2026 (Current Year) Faculty Courses Liberal arts and basic science courses Japanese language and culture courses
Japanese kanji: Basic 3 3QA
- Academic unit or major
- Japanese language and culture courses
- Instructor(s)
- Midori Yoshida
- Class Format
- Exercise
- Media-enhanced courses
- -
- Day of week/Period
(Classrooms) - Class
- 3QA
- Course Code
- LAJ.T417
- Number of credits
- 010
- Course offered
- 2026
- Offered quarter
- 3Q
- Syllabus updated
- Mar 24, 2026
- Language
- Japanese
Syllabus
Course overview and goals
This course focuses on basic Japanese kanji, and covers the fundamentals of Japanese hiragana and kanji calligraphy.
Course description and aims
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
1. Read and write 80 basic kanji letters;
2. Understand how to stroke with brush, and to further write Japanese kanji accordingly.
Keywords
kanji, calligraphy, brush
Competencies
- Specialist skills
- Intercultural skills
- Communication skills
- Critical thinking skills
- Practical and/or problem-solving skills
Class flow
1. Students are expected to focus on the components which make up each kanji at first, and then to link and categorize kanji which have common components. Through this method, students will discover interest in kanji, while acquiring the skills to learn kanji efficiently.
2. Students are also expected learn the basic rules and stroke order of kanji through practical brush stroke exercises.
Course schedule/Objectives
| Course schedule | Objectives | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | Basics of kanji （Kanji formed from pictures /Kanji formed from symbols） ，calligraphy（hiragana） |
Prepare pp. 12–35 of the course textbook before coming to class. |
| Class 2 | Kanji quiz（pp12-21) |
Review Lesson1 and Lesson2 before coming to class. |
| Class 3 | Kanji quiz（L1,L2) |
Review Lesson３ and Lesson４ before coming to class. |
| Class 4 | Review(L1~L4）、calligraphy(L1-L4 kanji) |
Review Lesson 1〜４ before coming to class. |
| Class 5 | Kanji quiz（L1〜L４) |
Review Lesson 1〜４ before coming to class. |
| Class 6 | Kanji quiz（L5〜L6) |
Review Lesson 5 and Lesson 6 before coming to class. |
| Class 7 | Review and Examination (Lesson 1-15) ，calligraphy |
|
Study advice (preparation and review)
To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.
Textbook(s)
Suzuki, Eiko. CONNECTING WITH KANJI : A Workbook for beginners. Tokyo: ALC. ISBN：978-4-7574-2618-4
Reference books, course materials, etc.
None required.
Evaluation methods and criteria
Students’ course scores are based on exams (80%) and calligraphy (20%).
(Students are required to attend more than 60% of the scheduled classes and to positively participate in the class activities to pass this course.)
Related courses
- LAJ.T418 ： Japanese kanji: Basic 4
Prerequisites
This course is for students who do not use kanji in their first language.