Japanese Language Classes
Pasadena Language Center offers Japanese lessons for all levels: beginner, intermediate, advanced and conversation. Learn Japanese in a comfortable, casual environment and make it a fun, enriching experience! We serve the areas of Pasadena, South Pasadena, San Marino, Arcadia, Alhambra, San Gabriel, South Arroyo, Altadena, Monrovia, Sierra Madre, Glendale, Burbank, Eagle Rock, Los Angeles, La Cañada, Montrose, La Crescenta & Sun Valley.
About the Japanese Language
Japanese is spoken by about 130 million in Japan. There is no link between Japanese and any other language living or dead. It adopted the Chinese characters in the 3rd century AD. It does resemble to Korean in grammatical structure, and some linguists argue that they are distantly related. The Japanese kanji (Japanese ideographs) number in the thousands. An educated person can read as many as 3,000 kanji.
Curriculum and Structure
The Japanese weekly and intensive classes are structured into three levels: beginner, intermediate, advanced. Each weekly class level is divided into four sub-levels: A, B, C, and D. Each intensive class level is divided into 2 sub-levels: low and high.
For the beginning classes, we use "Japanese For Busy People I", for the intermediate classes, "Japanese For Busy People II" , and for the advanced levels we use the "Japanese for Busy People III" by AJALT (Association for Japanese-Language Teaching ). The textbooks are accompanied by workbooks and include one audio CD.
Beginning A focuses on learning writing and reading Hiragana and Katakana. We use the Japanese for Busy People Kana Workbook.
Beginning B (Book I, Lesson 1 - 6)
Topics: Introductions, Exchanging business cards, Asking about business hours, and Shopping
Grammar and usage: the affirmative, the negative and the interrogative of copula, particles (wa, o, e), question words (what, whose, how much, what time, when, with whom), ko-so-a-do words, time, counters (mai, hon, hitotsu), etc.
Beginning C (Book I, Lesson 7 - 12)
Topics: Visiting another company, Going to Nikko, Looking for a parking lot, Making plans for the weekend, At a tempura restaurant, and Receiving hospitality.
Grammar and usage: time expressions (day, week, month), particles (ga, ni, de), being (arimasu, imasu), location nouns, counters (hitori), question words (where, how, who, how many), kinship terms, adverbs of frequency, i-adjectives and na-adjectives (present affirmative and negative forms ), motion verbs ( present, past affirmative and negative forms ), etc.
Beginning D (Book I, Lesson 13 - 18)
Topics: Giving compliments, Expressing gratitude, Invitations, Participating in a festival, Talking about plans, and Making a request.
Grammar and usage: giving and receiving, i-adjectives and na-adjectives (past affirmative and negative forms ), telephone call, invitations and suggestions ( -mashoo, -mashoo ka, -masen ka ), Te-form of verbs, requests ( -te kudasai ), etc.
Beginning E (Book I, Lesson 19 - 25)
Topics: Going to an art museum, At an art museum, Being warned or advised, Busy at the moment, Responding to an inquiry, Being introduced to someone, and at a party.
Grammar and usage: Nai-form, periods ( minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years ) question word ( how long ), ask permission (-temo iidesuka), refuse permission (naide kudasai), present progressive, habitual actions and current states (-"te imasu), preference (-ga sukidesu), desire (-tai desu), etc.
Intermediate A (Book II, Lesson 1 - 5)
Topics: Rush hour, Lost and found, The health club, A business trip, A new word processor
Grammar and usage: comparisons, Te-form of adjectives as a connective, ku/ni -form of adjectives as adverbial use, dictionary form of verbs ( before, can + dictionary form ), Ta-form ( experience - ta kotoga arimasu ), plain form of verbs, become + adjectives, nouns ( -ku/ni narimasu ), after + ing ( -te kara ), connective particle (-shi ) , etc.
Intermediate B (Book II, Lesson 6 - 10)
Topics: A pale face, Mr.Johnson's arrival, The Obon festival, Prep school, Letter from Kyushu
Grammar and usage: had better (-hooga iidesu), modifying nouns, I think that -( -to omoimasu ), obiligations, orders, prohibitions, and permission (nakereba narimasen), etc.
Intermediate C (Book II, Lesson 11 - 15)
Topics: Job interview, Hotel reservations, A gift of chocolate, The referee' s rule, A forgotten umbrella.
Grammar and usage: n desu-form (explanatory or confirmatory function), when, if, in the case (toki and baai), expressing uncertainty (daroo to omoimasu), expressing reason (node), Te-form indicating reason or condition, no in noun clauses,Tara-form, Nara-form, etc.
Intermediate D (Book II, Lesson 16 - 20)
Topics: The new showroom design, Brown's diary, Birthday flowers, The public library, Cherry blossoms
Grammar and usage: Ba-form, when and if (-to), plain style, volitional form, polite expressions, show intent or purpose (tsumori), potential form of verbs.
Advanced A (Book III, Lessons 1-3)
Topics: a lost pet, disappearing cookies, the pet industry
Grammar: expressing supposition and wondering aloud, expressing impressions, conveying information gained elsewhere, describing actions done or to be done in preparation for the future, expressing certainty, expressing beliefs or expectations, expressing ideas that run contrary to expectation, expressing causes of or reasons for situations, describing change: changes coming into effect and continuous changes.
Advanced B (Book III, Lessons 4-6)
Topics: a visit to Mr. Nakano's farm (part 1 and 2), global warming
Grammar: nominalizing sentences, indicating means or attendant circumstances, describing deliberate effects, expressing purpose, expressing completion/incompletion of past, present, or future actions, describing change: effected changes, expressing purpose, describing simultaneous actions, expressing ideas that run contrary to expectation, expressing lack of obligation, giving examples of events or actions, stating decisions, making suggestions based on supposition.
Advanced C (Book III, Lessons 7-9)
Topics: asking someone to take over work, my passport was stolen, protecting one's children
Grammar: describing the actions of giving and receiving services, expressing intention, using passive structures, indicating a span of time during which an action or event occurs, using causative and causative-passive structures.
Advanced D (Book III, Lessons 10-12)
Topics: business greetings, leaving and relaying messages, the story of Valentine's Day
Grammar: honorifics (key expressions, basic patterns, verbs for giving and receiving, auxiliary honorific verbs), leaving and relaying messages, using plain imperatives (do and don't), explaining reasons, understanding written styles, understanding spoken styles.
Advanced E (Book III, Lessons 13-15)
Topics: a call from the health office, a few words from the host, at a reception
Communicative skills: complaining, making and responding to apologies, asking for and responding to explanations, formal invitations, casual invitations, RSVP postcards, e-mail, expressing modesty, expressing gratitude, apologizing, introducing people, asking how someone is doing.
For the beginning classes, we use "Japanese For Busy People I", for the intermediate classes, "Japanese For Busy People II" , and for the advanced levels we use the "Japanese for Busy People III" by AJALT (Association for Japanese-Language Teaching ). The textbooks are accompanied by workbooks and include one audio CD.
Beginning A focuses on learning writing and reading Hiragana and Katakana. We use the Japanese for Busy People Kana Workbook.
Beginning B (Book I, Lesson 1 - 6)
Topics: Introductions, Exchanging business cards, Asking about business hours, and Shopping
Grammar and usage: the affirmative, the negative and the interrogative of copula, particles (wa, o, e), question words (what, whose, how much, what time, when, with whom), ko-so-a-do words, time, counters (mai, hon, hitotsu), etc.
Beginning C (Book I, Lesson 7 - 12)
Topics: Visiting another company, Going to Nikko, Looking for a parking lot, Making plans for the weekend, At a tempura restaurant, and Receiving hospitality.
Grammar and usage: time expressions (day, week, month), particles (ga, ni, de), being (arimasu, imasu), location nouns, counters (hitori), question words (where, how, who, how many), kinship terms, adverbs of frequency, i-adjectives and na-adjectives (present affirmative and negative forms ), motion verbs ( present, past affirmative and negative forms ), etc.
Beginning D (Book I, Lesson 13 - 18)
Topics: Giving compliments, Expressing gratitude, Invitations, Participating in a festival, Talking about plans, and Making a request.
Grammar and usage: giving and receiving, i-adjectives and na-adjectives (past affirmative and negative forms ), telephone call, invitations and suggestions ( -mashoo, -mashoo ka, -masen ka ), Te-form of verbs, requests ( -te kudasai ), etc.
Beginning E (Book I, Lesson 19 - 25)
Topics: Going to an art museum, At an art museum, Being warned or advised, Busy at the moment, Responding to an inquiry, Being introduced to someone, and at a party.
Grammar and usage: Nai-form, periods ( minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years ) question word ( how long ), ask permission (-temo iidesuka), refuse permission (naide kudasai), present progressive, habitual actions and current states (-"te imasu), preference (-ga sukidesu), desire (-tai desu), etc.
Intermediate A (Book II, Lesson 1 - 5)
Topics: Rush hour, Lost and found, The health club, A business trip, A new word processor
Grammar and usage: comparisons, Te-form of adjectives as a connective, ku/ni -form of adjectives as adverbial use, dictionary form of verbs ( before, can + dictionary form ), Ta-form ( experience - ta kotoga arimasu ), plain form of verbs, become + adjectives, nouns ( -ku/ni narimasu ), after + ing ( -te kara ), connective particle (-shi ) , etc.
Intermediate B (Book II, Lesson 6 - 10)
Topics: A pale face, Mr.Johnson's arrival, The Obon festival, Prep school, Letter from Kyushu
Grammar and usage: had better (-hooga iidesu), modifying nouns, I think that -( -to omoimasu ), obiligations, orders, prohibitions, and permission (nakereba narimasen), etc.
Intermediate C (Book II, Lesson 11 - 15)
Topics: Job interview, Hotel reservations, A gift of chocolate, The referee' s rule, A forgotten umbrella.
Grammar and usage: n desu-form (explanatory or confirmatory function), when, if, in the case (toki and baai), expressing uncertainty (daroo to omoimasu), expressing reason (node), Te-form indicating reason or condition, no in noun clauses,Tara-form, Nara-form, etc.
Intermediate D (Book II, Lesson 16 - 20)
Topics: The new showroom design, Brown's diary, Birthday flowers, The public library, Cherry blossoms
Grammar and usage: Ba-form, when and if (-to), plain style, volitional form, polite expressions, show intent or purpose (tsumori), potential form of verbs.
Advanced A (Book III, Lessons 1-3)
Topics: a lost pet, disappearing cookies, the pet industry
Grammar: expressing supposition and wondering aloud, expressing impressions, conveying information gained elsewhere, describing actions done or to be done in preparation for the future, expressing certainty, expressing beliefs or expectations, expressing ideas that run contrary to expectation, expressing causes of or reasons for situations, describing change: changes coming into effect and continuous changes.
Advanced B (Book III, Lessons 4-6)
Topics: a visit to Mr. Nakano's farm (part 1 and 2), global warming
Grammar: nominalizing sentences, indicating means or attendant circumstances, describing deliberate effects, expressing purpose, expressing completion/incompletion of past, present, or future actions, describing change: effected changes, expressing purpose, describing simultaneous actions, expressing ideas that run contrary to expectation, expressing lack of obligation, giving examples of events or actions, stating decisions, making suggestions based on supposition.
Advanced C (Book III, Lessons 7-9)
Topics: asking someone to take over work, my passport was stolen, protecting one's children
Grammar: describing the actions of giving and receiving services, expressing intention, using passive structures, indicating a span of time during which an action or event occurs, using causative and causative-passive structures.
Advanced D (Book III, Lessons 10-12)
Topics: business greetings, leaving and relaying messages, the story of Valentine's Day
Grammar: honorifics (key expressions, basic patterns, verbs for giving and receiving, auxiliary honorific verbs), leaving and relaying messages, using plain imperatives (do and don't), explaining reasons, understanding written styles, understanding spoken styles.
Advanced E (Book III, Lessons 13-15)
Topics: a call from the health office, a few words from the host, at a reception
Communicative skills: complaining, making and responding to apologies, asking for and responding to explanations, formal invitations, casual invitations, RSVP postcards, e-mail, expressing modesty, expressing gratitude, apologizing, introducing people, asking how someone is doing.