Beyond Fundamentals
Everyday Japanese 1
Beyond Fundamentals is a course series mainly designed for upper beginning to intermediate learners who are ready to move past the basics and start using Japanese in more real-life situations. Building on the concepts introduced in the Japanese Fundamentals series, this course focuses on practical application—helping students communicate more confidently in everyday contexts. Classes are conducted 40 – 70% in Japanese. The course uses selected chapters from Irodori: Japanese for Life in Japan (Elementary 1) as a foundation and is adapted for learners who already have some elementary knowledge. Completion of the Japanese Fundamentals series is recommended though not required.
Everyday Japaense 1: Course Description
In Everyday Japanese 1, students will begin using Japanese to talk more meaningfully about their daily lives. Building on foundational knowledge, the focus will be on sharing about oneself, including topics such as personal interests, seasonal activities, weather, and hometown.
Students will learn to express their thoughts using more connected and natural sentence structures, allowing for smoother and more detailed communication. Through guided practice and interactive activities, learners will gain confidence in combining ideas, giving reasons, and describing experiences in a more nuanced way.
Text Book: Irodori: Japanese for Life in Japan (Elementary 1) Lesson 1 – 6
Key grammar and expressions covered in this course include:
- Describing ongoing actions (V-ています)
- Talking about preferences and abilities (V/Adj-のがすきです, V-ることができます)
- Talking about things you like to do using nominalized verbs (V-ることです)
- Connecting ideas and sequencing actions (V1-て、V2; S1から、S2)
- Listing and giving examples (N1やN2; N1とかN2とか)
- Describing states (Noun/Adjになります)
- Combining adjectives and sentences (N/Adjで・くて〜; N/Adjけど〜)
By the end of the course, students will be able to express themselves with greater flexibility and clarity in everyday situations, moving beyond simple sentences toward more natural, connected communication.
Tuition & Registration
Member: $180
Non-member: $230
Membership Bundle*: $210 (Save $15!)
*JASDFW regular individual/family membership + Tuition
- Mondays, February 23rd – April 13th
- 7:00pm – 8:10pm CST
- 8 sessions - Make-up Date*: April 20th
- Instructor: Mariko Nijo
- Tuesdays, June 30th – August 18th
- 7:30pm – 8:40pm CST
- 8 sessions - Make-up Date*: August 25th
- Instructor: Chikako Lee
- Wednesdays, February 4th – March 25th
- 12:00pm – 1:10pm CST
- 8 sessions - Make-up Date: April 1st
- Instructor: Mariko Nijo
- Wednesdays, February 4th – March 25th
- 7:00pm – 8:10pm CST
- 8 sessions - Make-up Date: April 1st
- Instructor: Mariko Nijo
* The make-up day is only applicable if a class is canceled during the session. If no cancellations occur, the course will conclude on the scheduled date.
Japanese classes will be conducted via Zoom. Attendees must have a device with audio and video capabilities, as well as an internet connection. The Japan-America Society of Dallas/Fort Worth reserves the right to cancel the class if it does not meet the minimum attendance number. Please contact us at ikuko@jasdfw.org if you have questions about this workshop and language classes.
Our Language Program Policy outlines guidelines regarding refunds, cancellations, minor student participation, and related program policies. All participants must review the policy prior to registration.
Course Description & Objectives
This course is for beginners who are looking for a general understanding of the Japanese language and to practice some common expressions used in personal conversations. The course will touch a little bit of everything of the good-to-know basics as learners begin their Japanese learning journey. Prior knowledge of Japanese characters (Hiragana, Katakana, & Kanji) is not required to take this course. Students will be able to:
- Appropriately demonstrate a variety of greetings and parting phrases.
- Demonstrate the use of a variety of basic and essential daily expressions such as yes/no, thank you/sorry, and excuse me.
- Practice introducing themselves appropriately.
- Practice sharing simple personal details such as where they live, likes/dislikes, and talents and skills.
- Examine basic sentence structures and create simple sentences about themselves.
- Examine the roles of particles in Japanese and become familiar with some basic particles.
- Recognize basic hiragana characters and distinguish them from other characters (katakana and kanji).
- Examine how cultural values are reflected in Japanese language use, exploring not just its structure but the social and cultural contexts.
Japanese Language Program
Tuition
Costs (8-session courses )
workshops are separate price
Member: $180
Non-member: $230
Membership Bundle*: $210 (Save $15!)
*JASDFW regular individual/family membership + Tuition
Registration
- Tuesdays, April
- 8:30pm – 8:40pm CST
- 6 sessions - Make-up Date: March 31st
- Instructor: Nina
- Wednesdays, February 4th – March 25th
- 12:00pm – 1:10pm CST
- 8 sessions - Make-up Date: April 1st
- Instructor: Mariko Nijo
- Wednesdays, February 4th – March 25th
- 7:00pm – 8:10pm CST
- 8 sessions - Make-up Date: April 1st
- Instructor: Mariko Nijo
- Mondays, February 23rd – April 13th
- 7:00pm – 8:10pm CST
- 8 sessions - Make-up Date: April 20th
- Instructor: Izumi Sakurada
* The make-up day is only applicable if a class is canceled during the session. If no cancellations occur, the course will conclude on the scheduled date.
Japanese Language Program Policy
Updated January 27, 2026
General Class/Program Policy
- All classes will be conducted via Zoom. Attendees must have a device with audio and video capabilities, as well as an internet connection.
- All Japanese Fundamentals classes and workshops will be recorded, and students will have access to the recording for a limited period.
- Sharing of any Zoom Meeting information or recorded videos with third parties is not allowed. Students must use their registered names as the usernames when joining each session. Attendance will be taken for each lesson.
- Classes are designed for students 16 years and older. Please contact the language program manager before registering if the student interested is younger than 16 years. Participation by minors is subject to approval and requires a parent or guardian consent form.
- Each class will have a minimum of 5 students and a maximum of 15 students. JASDFW reserves the right to cancel the class if it does not meet the minimum attendance number.
- For a class that uses a textbook, students will be provided with textbook information to order online on their own. They are expected to have it ready before the first day of class.
- Occasionally, we are required to replace an instructor or change the schedule. While we try to avoid these changes, we reserve the right to make them as needed.
- Students should check their spam or junk email folders to avoid missing any confirmations or emails from the instructor.
- Student contact information collected from the registration process may be given to the instructor of the class for teaching and/or emergency purposes.
- Please keep receipt of tuition payment when registering online.
Lesson Cancellations
- Lessons will be rescheduled when JASDFW cancels a lesson due to teacher emergencies or other unforeseen and nature-related circumstances. A tornado warning in the Dallas area, power outages and loss of internet connections have led to lesson cancellations in the past.
- If a lesson is canceled, the schedule typically shifts by a week pushing the last day of class later. However, the teacher and students may come to an agreement to meet on another day of the same week or twice in another week.
- If no students are present in a particular lesson for no apparent reason, the session will not be canceled or rescheduled. The instructor will record the lesson and the recording link will be sent to the students the following day.
Course Cancellation/Refunds
- If we cancel a course due to low enrollment or other unforeseen circumstances, students already registered will be notified via email and receive a full refund.
- Course cancellations due to low enrollments will be determined no later than 3 days before the starting date.
- Cancellation Refunds:
- Cancellations made at least 7 days before a class starting date will receive a 100% refund.
- Cancellations from 7 days to 1 day (24 hours) before a class starts will receive a 75 % refund.
- Refunds will not be granted for cancellations made less than 24 hours before the start of a class. After that, tuition is non-refundable and non-transferable.
- Please email the language program manager to request tuition refunds.
- Notwithstanding the above policy, JASDFW reserves the right to grant refunds contrary to this policy on a case-by-case basis.
Certification
- Students may request a certificate of completion by emailing the language program manager at the end of each term. To qualify for a certificate of completion, students need to attend 6 or more live sessions and complete at least 8 assignments (5 quizzes and 3 speaking practices) during the session.
- Completing our classes is different from passing the Japan Language Proficiency Test or any other test of Japanese skills.
Class Recording and Copyright Policy
- All online classes offered by the Japan-America Society of Dallas/Fort Worth (JASDFW) are recorded for educational and review purposes. These recordings will be made available only to enrolled students through secure platforms designated by JASDFW.
- Students are strictly prohibited from recording any portion of the class using personal devices or third-party software. This policy is in place to protect the privacy of all participants and to comply with copyright laws.
- All class materials, including but not limited to recordings, handouts, presentations, and audio-visual content, are the intellectual property of the Japan-America Society of Dallas/Fort Worth. These materials are protected under U.S. copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, or shared outside of class without prior written permission from JASDFW.
- Violation of this policy may result in disciplinary action, including removal from the course without a refund.
Contact
Please contact the Language Programs Manager at ikuko@jasdfw.org for any questions.
Language Workshops
Join our Japanese Language Program Email list
Get news from Japanese Language Program at Japan-America Society of Dallas/Fort Worth.
