Starting this week, we’re launching Japan Fact Friday 🎉 Every Friday, I’ll share one short, interesting fact or story from Japanese history or culture — something memorable, easy to read, and a great conversation starter. Let’s begin with one of the most famous figures in Japanese history. 🏯 Japan Fact Friday Tokugawa Ieyasu and the Bird That Wouldn’t Sing Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate, which ruled Japan for over 260 years. He is often remembered not for flashy battles, but for his patience, long-term thinking, and self-control. There’s a famous story used to describe three great leaders of the time, involving a bird that refuses to sing: Oda Nobunaga: “If it won’t sing, kill it.” Toyotomi Hideyoshi: “If it won’t sing, make it sing.” Tokugawa Ieyasu: “If it won’t sing… wait.” Ieyasu waited. He endured setbacks, survived rivals, and played the long game — and in the end, he won everything.

Japan is world famous for its good culture! Whether it is street food yakisoba or high-end restaurant sashimi, Japan provides a wide variety of delicious delicacies. So, which is our favourite Japanese food? There is only one way to decide!!!! A Japanese Food Tournament!!! In order to find out the ultimate Japanese food, we will pit our suggestions against each other in a battle to the death in which only one can survive. Please make your suggestions below. There are no wrong answers! There is only your favourite foods or meals from Japan! Let the battle begin!!! Joe Sensei.

Hi everyone! I’m looking for suggestions on things I can do to help me recognise written and spoken words and phrases. I have seen people watch movies/TV shows with Japanese dubbed with English subtitles (and vice versa), listening to Japanese music and reading books in Japanese. Have you felt this has helped you or have you found another way that suits you better?

Introduce yourself and share a pic of something Japanese you own or something Japanese that you're interested in! Feel free to explain why you want to learn Japanese or what you like about Japan. Also, feel free to post any Japanese language questions you have. I'd be glad to answer them! As for me, I love learning Judo. Have you ever tried it? And I love Japanese literature, such as Kokoro by Natsume Soseki. Have you read any Japanese novels? I also really enjoyed Cowboy Bebop when it came out! Not the live action Netflix version! To start learning, I highly recommend Your 50 First Sentences Course: https://www.skool.com/japanese/classroom/fe1c2853?md=60ee3552d26e4ffcb910a86675e10f95 Arigatou, Joe Sensei.

Today’s kanji is 人, one of the most essential characters in Japanese. It appears in words about people, nationality, and identity. 🔤 Meaning person people human someone 🗣️ Readings ひと (hito) – common everyday reading じん (jin) – nationality / “person of” にん (nin) – counting people 🧩 Common Words 人（ひと） – person 日本人（にほんじん） – Japanese person 一人（ひとり） – one person / alone 二人（ふたり） – two people 人間（にんげん） – human being 人口（じんこう） – population 大人（おとな） – adult (irregular reading) 📝 Simple Example Sentences 1. 日本人です。 → I am Japanese. / They are Japanese. 2. 今日は人が多いです。 → There are a lot of people today. 3. 一人で行きます。 → I’ll go alone. 4. あの人は先生です。 → That person is a teacher. ✨ Memory Tip The shape looks like a person standing—legs apart. Once you see “a person” in the shape, you’ll never forget it. You can try writing it, upload a photo or video and get feedback! :)