Contents
Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 1
Ten Tips for Remembering Vocabulary ..................................................................................... 3
Making Your Flashcards........................................................................................................... 5
Anki ...................................................................................................................................... 5
Unit 1:

Food & Drink............................................................................................................. 6

Unit 2:

Music, Literature & Art ............................................................................................... 8

Unit 3:People .................................................................................................................... 10

Unit 4:Home & Family........................................................................................................ 12

Unit 5:

Technology & Innovation ......................................................................................... 14

Unit 6:

Places & Travel ....................................................................................................... 16

Unit 7:

Academic Words...................................................................................................... 18

Unit 8:Social Issues ........................................................................................................... 20

Unit 9:

Talking About Japan ................................................................................................ 22

Unit 10:Bringing it All Together........................................................................................... 24

Anki Log …........................................................................................................................... 25
Useful Resources .................................................................................................................. 291

Introduction
Course Outline
In 2013 Aichi Prefectural University’s multilingual learning center (iCoToBa) began offering
extra-curricula classes to all students in the foreign language department. These classes aim tosupplement the existing course language classes, allowing you to devote extra time to areas oflanguage study you wish to target.
The Word Power course was first implemented in 2014, to facilitate vocabulary expansion in aconversational context. The 2015 course is a complete reinvention of the 2014 course. This year’s
course draws on recent software innovation to introduce an online spaced repetition system forvocabulary acquisition. We will use “Anki” software to learn new vocabulary, and then spend classtime in conversation to practice using the language. Through this course you will learn many words
and gain conversational practice, but perhaps more importantly, you will learn how to learn! After
this course you will have a tool that you can use indefinitely to help you take control of your own
learning, and even enjoy it!
This book will guide you through the course. It provides the minimum target language and various
activities that we will use in-class to help you contextualise the words and be able to use themnaturally in conversation. Feel free to go beyond the materials in this book and use the software in
any way that serves you.
Prepare to watch your vocabulary grow daily! It is going to be an exciting journey.

11Syllabus

iCoToBa Semester 1 2015

Word Power

CourseMaterials

teacher-generated

Teacher

Fern Sakamoto
fern@for.aichi-pu.ac.jp

Objectives① To be able to use online spaced repetition software and develop an effective autonomous learning practice.
② To acquire (at least) 350 new vocabulary items and be able to use them in conversation.
③ To gain confidence and fluency in everyday conversation on a range of topics.

Content

Students will use free online software to learn hundreds of words related to a range of topics. Each class students will
use the new words in a range of conversation-based activities. The final part of each class will be devoted to thedesign and maintenance of personalised online flashcards for use throughout the week in learning the next set oftarget vocabulary.

Assessment
Lesson100% attendance

Tasks & Themes

Objectives (Students will ~)1

Course Introduction & Pre-test
Talking about yourself

Understand the goals and requirements of the course. Get to know each other. Check current
vocabulary.

2

Anki Introduction(Words 1~35)

Learn how to use spaced repetition software and set up their own Anki accounts. Design theirfirst 35 flashcards related to food and drink vocabulary.

3

Unit 1: Food & Drink(Words 36~70)

Revise words learned this week and use them in extended conversations about food and drink.
Create their next 35 word cards related to the music, literature and art.

4

Unit 2: The Arts
(Words 71~105)

Use vocabulary learned this week to write and chat about music, books and art. Design 35 new
flashcards with words for describing people.

5

Unit 3: People(Words 106~140)

6

Unit 4: Home & Family(Words 141~175)

Talk about their own homes and play a Spot The Difference game. Create 35 flashcards fortechnology vocabulary.

7

Unit 5: Technology(Words 176~210)

Revise new words and use them to discuss modern technological advancements in their own
lives. Creat 35 new flashcards for travel-related vocabulary.

8

Unit 6: Places & Travel
Discuss their own interests in foreign travel using language learned this week and play a(Words 211~245) Log check ② conversation game. Make cards for 35 words academic words.

9

Unit 7: Academic Life
(Words 246~280)

Discuss words learned this week. Use them to read a journal article abstract and discuss themain ideas. Create new flashcards for topical vocabulary related to current world issues.

10

Unit 8: Social Issues(Words 281~315)

Use words learned this week to discuss controversial topics and news. Practice expressing theirown opinions. Create cards for vocabulary useful in talking about Japan and Japanese things.

11

Unit 9: Talking about Japan
Talk about Japan. Practice describing typical Japanese traditions, foods and items in natural(Words 316~350) Log check ③ fluent English.

12

Unit 10: Bringing it All Together

Revise all words learned to date in the course through an extended conversation game covering
a range of topics.

13

Post-test & Interviews

Assess progress through the course. Consider usefulness of Anki and other possible ways to use
it in the future. Discuss ways to continue expanding vocabulary beyond the course.

Practice describing personalities and physical characteristics using words learned this week. Make
Log check ① 35 flashcards for vocabulary related to the home and family.

Note to students
This class is going to be fun! Please commit to studying your cards every single day. Honestly, it will be fun, I guarantee it. Please also
commit to keeping a true log of your study patterns. This in no way affects your result in this course, but it will be very helpful inascertaining how useful the program was for you. I hope to see you in every class but if you absolutely must miss one, please send me
an email to let me know, and make sure that you input your flashcards and study the new words as per usual. All communications forthis class will be via manaba so be sure to check it regularly, and update your settings so that you receive notification of new messages.

22Ten Tips for Remembering Vocabulary
We are going to use flashcards. These are not just any flashcards though. There are many ways thatyou can enhance the effectiveness, enjoyment and ease of studying vocabulary using flashcards. Allof the techniques below in some way help to create a connection between the word and its meaning.
The more methods you use, the more links you can create, and the more robust the memory will be,
until it is easy to recall or recognise the word that you want.
1. Use images
Research into The Picture Superiority Effect has shown that humans remember images much moreeasily than words. So have fun looking through pictures on the Internet and choosing one (or more)
to help you remember words. For nouns this is easy. For abstract words it can be more challenging,but remember that other people don’t need to understand your flashcard, so any image thatconnects you to the meaning of the word is fine.
2. Use sounds
The Modality Effect says that hearing words is better than seeing them for most people. Why not doboth? You can easily download free mp3 files for most English words from the Internet and copy
them into your cards. This helps you to remember better, and also helps you to hear and reproduce
the pronunciation of the word accurately.
3. Mix up your words
The Isolation Effect says that it is better to study words in a random manner, so that you can’t justguess the meaning of a word from other words that you study in the same session. (If you know that
all the words are related to food, then you have a good chance of just guessing the right meaning,
without really remembering the word itself.) Studying words in a random sequence also means that if
you see the word in a totally different context, you will still remember what it means. If you use Ankisoftware, it will automatically mix your words up for you.
4. Use spaced repetition
This means that you don’t just go through all of your flashcards everyday. Instead, as you test
yourself you sort them so that you often review the ones you have difficulty remembering, and theeasy ones don’t get reviewed as much. Research has shown that it is more effective to wait until amemory is almost gone and then retrieve it again, rather than just looking at it everyday. This builds
a stronger connection to the memory, which lasts much longer! It can be a little complicated to set
up a system like this if you are using paper cards but Anki will do everything for you! All you have to
do is log-on every day and check through the words it shows you.
33

5. Use crazy pictures
There has actually been research into something called The Bizarreness Effect. It says that if you
make a strange link to a word, then you are more likely to remember it. So feel free to choose wacky
pictures for your flashcards, as long as you understand them.
6. Mix-up your study times and places
We tend to link memories to certain places or times. This is known as the Encoding Context Effect or
the Time-of-day Effect. If you know where your test will be, and what time of day, then it is mosteffective to study in that room at the same time of day. In conversation though, you cannot predict
where or when you will need a word, so by mixing up the times and places where you study, you giveyourself the most different contexts to link to and the best chance of being able to remember theword.
7. Make personal connections
Personal connections to words help us remember them better. This is called the Self-reference Effect.
So if you have to learn the word “cousin” in English, why not use a photograph of your own cousin on
the flashcard? You can easily upload photos from your phone or facebook to use in flashcards. It
makes them fun and super easy to remember.
8. Learn collocations
Collocations are the words that often come next to the target word in English sentences. If you use
Google Images you will usually find captions with the pictures. Why not add them to your flashcards?
You don’t need to make yourself remember them, just reading them whenever you access that card
will help you get used to seeing the words together.
9. Make your own cards
This one should be obvious after all the benefits that you see above. Don’t use pre-made flashcards.
You miss out on all the benefits above, and on the fun too! Of course, you can use vocabulary books,
but make them the source of your target vocabulary, not the way to remember it. Seriously, this way
is much more fun. The Generation Effect says that generating learning materials by yourself makes
the materials much more effective.
10. Enjoy!
Above all, learning needs to be fun. We all know from experience that it is difficult to continue things
that we don’t enjoy. Through this course, we will learn to have fun with words so that you lookforward to your Anki time.
44

Making Your Flashcards
There are really only two rules here:
1. Keep it simple.
Each card should only require one correct answer. If you want to test yourself on many different
things (eg. missing words in a sentence), then make a few simple cards rather than one complex
card.
2. There are no rules
These are your cards, for your eyes only. Anything that helps you remember what you want to is OK,
and you can use these cards to test yourself on anything: spelling, pronunciation, vocabulary,grammar, all of the above. Start with our vocabulary lists, but feel free to add in whatever else youwant to.

Anki
We will use free online software called Anki. It has been installed into all of the iCoToBa computers.
I recommend downloading it onto your own computer too (it’s free). We will set up an AnkiWeb
account in the first class, so you can synchronise all your data and access it anywhere!
1. Install Anki
2. Install the model decks into Anki∙

Go to https://fluent-forever.com/gallery/
Scroll down and click on Download it here∙

Open the file (Anki will open too)∙

Click on Model Deck, then Study Now∙

Press ! five times to delete examples

3. Setup an AnkiWeb account∙

Go to https://ankiweb.net/account/login and sign up

4. Start making cards∙

Go to manaba (or p.29 in this book) to find links to dictionaries, sound files, images etc.

55Unit 1:

Food & Drink

Vocabulary
pomegranate (n.)

fermented (adj.)mussel (n.)

astringent (adj.)

condiment (n.)

coriander (n.)

simmer (v.)

soggy (adj.)

pickled (adj.)

lotus root (n.)

veal (n.)

dice (v.)

stir-fry (v.)

wholemeal flour (n.)

protein (n.)

carbohydrate (n.)

nutritious (adj.)

chop (n.)

stew (v.)

spatula (n.)

mandarin (n.)

cantaloupe (n.)

clam (n.)

sprinkle (v.)

carve (v.)

marinate (v.)

soft-boiled egg (n.)

persimmon (n.)

dozen (adj.)

whisk (n.)

Warm up
1. Discuss what you ate for breakfast, lunch and dinner yesterday.
-

Who made it?

-

How nutritious do you think it is?

-

How often do you eat that kind of food?

2. Discuss the five new words that you chose to add to the word list.
-

Why did you choose those words?

-

How do you say them in English?

-

Can you make example sentences using the words?

Conversation
What is your favourite food?

What is the strangest food you have ever eaten?

What food do you want to try once in your lifetime?

Do you have any food allergies?



Are there any foods that you really don’t like?

What food do you eat more than any other?

Do you prefer routine or variety in your diet?

Can you cook?

How often do you eat out?

What is your favourite restaurant?

Do you usually bring lunch or buy it?

What food do you feel like eating right now?

Which do you prefer, tea or coffee?

Do you usually drink water with your meals?
66Taboo
You will play a game with your classmates. To prepare, you need to make four cards. Each card musthave:
1. a picture of a food or drink
2. four English words that describe the foodTo play:
Make groups of two pairs (four people in total). Your teacher will give you four cards at random.
Decide who will start. The first person must try to make his partner guess the picture on the card by
explaining it in English.
Rules:
1. No gestures
2. Only English words can be used
3. The words written on the cards CANNOT be used in any form
4. Of course, do not show the card to your partner

7

7

Unit 2:

Music, Literature & Art

Vocabulary
lyrics (n.)

abstract (adj.)

track (n.)

conductor (n.)

exhibition (n.)

composer (n.)

sculpt (v.)

pastel (adj.)

impressionist (adj.)

watercolour (n.)

portrait (n.)

sketch (v.)

jam (v.)cover (n.)

genre (n.)

paperback (n.)

rhythm (n.)

blockbuster (n.)

record (v.)

live concert (n.)

illustrator (n.)

publish (v.)

sign (v.)

autograph (n.)

ovation (n.)

crowd-surf (v.)

columnist (n.)

boy-band (n.)

Warm up
1. Discuss the types of music that you enjoy.
-

When and where do you listen to music?

-

Who is your favourite artist right now?

-

Would you describe yourself as a passionate music-lover?

2. Discuss the words that you chose to add to the vocabulary list.
-

Why did you choose those words?

-

Have you remembered them yet?

-

Was it difficult to come up with new word ideas?

Write
Write freely for eight minutes about music, books or art. Use at least three words from the list.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

8

8

ShareShare what you wrote with the class or in a group. Ask questions to start a small conversation after
each person has shared their ideas.
Conversation
Write five questions about music, literature, or art. You will use these questions in a conversation
with a partner so make sure they are questions about topics that interest you.
1.

2.

3.

4.

5.
Use your questions to have an extended conversation with a partner. Do not simply interview eachother. It is fine if you do not make it through all of your questions.

99Unit 3:PeopleVocabulary
outgoing (adj.)

tenacious (adj.)

studious (adj.)

optimistic (adj.)

honest (adj.)

moustache (n.)

beard (n.)

freckles (n.)

sideburns (n.)

attractive (adj.)

blonde (adj.)

brunette (adj.)

tanned (adj.)

average (adj.)build (n.)

chubby (adj.)

artistic (adj.)

passionate (adj.)role-model (n.)

skinny (adj.)

ginger (adj.)

bald (adj.)

overweight (adj.)

sporty (adj.)

loner (n.)

mole (n.)

thumb (n.)

thoughtful (adj.)

overbearing (adj.)

inspiring (adj.)

Warm up
1. Discuss the words in the vocabulary list.
-

Were any of the pictures that came up on Google Images when you made your cards
surprising?

-

Are there any words that you don’t think translate well into Japanese?

-

Which words do you think are positive, negative or neutral?

-

What words did you add to the list?

2. What kind of person are you?
-

Try to find at least four words from the vocabulary that apply to you.

-

Try to find four words that do not apply to you.

Conversation
Talk about…
a person you know who is tenacious
how studious you think that you are
the pros and cons of being an independent person
what you are passionate about
your artistic side
the most optimistic person you know
when being honest is best and when it is not
What do you think are important qualities in a…
friend?
boss?
parent?
teacher?
1010Practice
Write the best word on the line without checking the vocabulary page.
1. ___________________

He likes to make decisions by himself.

2. ___________________She studies hard.

3. ___________________She always thinks positively.

4. ___________________She likes to go out and meet new people.

5. ___________________He never gives up!

6. ___________________She has really strong feelings about things.

7. ___________________

He is musical and paints beautifully.

8. ___________________He never tells lies.

9. ___________________

He is a little bit overweight, but it looks good on him!

10. ___________________She likes to play sport.

11. ___________________She is pretty bossy.

12. ___________________

I think he is really handsome.

Who is it?
Look at the pictures your teacher hands you. Take turns to choose one person and describe him/her.
The other person must guess who is being described.
You can use phrases like…
S/he looks ~ (adjective)
S/he looks like a ~ (noun)
S/he has ~ (noun)
S/he is ~ (verb-ing) (adjective)

11

11

Unit 4:Home & Family

Vocabulary
duvet (n.)

wardrobe (n.)

stove (n.)

chest of drawers (n.)

blanket (n.)

safety pin (n.)

blender (n.)

beanbag (n.)

vacuum cleaner (n.)

coat hanger (n.)

mattress (n.)

power point (n.)

grater (n.)

tea towel (n.)

armchair (n.)

sink (n.)

tweezers (n.)

peg (n.)light bulb (n.)

palatial (adj.)

filthy (adj.)

sparse (adj.)

cluttered (adj.)

spotless (adj.)

cobweb (n.)

conditioner (n.)

casserole dish (n.)

percolator (n.)

cramped (adj.)

Warm up
1. Discuss the words in the vocabulary list.
-

Look at the nouns. Which of those things do you have in your house?

-

What were your five words of choice? Why did you choose them?

-

Look at the adjectives. Which ones do not apply to your house?

2. Who do you live with at the moment?
-

What are the pros and cons of the situation?

-

Who do you want to live with after you begin working fulltime?

Conversation
What does the outside of your house look like?



Do you like the place where you are living? Why or why not?



What is your favourite room in your house? Why?

How long have you lived where you are living now?

How many rooms are there in your house?

If you could change anything about your present home, what would it be?

Is your home in a convenient location?

What do you think is the worst colour for a living room?

What things in your home couldn't you live without?

Which room do you spend the least time in?

Which room do you spend the most time in?

What would you like to change in your house?

What is the colour of your front door?

What is your dream house like?

1212

Spot the DifferenceYour teacher will hand you a picture of a bedroom scene. Your partner will have the same scene, butthere will be ten small differences between your pictures. Try to find all ten by describing what you
see in your picture.
1. ___________________________________________________________________________
2. ___________________________________________________________________________
3. ___________________________________________________________________________
4. ___________________________________________________________________________
5. ___________________________________________________________________________
6. ___________________________________________________________________________
7. ___________________________________________________________________________
8. ___________________________________________________________________________
9. ___________________________________________________________________________
10. ___________________________________________________________________________

13

13

Unit 5:

Technology & Innovation

Vocabulary*Find an online newspaper article about a technological innovation and choose ten words to include in yourvocabulary list for this week from that article*

plug (n.)

adapter (n.)

innovative (adj.)

appliance (n.)

gadget (n.)

tech-savvy (adj.)

fuse (n.)

signal (n.)

antibiotics (n.)

entrepreneur (n.)

cyberspace (n.)

virtual (adj.)

device (n.)

initiative (n.)

patent (n.)

equipment (n.)

sophisticated (adj.)

develop (v.)

sustainable (adj.)

breakthrough (n.)

technophobe (n.)

cutting-edge (adj.)

blogosphere (n.)

bells & whistles (n.)

faulty (adj.)

Warm up
1. Discuss the article that you took your words from.
-

Describe what it was about.

-Explain the words that you chose from the article.

2. What technical gadgets have you used so far today?
-

How did you wake up this morning?

-

How did you get here?

-

What appliances did you use when making breakfast this morning?

DiscussionWhat kind of computer software do you use for completing university reports? Are you
skilled at using it?

Do you know any technophobes?

Do you own a smart phone? How many times a day do you use it? What for?



What kind of technology do you think the world would be better off without?

Are there any new gadgets that you are currently hankering after?

Have you ever used antibiotics? Why did you need them?



Have you ever blown a fuse – physically or metaphorically?

Have you ever experienced trouble with faulty equipment?



Many people would say that today’s younger generation is tech-savvy. Do you think that istrue for you? Your friends?



Are you an active member of the blogosphere?

1414What do you think?
What is your opinion about..
internet shopping?
downloading music illegally?
social media?
online privacy?
e-books?
Here are some important inventions from the last 100 years. Which one do you think is
the most significant? Rank them in order of importance (1 = most important).

bar codeink penmobile phone

microchipInternetplastic

15

15

antibiotics

Unit 6:

Places & Travel

Vocabulary*Please think about your most memorable traveling experience. You will share this with the class next week*

hitchhike (v.)

fare (n.)

destination (n.)

wonder (n.)

package deal (n.)

scenic (adj.)

exchange rate (n.)

commission (n.)

journey (n.)

customs (n.)

charter flight (n.)

yacht (n.)

poignant (adj.)

LCC (n.)geotourism (n.)

day-tripper (n.)

ruins (n.)

once-in-a-lifetime (adj.)

tourist trap (n.)

binoculars (n.)

currency (n.)

picturesque (adj.)

bustling (adj.)

gastronomy (n.)

unspoilt (adj.)

bleak (adj.)

tropical (adj.)

globetrotter (n.)

secluded (adj.)

ubiquitous (adj.)

Warm up
How many country names can you write?
A

J

S

B

K

T

C

L

U

D

M

V

E

N

W

F

O

X

G

P

Y

H

Q

Z

I

R

Discussion
What is your most memorable traveling experience? Share it with the class!

16

16

Travel Game

How many
prefectures
have youvisited?

Recommenda place tovisit in Aichi.

What do you
do to savemoney when
you travel?
Do you think
you have everfallen into a
tourist trap?
START&
FINISH

What is the mostbeautiful place
you have visited?

MISS A
TURN!

Describe yourjunior / seniorhigh school trip.

What’s yourbest travel
foodmemory?

Do you prefersecluded or
central travel
destinations?

What three
countries would
you most like tovisit?

Describe
your worst
travelexperience.

Name tendifferent
nationalities.

Ask your group
three travel
questions.

Make six“What is thecapital of ~”questions andask yourgroup.

What foreign
food don’t
you want totry?

What famousplaces in theword would
you like tovisit?

Is there any
country in theworld that you
don’t want to visit?
Why?

Name three
foreign foods
you would
like to try.

Have you ever had
any travel
emergencies ortrouble?
Why are you
interested inforeigncountries?

Describe thestrangest food you
have encountered
while travelling.

How many
languages canyou speak?
Demonstrate!

What is themostinteresting
place thatyou havevisited?

What activities
would you like to
try when you
travel?

What is yourimage of atropicalholiday?

Name tenworld
currencies.

17

17

How many
prefectures
have youvisited?

Name fivecountries
starting with
“C”.

What is themostpicturesqueplace you havebeen to?

ROLL
AGAIN!

U-TURN!

Unit 7:

Academic Words

Vocabulary*These words were chosen from an academic journal article. You can access it online here:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01973533.2014.934960

phenomenon (n.)

abstract (n.)

hypothesise (v.)

illustrate (v.)

endeavour (v.)

implicit (adj.)

activate (v.)

ethnic (adj.)

cognition (n.)

association (n.)

assess (v.)

participant (n.)

salient (adj.)

categorise (v.)

merge (v.)

pattern (n.)

divergent (adj.)

document (v.)

circumstances (n.)

radically (adv.)

endorse (v.)

consistent (adj.)

perception (n.)

distinguish (v.)

engage (v.)

assumption (n.)

predict (v.)

optimal (adj.)

pilot study (n.)

parameter (n.)

Warm up
1. How did you find this week’s word list?
-

Which words were difficult to understand?

-

Which words were difficult to remember?

-

Did you use lang-8 to make sentences with the words?

2. Do you have to read a lot of academic material in English?
-

Where do you find most of your information for reports?

-

Do your classes require you to read journal articles written in English?

Read & Discuss
We will read the abstract from an academic journal article. The title of the article is Silent or Talking in
the Classroom: Implicit Self-Stereotyping Among Asian and White Students (Devos, T. & Yokoyama,Y., 2014). Discuss these questions before you read:1.

From the title, what do you think this article is about?

2.

Do you think there are any differences between the behaviour of Asian and White students in theclassroom?

3.

How would you describe your own typical classroom behaviour? Does it depend on the class?
Your classmates?

4.

What are the stereotypes for Japanese students and White students?

18

18

ABSTRACTIn academic settings, Asian students are often described as less talkative than White students. We
provide an account of this phenomenon based on research on cultural inﬂuences on the self,
self-categorization, and implicit social cognition. We hypothesized that the classroom context activatesa process of implicit self-stereotyping. Asian and White participants were asked to imagine themselvesin a classroom or leisure context. Next, they completed Implicit Association Tests assessing theirself-concept, ethnic stereotypes, and ethnic identiﬁcation. In the classroom context only, ethnic
stereotypes accounted for a more reserved self-concept among Asian participants and a more talkative
self-concept among White participants.

Abstract taken from:
Devos, T. & Yokoyama, Y. (2014). Silent or Talking in the Classroom: Implicit Self-Stereotyping
Among Asian and White Students. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 36:5, 386-396, DOI:
10.1080/01973533.2014.934960 Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01973533.2014.934960

Now discuss these questions:1.

Write the underlined expressions in simpler English.
academic settings =an account of this phenomenon =implicit social cognition =2.

Do you think that stereotypes about Japanese people influence the way you think about yourself?
Does that affect the way you behave?

19

19

Unit 8:Social Issues

Vocabularycontroversy (n.)

poverty (n.)

sustainable (adj.)

stock exchange (n.)

summit (n.)

embezzle (v.)

infrastructure (n.)

mortgage (n.)

slump (n.)

welfare (n.)

constitutional (adj.)

sanction (n.)

provoke (v.)

hostage (n.)

protocol (n.)

extremist (adj.)

uphill battle (n.)

radiation (n.)

evacuate (v.)

suicide (n.)

censor (v.)

euthanasia (n.)

immigration (n.)

capital punishment (n.)

donate (v.)

demonstration (n.)

catastrophe (n.)

Warm up
1. Discuss the words in the vocabulary list.
-

Which of these words do you think are relevant to life in Japan these days?

-

Read the words aloud and decide where the accents are.

2. Are you up-to-date?
-

Do you read/watch/listen to the news?

-

Are you interested in current events?

-

What have you seen in the news recently?

Discussion
Choose one question from below. You will have ten minutes to discuss, then one person shouldsummarise your discussion for the group.
Can you think of any news stories related to these topics?
embezzlement

hostage-taking

suicidecensorshipdemonstrations

extremists

What are the pros and cons of euthanasia? Do you think it should be legalised?

What do you think about capital punishment? Do you agree with it?

What do you think about immigration in Japan? What issues does it involve?

20

20

Writing
Choose the five words that you think are the most difficult to understand.
Now use those words to write five interesting, challenging sentences!
1. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
4. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

21

21

Unit 9:

Talking About Japan

Vocabulary
fish cake (n.)

red bean jam (n.)

amulet (n.)

population density (n.)

altar (n.)

acupuncture (n.)

superstition (n.)

stroke (n.)

Coming of Age Day (n.)

offend (v.)

archipelago (n.)

incense (n.)

shoot (n.)

offering box (n.)

seasonal (adj.)

ancestor (n.)

fault lines (n.)

bureaucracy (n.)

herbal medicine (n.)

emperor (n.)

Warm up
1. Discuss the words.
-

Are there any words that you don’t think are really related to Japan?

-

What other words did you choose this week?

2. Discuss the images below.
-

What is it? In English.

-

What are your personal opinions or experiences related to this item or idea?

Images from www.printout.jp/clipart/

22

22

Culture Capsule
You are making a culture capsule to send to another country. The people there know nothing about
Japan at all. You can put ten items into your capsule. What will you choose? Why?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
DiscussDo you consider yourself a traditional person?

Have you ever experienced culture shock?



What is your favourite “washoku” food?

What are your family’s New Year’s Traditions? How about Christmas? Birthdays?





23

23

Unit 10:Bringing it All Together

Through this course you have learned more than 350 words related to a range of topics. Hopefully
you went beyond that and used Anki to learn even more!
You do not need to prepare anything for this class. Just keep on revising your Anki words. It will bea fun wrap-up and revision of what we have studied this semester.

24

24

Anki Log
Name: _____________________________
Date

Review

Card input

(○△×)

(○△×)

Comment

25

25

Anki Log
Name: _____________________________
Date

Review

Card input

(○△×)

(○△×)

Comment

26

26

Anki Log
Name: _____________________________
Date

Review

Card input

(○△×)

(○△×)

Comment27

27

Anki Log
Name: _____________________________
Date

Review

Card input

(○△×)

(○△×)

Comment

28

28

Useful Resources
Anki
A valuable (yet free!) downloadable application for computer or smartphone. It will be installed in
the iCoToBa computers but I strongly recommend you download the software onto your own PC.
You can also access AnkiWeb from your smartphone.
Anki download: http://ankisrs.net/
User manual (English): http://ankisrs.net/docs/manual.html
User manual (Japanese): http://wikiwiki.jp/rage2050/?FrontPage
AnkiWeb: https://ankiweb.net/
Fluent ForeverThis is a wonderful book about language learning. The website has all sorts of tips on how toperfect your second language, including videos showing how to use Anki.
https://fluent-forever.com
Forvo
This site has a huge database of pre-recorded words in more than 300 languages! You need tocreate an account to use this service but it is free and you can access the mp3 files immediately.
There are often multiple recordings for a word and you can choose your preferred accent. If yourword is not there, you can request it.
http://www.forvo.com/
Google Images
By using Google Images, you can find great pictures for your flashcards, and can also make surethat your idea of the word is the same as in the country in which it is used. If you click on a picture
you can also see the (English) caption that comes with it; a good way to check out how to use theword in a sentence or phrase. Choose your Google Images site according to the country in which
you are hoping to use your English.
(USA) https://images.google.com/(Aus) https://images.google.com.au/(UK) https://www.google.co.uk/imghp?gws_rd=ssl
lang-8You can use this website to have free native-speaker writing checks. You need to create an accountbut the service is free, as long as you are also willing to correct other people’s (Japanese) writing.
If you correct many entries for other people, then your writing will go to the top of the list and you
will get your corrections faster.
lang-8.com

29

29

Online dictionaries
There are many free online dictionaries that you can use. These will be much faster that referring
to your electronic dictionary each time you make a new card. Check the word even if you think you

know it because there may be nuances that you were not aware of.
I like this one because it offers examples sentences, conjugations and collocations but is not toocomplex: http://www.wordreference.com/
This one will give very simple word translations: http://www.nihongodict.com/
This is a popular choice for translating but is a database of translations not an official dictionary:
http://www.alc.co.jp/
This one offers sound recordings: http://en.bab.la/dictionary/english-japanese/
A simple search will yield many other possibilities – find the one that works best for you.
rhinospike
You can use this website to get audio recordings made of any text you like! You submit the text,
and wait for a native speaker to record it and send you the mp3. You also contribute by recording
someone else’s (Japanese) text. This is pretty easy to do if you have a smartphone. It can take alittle bit of time for your recording to get finished and sent back to you.
https://rhinospike.com/

30

30

執筆者
坂本 ファーン（L&R7R%D 英語担当）










:RUG3RZHU6WXGHQW%RRN
 年  月発行
発行：愛知県立大学 L&R7R%D（多言語学習センター）
〒− 愛知県長久手市茨ヶ廻間 －( 棟  階 (PDLOLFRWRED#IRUDLFKLSXDFMS
KWWSZZZIRUDLFKLSXDFMSLFRWRED
本教材は、愛知県立大学グローバル人材育成推進事業の成果の一部として刊行された。

印刷 株式会社 あるむ0