Here is the Table of Contents for the course Master the Sounds of Japanese (MSJ).
This is a free online course that goes over the sounds of the Japanese language on an individual, word, and sentence basis.
It’s a great place to start learning the language, or to help fill in any foundation gaps you may have.
If you’re taking the course for the first time, then go ahead and start with lesson #1.
I also recommend that you bookmark this page and refer back to it as you progress through the lessons.
Below is the complete outline.
Part One of the Course:
This part of the course focuses on the individual sounds of the language.
In addition to all of the vowels and consonants, you will also learn how to read and write hiragana since it is a phonetic script that visually represents the sounds of Japanese.
Lesson #1 – Master the Sounds of Japanese
Lesson #2 – What is Hiragana?
Lesson #3 – What Are the Japanese Vowels?
Lesson #4 – What is “k” in Japanese?
Lesson #5 – What is “s” in Japanese?
Lesson #6 – What is “t” in Japanese?
Lesson #7 – What is “n” in Japanese?
Lesson #8 – What is “h” in Japanese?
Lesson #9 – What is “m” in Japanese?
Lesson #10 – What is “y” in Japanese?
Lesson #11 – What is “r” in Japanese?
Lesson #12 – What is “w” in Japanese?
Lesson #13 – What is “g” in Japanese?
Lesson #14 – What is “z” in Japanese?
Lesson #15 – What is “d” in Japanese?
Lesson #16 – What is “b” in Japanese?
Lesson #17 – What is “p” in Japanese?
Lesson #18 – Combination Sounds in Japanese
Lesson #19 – List of All Hiragana and Their Sounds
Part Two of the Course:
Having learned the individual sounds of Japanese, we now move on to complete words and learn the specific sounds that only appear within this particular context.
Lesson #20 – Long Vowels in Japanese
Lesson #21 – What is the Small “tsu” in Japanese?
Lesson #22 – Silent and Semi-Silent Vowels in Japanese
Lesson #23 – What Is Pitch Accent In Japanese?
Lesson #24 – Japanese Contractions
Part Three of the Course:
Now that we are at the final section of the course, our attention is turned towards complete sentences. This should be exciting since this is how the language is actually used in real life.
If you understood the concepts from the last section, then this one will be a breeze.
For the most part they are the same, but instead of studying the sounds inside of words, you are going to study the sounds between words.
Lesson #25 – Japanese Listening Comprehension
Lesson #26 – Speak Japanese Like A Native
Lesson #27 – Beginner Japanese Recommendation
Final Thoughts
That is was the course in its entirety, at least for this first iteration (2018).
But as it so happens, I am actually working on updating and expanding the course right now, as a recent site change broke all of the audio recordings!
So, if you’re reading this in the second half of 2020 or beyond, then you get to enjoy the second version of the course.
As time passes and I receive feedback on it, I will most likely improve it (again) in the future.
If you’ve gone through the course and have any questions or comments, please let me know by sharing them down below. Thanks!
Further Resources for Learning Japanese:
#3 Get My eBook (Secrets to Learning Japanese) for Free
またね!
Ha! I was actually going to recommend you make one of these. Looks like you beat me to it!
You know what they say, “great minds think alike!”