Konnichiwa!! Let's talk Japanese music! 🪭🎸🌸 Last month we had so many good recommendations. Let's keep it going! One of the top songs of 2026 in Japan is Vivarium by Ado. Ado is a young pop star who never shows her face. Do you think this adds to her mystery and appeal? What Japanese music are you listening to? It can be from any era or genre - we'd love to hear about it!! Arigatou, Joe.

好きなもの・好きじゃないもの 🗣️ This Saturday, let’s practise speaking Japanese! Listen to the example audio, then record yourself using the template below. This week we’ll practise talking about things we like and don’t like using: ✅ すきです — suki desu - I like it ✅ すきじゃないです — suki janai desu - I don’t like it ✅ でも — demo - but Don’t worry about being perfect. The goal is to speak, practise and improve step by step. 🌱 ✨ Example Text こんにちは。わたしはジョーです。 サッカーがすきです。 でも、やきゅうがすきじゃないです。 おちゃがすきです。 でも、ボバティーがすきじゃないです。 どうぞよろしくおねがいします。 ✨ Romaji Konnichiwa. Watashi wa Joe desu. Sakkaa ga suki desu. Demo, yakyuu ga suki janai desu. Ocha ga suki desu. Demo, boba tii ga suki janai desu. Douzo yoroshiku onegai shimasu. ✨ English Hello. I’m Joe. I like soccer. But I don’t like baseball. I like green tea. But I don’t like boba tea. Nice to meet you. 🎤 Your Turn! Use this template and post your own audio in the comments: こんにちは。わたしは＿＿＿です。 ＿＿＿がすきです。 でも、＿＿＿がすきじゃないです。 ＿＿＿がすきです。 でも、＿＿＿がすきじゃないです。 どうぞよろしくおねがいします。 ✨ Romaji Template Konnichiwa. Watashi wa ＿＿＿ desu. ＿＿＿ ga suki desu. Demo, ＿＿＿ ga suki janai desu. ＿＿＿ ga suki desu. Demo, ＿＿＿ ga suki janai desu. Douzo yoroshiku onegai shimasu. ✨ Helpful Words サッカー — soccer やきゅう — baseball アニメ — anime えいが — movies おんがく — music ゲーム — games おちゃ — green tea コーヒー — coffee ボバティー — boba tea ねこ — cats いぬ — dogs にほんりょうり — Japanese food 🎙️ Challenge: Post your audio below! ⭐ Bonus challenge: Listen to someone else’s audio and reply with: わたしも______が好きです！ Watashi mo ______ ga suki desu! I also like ___ !

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.

Self-Introduction 自己紹介 This Saturday, let’s practise speaking Japanese! Listen to the example audio, then record yourself using the template below. You can copy it exactly, or change the words to make it true for you. Don’t worry about being perfect. The goal is to speak, practise, and improve step by step. Example Text こんにちは。わたしはジョーです。 オーストラリアにすんでいます。 にほんごをべんきょうしています。 すしがすきです。 どうぞよろしくおねがいします。 Romaji Konnichiwa. Watashi wa Joe desu. Oosutoraria ni sunde imasu. Nihongo o benkyou shite imasu. Sushi ga suki desu. Douzo yoroshiku onegai shimasu. English Hello. I’m Joe. I live in Australia. I’m studying Japanese. I like sushi. Nice to meet you. Your Turn! Use this template and post your own audio in the comments: こんにちは。わたしは＿＿＿です。 ＿＿＿にすんでいます。 にほんごをべんきょうしています。 ＿＿＿がすきです。 どうぞよろしくおねがいします。 Romaji Template Konnichiwa. Watashi wa ＿＿＿ desu. ＿＿＿ ni sunde imasu. Nihongo o benkyō shite imasu. ＿＿＿ ga suki desu. Dōzo yoroshiku onegai shimasu. Helpful Words オーストラリア — Australia アメリカ — America イギリス — the UK カナダ — Canada ニュージーランド — New Zealand すし — sushi ラーメン — ramen アニメ — anime おんがく — music ゲーム — games コーヒー — coffee 🎙️ Challenge: Post your audio below! Bonus challenge: Listen to someone else’s audio and reply with: すごいです！Sugoi desu! That’s great!

This week’s fact is about one of Japan’s greatest sporting moments. ⚽ Japan Fact Friday — When Japan Shocked the World Cup On November 23, 2022, Japan faced Germany at the FIFA World Cup. Most people expected Germany to win. Germany were former world champions. Japan were the underdogs. At halftime, Japan was losing 1–0. But then something changed. The Japanese coach made bold substitutions. The team pressed harder. And in just eight dramatic minutes, Japan scored twice. ⚽ Ritsu Dōan equalised. ⚽ Takuma Asano scored an incredible winning goal from a tight angle. Japan won 2–1. The football world was stunned. And amazingly… Japan later defeated Spain too — another football giant — to finish top of their group. --- 🧹 But There Was Another Story… After the match, Japanese fans stayed behind to clean the stadium. Even after a huge victory. Players also left their dressing room spotless and thanked staff. This became international news. Why? Because it reflected something deeply Japanese: • respect for shared spaces • humility in victory • thinking of others first --- 🧠 Language Lesson — Soccer in Japanese ⚽ サッカーがすきです。 Sakkā ga suki desu. I like soccer / football. ⚽ 日本がかちました。 Nihon ga kachimashita. Japan won. ⚽ ワールドカップをみました。 Wārudo Kappu o mimashita. I watched the World Cup. --- 🫵 Your Turn Do you remember Japan beating Germany? And in sport, what do you admire more: ⚽ skill 🔥 determination 🤝 good character? Answer in English or Japanese 😊 See you next Friday for another Japan Fact Friday 🇯🇵✨