Frankenstein-like appendages no more.
One of the biggest obstacles for early Japanese language learners is making sense of conjugation.
Of course, intermediate and advanced learners also share in these struggles, and most of us get a sense for how oddly we’ve been taught when we ask our Japanese friends for help. Haven’t experienced this yet? Give it a shot. Ask a Japanese friend how to untangle one of those so-called ru-verbs, or u-verbs and be prepared for the blank stare to follow. て-form? た-form? Um…?
Mary Shelley did not write Japanese grammar books for a living, but with the way Japanese grammar is often taught, she does appear to have been an inspirational force.
Most Japanese language learning has been historically designed to get learners up and running fast—attach this to that, gulp down more than your fair share of abstract conjugation rules, memorize a million exceptions to those very rules, and then drill, drill, drill. It is a recipe for mediocrity.
Of course, we shalt not ignore those with unmitigated gobs of motivation, superior study skills, superb habit-making chops, and perhaps access to a saint of a teacher who teaches with verve, and beyond the textbook. We all know such folks, either online, or in person—they went from zero Japanese to masterful practitioners in what feels like one fell swoop. Sadly, their talents are not possessed by all, and part of the way Japanese is taught is part of the reason it is most difficult for most learners.
Because, even IF the average learner can manage the hefty intellectual weight of remembering all the conjugation “rules” set out for us, and we have all the study time necessary to cement that stuff to memory, we still inevitably hit a massive wall when it comes exhibiting any real degree of literacy. Japanese language learners, and even long-term residents of Japan, who never made it past the second textbook, who know a “few hundred kanji,” who meekly say they can write their name and address in Japanese are legion. I know because I am (for now) one of them. How many people do you know who say they “get by?” That they “know enough?” That they “tried, but couldn’t?” Far too many, right? That story does not have to be your story. And, if it is now, it does not have to remain that way. I am famously “Student #1” at Maplopo. You can change your game as well.
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With our first language, we soaked up the “rules” of grammar rather naturally; this too is possible with Japanese. One key to getting there is to slow down. To go backwards, even… to correct, and unlearn bad methodologies. Using Frankenstein-like shortcuts to learn Japanese is silly. ESPECIALLY, when there are better (more natural) shortcuts that make sense every day of the week.
At Maplopo, we teach Japanese conjugation the way it’s taught to those who grow up with the language; we use naturally flowing conjugation tables, occasionally bending the visuals to make things even more clear. Everything is taught in English, and we address just about every why you could possibly dream up so you are never confused… never left behind. And, because everything is recorded and taught in bite-sized chunks, your self-study journey will allow to learn as time permits.
Next to our grammar video modules, our conjugation modules are among our learners’ most favorite things. We hear this from beginner learners as well as full-fledged Japanese language translators. These conjugation modules will turn on numerous lightbulbs and clear away tons of mud.
Give the videos on this page a spin. They’re mashups, but they’ll show you want you’re in for when you learn with us.
Let’s leave Frankenstein to Abbott & Costello why don’t we? We have some real learning to do, no?
—Doc Kane
Co-founder and COO, Maplopo
March 22, 2025
