Your ideas about Kanji video lessons, please!

[mayumi]

Hello Everyone,

I'm Mayumi and a team member of Jpod101.
We are now thinking about making video lessons about Kanji. Each lesson will be a short lesson for about a few minutes.

Today, I would like to have your requests or ideas about the Kanji video lessons.

- What do you want to know most when learning Kanji?
For example, kanji stroke order, or any hint to memorize kanji.

- What level of kanji do you want us to get started with?
For example, easy simple kanji for JLPT level 4, or interesting kanji even if they are difficult, such as those having interesting mnemonics, or by the same compounds, etc.

If you send us any ideas or requests other than the points mentioned above, it would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for your cooperation in advance!

Mayumi

[Rod Wadd]

How about kanji that have the same reading？

[reboundstudent]

Hints to memorizing kanji would be wonderful.

Maybe one or two lessons devoted to the logic of kanji strokes (and maybe a few kanji that are exceptions.)

I'd also love to see videos on kanji radicals. I know kanji reading is hard in and of itself, but I'm told that if you have a grasp of radicals, it's a lot easier to guess a kanji's meaning.

Edit: Also, common name kanji!!!

[Rod Wadd]

Also maybe something about 紛らわしい漢字　for example I find 現　and 規　confusing and hard to tell apart

[scnnrc]

I would like to see the kanji strokes and in which direction they are written

[Ted_]

I think that learning radicals would be really helpful, especially as you get to more complicated kanji.

So one idea would be to teach each radical with a set of example kanji.

I think also that somewhere I have seen a list of kanji in order of common newspaper usage. I think that it would be interesting to use that list starting from the most commonly used. It would seem that would be the fastest way to newspaper literacy.

Yes, I think that stroke order is essential.

[jkid]

What Ted_-san said.

[wccrawford]

I would like to see the kanji strokes and in which direction they are written

This. In particular, I would like it written by the kanji, rather than showing the brush strokes. For some reason, I find it -very- hard to learn the order while watching an invisible brush draw the kanji. Numbered arrows works a lot better for me.

[johnpa]

Since it's video, I would like to see comparisons and contrasts between common fonts, advertising logos, and handwriting. And, even though I don't imagine I'll ever learn calligraphy, I'd like to see what's considered aesthetically good.
As far as organization goes... how about seasonal themes? Or maybe kanji from current headlines?

[wccrawford]

Or maybe kanji from current headlines?

A related idea: Maybe focus on a small blurb of interesting text, and learn the kanji from it?

Or maybe find and/or write blurbs to go with the kanji being studied.

[mayumi]

Thank you so much for your great ideas!!
Your common needs seem to be stroke order and hint to memorize kanji and its meaning. As for the hint, I agree that knowing radicals would be helpful.
Any other ideas and comments would be appreciated!!

[matiasu]

Dear Mayumi,

It is beautyful if you think about Kanji-Video.
I would like to see in this video a real person who writes with pencil or brush the kanjis. Why I want to see REAL PERSONS? On my own experience I could memorize the kanji and strokeorder best when someone wrote the kanji on paper! There are sone computer-images (gif-files) where you can see the stroke-order – but this is not the same – the best way to learn and to memorize is when someone shows you directly on paper.
In brain science, they found the mirror neurons ミラーニューロン . This is the explanation (I think). And if you see f.e. handcraft, music, arts – the imitation is the best way to learn.
So please videos with real presons writing down the kanji!!!!

If you are interested you can found a computer-simulated stroke-order here.
http://www.kanji-lernen.de/html/kanjigy ... lish_.html
The book is also very good – it use a special mnemotechnic.

Thank you very much

Matthias

[nilfisq]

I agree with all the suggestions done so far. In addition I think it would be nice to see the kanji in context, for instance in manga text balloons, scripts on traffic signs/buildings, advertisments etc.
really looking foward to these videos