Language learning
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Goals for 2023
With 2023 being just hours away, I spent some time reviewing my goals for 2022. Like always I have followed through with some, completely abandoned others, and made a half-assed attempt on the remaining goals. A year ago my vision for 2022 were: So with some goals for 2022 met, others abandoned or greatly modified…
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It’s that time of the year again…
For most people, whether they celebrate Christmas or not, this time of year means something special. It’s the end of the year and a time to reflect and make new plans – or if you’re learning Japanese – a time to take the JLPT exam. The JLPT is held twice a year in July and…
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Keep pushing, keep learning
This may sound like the title of a motivational seminar but I’ve actually wanted to talk to you guys about complacency and language learning arrogance for a while. At least since I saw a tweet that really resonated with me: Most of 2022 I’ve been focusing on going from beginner to intermediate level in Japanese…
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Learning two (or more) languages at once
I can’t believe that we’re almost finished with 2021. A year that started on a hopeful note but turned out to be little more than an echo of 2020. Here’s to a fresh start and hopefully better times in 2022. After I published my JLPT post, a few of you requested that I write about…
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My very first JLPT experience
If you’ve been following along for a while you’ll know that I’ve been flirting with the Japanese language on and off since sometime in 2017. It’s mostly been off though, and I never managed to do anything but learn the scripts, scratch the surface in terms of grammar and vocab, learn a few phrases I…
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How I’m studying Hanja and why you should too
Since my last post, I’ve received several requests to share my Hanja learning tips, so ladies and gentlemen – here they come! If you’re learning Korean you probably know that 60-70 percent of all Korean words have roots in Chinese characters called Hanja in Korean. That means that although they are written in Hangeul they…
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July
And just like that it’s July. We’re already halfway through 2021. It seems like forever and a blink of an eye at the same time. Just like the Koreans divide the year into 상반기 and 하반기 for the first and second half, I like to use this time of year to evaluate my goals and…
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More free Korean learning resources
Working as a Korean teacher, I’m constantly looking to improve not only my own Korean skills but also to expand my knowledge of methods for effectively teaching Korean to others. For the past few weeks I have spent my italki lessons, talking with my teacher about how to improve. I’m currently reading a really cool…
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Korean pronunciation tips I wish I’d learned sooner
With most of the country in continued lockdown, I’m still confined to my apartment from which all my teaching, class preparation and self studying takes place. In order to feel a sense of progress and purpose I’ve created a detailed study routine for myself with several chapters to be read every single day. If you…
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Korean pronunciation – the struggle is real
As a Korean teacher and lifelong language learner, I can testify firsthand that the pronunciation is one of the hardest parts of learning Korean. The distinct sounds, the double consonants and the countless exceptions to the standard pronunciation rules are enough to make your head spin. When learning the language the best way to get…
Sofie to Korea 