienced this.If you feel that no matter how much you continue to study for your Japanese language skills, you are still unable to speak it, perhaps you are not learning enough to speak Japanese. In this article, I will tell you how to learn to speak Japanese, how to motivate yourself to learn to speak Japanese, and where and what resources you can actually talk to Japanese people. I decided to go to college in the U.S. when I could not speak English at all even though I studied English as my second language in middle and high school. I enrolled in and graduated from a college in the U.S. in about two years after doing a lot of trial and error on my own by researching various methods of learning a second language.Currently, I run an online Japanese language school and support many students who are learning Japanese, providing lessons to help students learn to speak Japanese quickly and giving them opportunities to interact with Japanese people in real life. 5 ways to learn to speak Japanese fluently I came to the conclusion that these 5 learning methods are necessary for learning to speak Japanese through my study of English, my second language, and through teaching Japanese to students who are actually learning Japanese. In this article, I will share them with you one by one. 1. Repeat words and phrases until you can speak them unconsciously over and over again First of all, the 1st way to learn to speak Japanese is to repeat words and phrases that you can surely speak over and over again so that you can speak them unconsciously.I have seen many students who focus only on understanding words and phrases and continue to study by simply reading and understanding a vocabulary book and that is it.No matter how much you can understand the meaning of the words when you study, you need to work on remembering the words and phrases you have learned over and over again in order to be able to recall them on an unconscious level from there. In particular, it is very effective to be able to visualize and feel Japanese words and phrases just by looking at them, without translating them back to your native language, so that you do not have to translate them from your native language to Japanese every time you speak Japanese.There is no need to memorize a lot of words and phrases. If you can concentrate on learning only the most commonly used words and phrases, you will be able to express your intentions to Japanese people with words even if you have not memorized grammar. Learning words and phrases that you can use unconsciously is the first step to learning to speak Japanese.We have created our original vocabulary books, which are designed to help you memorize words with images and example sentences. You can download them for free. Download a free vocabulary book verbs 100 + → 2. Remember sentence patterns until you can speak them unconsciously through repetition The 2nd way to learn to speak Japanese is to remember grammar and sentence patterns over and over again until they come up unconsciously and automatically.There are a number of grammar and sentence patterns in Japanese. By learning these patterns, you can easily create sentences by simply putting the words you have learned into the patterns.For example, in the Japanese passive form, there is a sentence pattern “Noun に Verb られる”. By learning this pattern, you can create sentences like this “こども (child) は はは (mother) におこられる(angry) by putting words into the sentence patterns.Your Japanese speaking level depends on how many of these sentence patterns you can use.However, you may find someone around you who seems to speak Japanese fluently. But in fact, that person is just using the same sentence patterns that the person has used and acquired over and over again. I myself use only a few English sentence patterns that I have learned when I speak English. You don’t have to memorize all the patterns, just a few that you can use with certainty will make you seem like a fluent Japanese speaker to others. 3. Create time to think only in Japanese and switch from your native language brain to a Japanese brain The 3rd way to learn to speak Japanese is to intentionally make time to think only in Japanese and switch your brain from your native language brain that you normally use to a Japanese brain.In your daily life, you always use your native language or a language you are familiar with, and you think in that language in your mind.In this situation, even if you try to speak Japanese, you will always translate your thoughts into your mind, and you will not have time to think only in Japanese. Therefore, at first, try to think only in Japanese for one minute, so that you can think about everything in Japanese only. A recommended training method is to say what you see around you in Japanese anyway or try to speak what you are thinking in Japanese, even if it is slowly. It may feel hard when you are not used to it, but you will feel growth as the amount of time you spend thinking and speaking only in Japanese. 4. Talking to yourself in Japanese and feedback by recording The 4th way to learn to speak Japanese is to record your own talking to yourself on a video or app and listen to it again by yourself and give feedback.For me, this training for speaking to myself was very useful for learning English, my second language.The process is very simple. First, you decide on a topic, and then you talk about it on camera or record yourself using an app and listen back to the recording.It is a good idea to start with a simple topic such as what happened today, your plans for the day, or something you enjoyed recently. As you get used to it, you can try topics for discussion or express your thoughts on news topics.And after practicing speaking to yourself, be sure to review the video or audio recording you took or made. Then, make a note of the parts you could not speak well, or the phrases you wanted to say but could not, and look them up as you make your sentences. By doing so, you will be able to focus on the expressions and words that you could not say, and you will be able to learn to speak Japanese more and more. 5. Get experience speaking with real Japanese people The last way to learn to speak Japanese is to get more experience speaking with real Japanese people.No matter how many vocabulary and sentence patterns you learn and how much you practice talking to yourself unless you talk to real Japanese people, you will not be able to assess whether or not your Japanese is understandable to native Japanese people.When I myself was studying English, I experienced that when I talked to an actual native English speaker, the phrases and grammar I had remembered were sometimes understood by him/her, and sometimes not. By doing so, you can build up your data like people don’t use this word in this situation, or you could communicate well in this way, and your Japanese will become closer to the native level.However, many Japanese learners may be wondering how to find opportunities to talk with actual Japanese people, so I will tell you about places and resources where you can actually communicate with Japanese people later on. Places where you can learn to speak Japanese with real Japanese people Many Japanese language learners are wondering how they can get more opportunities to talk with Japanese people when there are very few Japanese people in their area or country, they have no Japanese friends, and they are not able to study abroad. For those people, I would like to introduce 3 free places and resources where you can talk and interact with Japanese people in Japanese. Learn to speak Japanese at Ohanasi Kagawa Ohanasi Kagawa is our online Language Exchange event. The event is organized online on weekends and includes 2 one-on-one (or in groups depending on the number of participants) 15-minute sessions of Japanese and English conversation between Japanese people and Japanese language learners.Not only will you be able to have real conversations with Japanese people in Japanese, but you will also be able to have in-depth conversations with them by talking one-on-one.You will have time to speak only in English during each session, so you do not have to use Japanese all the time. Even if you are not confident in your Japanese, you can gently teach English to Japanese people, and they will kindly teach Japanese to you. Please refer to the website below for more information on how to participate. Ohanasi Kagawa website → Learn to speak Japanese at Meetup The Meetup.com website has a variety of Language Exchange events and groups where you can learn to speak Japanese. Ohanasi Kagawa, which we run, is listed on Meetup, but there are many other groups as well, so finding a Langauge Exchange group that suits you is a very effective way to learn to speak Japanese. If there are parties or events where you can interact with Japanese people in your area, you should actively participate. Meetup.com → Learn to speak Japanese at Hello talk HelloTalk is a very popular language exchange app that mainly uses chatting, so you can chat with Japanese people and even make phone calls.If you like chatting, I highly recommend this app. However, due to the time difference, some people may find it inconvenient to chat only, so if you want to focus on your speaking, we recommend you meet Japanese people in person and interact with them. HelloTalk → Ohanasi Japanese Language School for learning to speak Japanese How was this article? In order to be able to learn to speak Japanese, you should not just study Japanese without making the right effort to speak Japanese.If you are currently studying Japanese on your own and want to learn to speak Japanese, but you are having trouble improving your Japanese or you are wondering how you can become a Japanese speaker, please take a trial lesson at Ohanasi Japanese Language School.Our experienced school counselors will consult with you to determine the best learning method for you.For more information, please see the page below. Learn more about Ohanasi Japanese Language School →

In September 2018, Ohanasi Kagawa was born with the fundamental vitality of Aki’s frustration, despair, and discouragement as the representative of Ohanasi Kagawa, but a major turning point came in June 2020. It was June 2020 when COVID-19 began to spread in the United States, where I was living at the time, and many people were forced to be under house arrest. I wondered, “What can I do now that everyone is stuck in their homes and the mood is so gloomy?” As I was thinking about it, an idea came to my mind: “Yes, let’s start Ohanasi Kagawa online!” And so, with five Japanese friends and English speakers, we held our first Ohanasi Kagawa online event via Zoom. After that, when we announced the event in the U.S., many American learners of Japanese said, “I want to participate, too!” I realized that so many people in the U.S. were eager to talk with Japanese people. And one question remained in my mind. While many people in Japan, like myself, strongly desire to speak English with people from all over the world, many people in the world also desire to speak Japanese with people from Japan. “Why is there no place where people from Japan and the rest of the world, who are seeking each other out, can connect with each other in a safe and easy environment?” People who have been seeking each other but have been unable to meet can now meet online, transcending national borders! With this conviction, we have continued to hold events, and in less than a year, more than 2,000 participants from over 50 countries have joined Ohanasi Kagawa’s events. I saw great potential in Ohanasi Kagawa as a platform to connect people who love Japan and Japan-loving people around the world.

“I want to actually speak English with English speakers!” I googled “where to talk to English speakers” on the Internet and spent 30 minutes. I never dreamed that I would feel so much “frustration,” “despair,” and “discouragement. Why, you ask? Because I realized that no matter how much I looked on the Internet, there was no place nearby where I could casually talk and interact with English speakers. I went around to various places to gather information, but I could not find the kind of place I was looking where I could interact with English speakers in a casual and safe environment. * It is true that there are places in Japan where you can interact with English speakers, such as foreigner bars and international exchange parties, but these places were far away from my desire to “practice speaking”. What I want to do is not drink and have a good time with people from overseas. (To begin with, there are not many such places in my rural Kagawa Prefecture.) I was about to give up on the idea that it would be impossible for me to have an environment where I could speak English practically as long as I stayed in Japan. I was about to give up. At that time, I received an e-mail from a woman who was also studying English. She said, “Aki, I am also looking for a place to speak English, but I can’t find it. Could you please tell me where I can find a good place?” I was at a loss for words. I couldn’t find a place where I could speak English even though I had looked for a place where I could speak English by myself so much. “Let’s give up. As long as you stay in Japan, it is impossible to find a place where you can speak English.” I was so frustrated that I was about to tell her so. I wondered if I should leave the current situation in Japan as it was, that as long as I stayed in Japan, I would never have a chance to speak English. “No, I will not give up! If it’s not there, then I’ll make it myself!” So I gathered local English speakers and Japanese who were learning English in Kagawa Prefecture and started an event in the same way as Ohanasi Kagawa, which is now online, and that’s how it all started. And Ohanasi Kagawa took a big turn with COVID-19. To be continued in my blog.

Have you ever wondered why Japanese people don’t speak English well compared to other countries in the world? The story I am going to tell you today is about Ohanasi Kagawa, an international exchange platform that was created to change such an environment. “What is Ohanasi Kagawa?” I am sure that many of you are not familiar with Ohanasi Kagawa, so let me introduce ourselves again. Ohanasi Kagawa in a nutshell is “an international language exchange platform!” It is a place where Japanese people who are learning English and people from all over the world who are learning Japanese can gather in one place, speak English and Japanese alternately, and interact with each other to share their cultures, values, and ideas. Let me tell you “why” we decided to create Ohanasi Kagawa in the first place. Ohanasi Kagawa was born from the negative feelings of frustration, despair, and discouragement of Aki, the representative of Ohanasi Kagawa. Ohanasi Kagawa actually started not online at first, but in September 2018 in Kagawa, the smallest prefecture in Japan, where I, Aki, am from. I was 23 years old at the time and had quit the company I had been working for since I graduated from high school to study English in order to study psychology in the United States. I hated studying English when I was a student and only took naps during class, but I entered an American university and continued to study English with the sole intention of starting my life over again. It was about a year after I started studying English that I felt a great sense of despair. I had studied grammar and vocabulary on my own and had come to understand English to a certain extent, so I decided that I wanted to actually speak English with English speakers. I immediately went online and googled “where to speak English with English speakers”. I never dreamed that 30 minutes later, I would feel a great “despair”. To be continued in my next blog. Join Ohanasi Kagawa Event →

One II Seventy (hereinafter referred to as the "Operator") One II Seventy (hereinafter referred to as "the Operator") has established the following privacy policy (hereinafter referred to as the "Policy") regarding the handling of user information, including personal information, for services provided by the Operator (hereinafter referred to as "the Services"). (hereinafter referred to as the "Operator") has established the following privacy policy (hereinafter referred to as the "Policy") regarding the handling of user information, including personal information of users, on the services provided by the Operator (hereinafter referred to as the "Services"). (hereinafter referred to as the "Service"), the following privacy policy (hereinafter referred to as the "Policy") shall be established. User Information to be Collected and Collection MethodIn this Policy, "User Information" shall mean information pertaining to the identification of users, action history on communication services, and other information generated or accumulated in relation to users or their terminals, which is collected by the Operator in accordance with this Policy.User information collected by the Operator for the Service will be as follows, depending on the method of collection(1) Information provided by usersInformation provided by users in order to use the Service or through the use of the Service is as follows- Profile information such as name, date of birth, gender, occupation, etc.- Contact information such as e-mail address, telephone number, address, etc.- Payment method information such as credit card information, bank account information, electronic money information, etc.- Still image information including the user's portrait- Information entered or transmitted by the User through input forms or other methods determined by the Operator. 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To respond to acts that violate the terms, policies, etc. of the operator of the Service (hereinafter referred to as the "Terms, etc.")- To notify you of changes to the Terms of Service, etc. (2) Method of Request for Suspension of UseA user may request the cessation of the collection or use of all or part of the user information by making the prescribed settings for the Service, in which case the Operator will promptly cease the use of such information in accordance with the Operator's stipulations. In addition, since the collection or use of some items of user information is a prerequisite for the Service, the Operator will stop the collection or use of such information only when the user withdraws from the Service in accordance with the Operator's prescribed method. 3. Provision to Third PartiesThe Operator shall not provide personal information among user information to any third party (including those located outside of Japan) without the prior consent of the user. 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However, the Operator will not provide personal information to third parties (including those located outside of Japan) without obtaining the prior consent of the user, except in the following cases (1) The Operator will not provide personal information to a third party (including a person located outside of Japan) without obtaining the prior consent of the user.(1) When the Operator outsources all or part of the handling of personal information within the scope necessary to achieve the purpose of use(2) When personal information is provided as a result of the succession of business due to merger or other reasons(3) Cases in which the provision of personal information is necessary to cooperate with a national agency, a local government, or an individual or entity entrusted by either a national agency or local government to execute affairs prescribed by law, and in which obtaining the consent of the user is likely to impede the execution of the relevant affairs(4) Other cases as permitted by the Act on the Protection of Personal Information (hereinafter referred to as the "Personal Information Protection Act") (5) When permitted by other laws and regulations 4. use of cookiesThe Service may send a text file called a "cookie" to the user's computer storage device for storage and use. 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However, this does not apply to cases in which the operator is not obligated to disclose the information under the Personal Information Protection Law or other laws and regulations. Please note that a fee (1,000 yen per case) will be charged for the disclosure of personal information. 6. 6. correction and suspension of use of personal information6-1 In the event that the Operator receives a request from a user (1) to correct the content of personal information based on the provisions of the Personal Information Protection Law due to its untruthfulness, or (2) on the grounds that the personal information is handled beyond the scope of the purpose of use publicly announced in advance or was collected through deception or other wrongful means, the Operator will correct the personal information in accordance with the provisions of the Act on the Protection of Personal Information. If a user requests that the use of his/her personal information be discontinued in accordance with the provisions of the Personal Information Protection Law on the grounds that the information is handled in a manner that exceeds the scope of the purposes of use previously disclosed, or that the information was collected through deception or other wrongful means, we will conduct the necessary investigation without delay after confirming that the request was made by the user himself/herself. If the Operator decides not to correct or suspend the use of personal information, the Operator will notify the User to that effect. 6-2 If the Operator receives a request from a User to delete the User's personal information, and the Operator deems it necessary to comply with the request, the Operator will delete the personal information after confirming that the request was made by the User himself/herself, and will notify the User to that effect. 6-3 The provisions of 7-1 and 7-2 do not apply in cases where the Operator is not obligated to make corrections, etc. or suspend use, etc. under the Personal Information Protection Law or other laws and regulations. 7. contact for inquiriesPlease direct any comments, questions, complaints, or other inquiries regarding the handling of user information to the following contact point.Address: 636-1 Kokubunji-cho Kokubun, Takamatsu City, Kagawa Prefecture, 769-0102Trade name: One II Seventy　Personal Information Handling Manager: Akihiro OtaContact: 090-7143-1068 8. procedure for changing privacy policy　The operator will change this policy as necessary. However, in the event that the Operator modifies this Policy in a manner that requires the consent of users under the law, the modified Policy shall apply only to users who have consented to the modification in a manner prescribed by the Operator. If the Operator decides to change this Policy, the Operator will notify users of the revised Policy by displaying the revised Policy on the Operator's website or by any other appropriate method, or by publicizing the revised Policy and its contents. Enacted on October 1, 2022