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I haven't studied my Japanese much lately sweatdrop , but I've got my flashcards out again and as a Summer Goal I want to become fluent domokun ! Or wicked close stressed . I am going to practice with my flashcards every single day but I want more tips on better ways to become fluent. I know practice makes perfect but I'd like some more creative methods of practice. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Arigato Gozaimasu yo whee !

You cannot become fluent in a language quickly. Why do you think that so many people who study a language spend years to get their PhD in that language? sweatdrop The first thing you should do is study, and then apply what you learned, whether it is reading a book or a comic or watching something in Japanese.

I watch Japanese dramas and pick up on a lot of the slang and everyday use of words.

The easiest way to learn a language fluently is being forced to speak it (ie. go to the country) and not being allowed to speak English at all!

If you want to learn a language fluently in a short amount of time, Japanese is not the language you should be studying. It is one of the hardest languages for a native speaker of English to learn, and it takes years of consistent studying to become fluent. But here are my tips:

idea Don't give up! Japanese is frustrating, just when you think you are going okay, some new form comes along and knock you for a loop. But stay strong.

idea Make studying a habit. Try to study every day for a good length of time. Studying at the same time of day in the same place is also a proven way to improve retention of what you studied (i.e. you won't forget all of it in an hour)

idea When you learn something new, use it! When you learn a new sentance structure, write down a bunch of sentances using that structure, or write a journal using it as many time as you can. This will make that structure second nature.

idea Don't do too much too fast. If you've been taking Japanese for only a year, you have little to no hope of reading a newspaper. Don't be ashamed to seek out books and manga that are for younger kids when you're starting out, and working your way up.

idea Immerse yourself as much as you can in Japanese. The best way is to go to Japan, but for those of us who can't right now (including me) you'll have to bring Japan to you as much as possible. Find people who can speak Japanese, someone from Japan would be best, but even if it's someone else just studying, try to talk to them as much as possible. Watch, read, and listen to as much Japanese stuff as you can. Try to go beyond anime, just because they're cartoons and they're unrealistic (voices are very exaggerated and goofy sometimes). Rent live action japanese movies.

Well, there's no way to become fluent if you don't practice. One of the most useful ways to increase your fluency would be to find a language partner to practice with. Probably not the easiest thing in the world to find though.

Not necessarily, as a matter of fact. I don't think you can attend a Japanese college, but I'm pretty sure you can attend an English-speaking college like ICU or Temple University without having already had Japanese lessons. You can also do exchange student trips with an affiliated high school. But having taken some classes definitely opens up many more possibilities.