Learn Japanese plan: kana, kanji and grammar in the right order
Japanese has three writing systems, so where you start matters. Many learners lose months on romaji or try to memorise kanji with no context. This prompt has your todo.is agent plan a path from kana in two weeks to everyday grammar and your first 100 kanji, with daily tasks, word lists and a review every week.
The prompt
- Build me a plan to learn Japanese from [CURRENT LEVEL]. My goal is [GOAL] by [DEADLINE] and I can study [MINUTES PER DAY] minutes a day. Weeks 1 to 2: hiragana and katakana only, no romaji after week 2. Then core grammar (desu, particles wa, ga, o, ni, de, masu verbs, te-form, plain form) with 5 new kanji a week from common words. Each day: one grammar point with 3 example sentences in kana and kanji with furigana, 8 words, and 10 minutes of listening with a link. Give me a CSV of the words I can import into Anki, the plan as a PDF, email both to me, and every [CHECK-IN DAY] send me a 10-question review on Telegram.
What to change
- [CURRENT LEVEL]: E.g. "zero", "I know hiragana" or "I watched a lot of anime but cannot read".
- [GOAL]: E.g. "JLPT N5", "a 2-week trip to Japan" or "reading simple manga".
- [DEADLINE]: E.g. "December" or "in 6 months".
- [MINUTES PER DAY]: E.g. "30". Kana takes about 15 minutes a day for two weeks.
- [CHECK-IN DAY]: E.g. "Saturday at 10:00".
Example result
- Learn Japanese: zero to JLPT N5 in 6 months
- 30 minutes a day · goal N5 in December · Saturday review
- Weeks 1 to 2: kana only
- • Hiragana (46 basic characters) in week 1: 7 a day, write each 5 times, read simple words (ねこ, さかな, ありがとう)
- • Katakana in week 2, using loanwords: コーヒー, テレビ, パン
- • Small tsu (っ) doubles the next consonant, long vowels (おかあさん), ゃゅょ combos
- • From week 3, no more romaji
- Month 1 to 2: first sentences
- • AはBです (わたしはがくせいです)
- • Particles: は topic, が subject, を object, に time and destination, で place of action
- • ます verbs: たべます, いきます, みます and their negatives and past (たべませんでした)
- • Kanji: 日 月 火 水 木 金 土 人 山 川 (start with days of the week)
- Month 3 to 4: connect ideas
- • て-form: たべて, いって (watch the irregulars: 行く → 行って)
- • ています for ongoing actions, てください for requests
- • i-adjectives and na-adjectives (たかい, しずかな)
- • Counters: つ, 人, 本, 枚
- Month 5 to 6: plain form and N5 review
- • Plain form (たべる, たべない, たべた) so you can understand casual speech
- • Two timed N5 practice tests and review of every wrong answer
- Sample day (week 6)
- • Grammar: で for the place of an action. 図書館(としょかん)で本(ほん)をよみます。I read books at the library.
- • Words: 8 school words with kanji and furigana
- • Listening: 10 minutes of a beginner podcast, write down every particle you hear
- Your Anki CSV (first rows)
- • 日, ひ / にち, day; sun
- • 本, ほん, book
- • 学生, がくせい, student
How to do it with todo.is
- Fill in your level, your goal and when you want to reach it.
- Send the to-do to your agent on the Today screen, WhatsApp or Telegram.
- You get a PDF plan and a CSV word list by email. Import the CSV into Anki or any flashcard app.
- Each week, reply with your review score. Your agent repeats the weak points in the next week's tasks.
Tips for a better result
- Learn kana first and stop using romaji fast. It slows your reading and hides the real sounds.
- Learn kanji inside words you already know (学生, 先生) rather than as isolated symbols with long meaning lists.
- Learn verbs in the dictionary form and masu form together from the start. It makes the plain form easy later.
- Ask your agent to send example sentences as Japanese audio (MP3) so you hear pitch and rhythm.
learn Japanese plan: FAQ
- How long does it take to learn hiragana and katakana? Most learners can read both in about two weeks with 15 to 20 minutes a day. Writing them neatly takes a little longer.
- How long does it take to reach JLPT N5? Often 3 to 6 months of regular study for N5. N4 usually takes another 6 months or so.
- How many kanji do I need? Around 100 for N5 and about 300 for N4. Everyday reading needs roughly 2,000 (the jōyō kanji), which takes years.
- Can I import the word list into Anki? Yes. Your agent creates a CSV with columns for kanji, reading and meaning, which Anki and most flashcard apps can import.
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