Stage 1: Foundation (N5)

What This Stage Covers

Stage 1 takes you from absolute zero to a solid N5-level foundation. You will learn:

• The writing system — Full recognition of hiragana and katakana (all 46 base characters in each script, plus voiced, semi-voiced, and combination forms), and approximately 100 kanji
• Basic sentence structure — Topic-comment (は), subject (が), objects (を), location (に/で), direction (へ), and other essential particles
• The verb system — Dictionary form, ます-form, て-form, ない-form, た-form; verb classes (五段, 一段, する, くる)
• Adjectives — い-adjective and な-adjective conjugation, modification, and predication
• Numbers, time, and counting — The counter system, time expressions, duration
• Essential social grammar — Giving and receiving, kinship terms, honorific previews, particles of social nuance

Prerequisites

None. This stage assumes no prior knowledge of Japanese.

By the End of This Stage

You will be able to recognize and parse any sentence at the N5 level. You will know approximately 800 vocabulary items and 100 kanji. You will understand the basic architecture of the Japanese sentence — how particles mark grammatical roles, how verbs encode tense and polarity, how adjectives modify and predicate, and how Japanese manages social relationships through language.

This is the foundation everything else builds on. Stage 2 assumes complete mastery of everything taught here.