01 · READ
Five new kana.
Recognise and pronounce さ・し・す・せ・そ.
INDOMURA JAPANESE
LANGUAGE • LIFE • CULTURE
Foundation · Hiragana 03
I can ask
a question.
Five new hiragana open the door to something much bigger: your first real two-way Japanese exchange. Read, write, listen, ask — and understand the answer.
さ・し・す・せ・そ
QUESTIONS
YES / NO
REAL JAPANESE
LISTENING
さ
し
す
せ
そ
し
Today you'll learn
From reading Japanese to talking with someone.
This lesson keeps building your writing system, but the larger goal is communication. By the end, you can ask a simple question, understand a yes or no response, and follow your first miniature conversation.
02 · WRITE
Learn the movement.
Select one kana, watch its stroke order once, then practise it.
03 · ASK
Turn a statement into a question.
Use か to begin asking simple polite questions.
04 · RESPOND
Have an exchange.
Understand はい、そうです and いいえ、ちがいます.
Five new sounds
さ し す せ そ
Listen before reading the romaji. One member of this row deserves special attention: し is pronounced SHI, not “si.”
さ
SA
S + あ
し
SHI
Not “si”
す
SU
Light “su”
せ
SE
S + え
そ
SO
S + お
Hear the row
Five sounds. One rhythm.
Follow the Japanese characters with your eyes, listen once, then repeat the entire line yourself.
さ
し
す
せ
そ
SA
SHI
SU
SE
SO
LISTEN · FOLLOW · REPEAT
し
Sound spotlight
Let your ear learn し before your alphabet does.
You may expect the second sound of this row to behave like “si.” Japanese does not.
Listen to the Japanese sound itself. In our romaji system, し is written SHI.
し = SHI
Kana Writing Studio
One character at a time.
Choose one kana below. Nothing moves until you press play. Watch the complete stroke order once, then practise it before moving to the next character.
Loading writing guide…
Ready.
Press play when you are ready to watch.
さ
SA
Watch the upper movements first,
then notice how the final curve gives
さ its balance.
Practice:
Select → Play → Watch → Trace → Write
Now use your hand
Watch first. Then write from memory.
After practising one character in the Writing Studio, trace its pale model here and then reproduce it in the blank square or on paper.
さ · 3 STROKES
さ
TRACE
し · 1 STROKE
し
TRACE
す · 2 STROKES
す
TRACE
せ · 3 STROKES
せ
TRACE
そ · 1 STROKE
そ
TRACE
Vocabulary
Fifteen hiragana are already becoming real words.
Read the Japanese first. Use the romaji only when you need support. From here, Japanese increasingly takes visual priority.
すし
SUSHI
sushi
いす
ISU
chair
そこ
SOKO
there
あさ
ASA
morning
しお
SHIO
salt
せかい
SEKAI
world
Romaji is beginning to step aside.
From now on,
try to recognise the Japanese before looking underneath it.
We will continue reducing romaji gradually rather than removing it suddenly.
Read before revealing
Can your eyes recognise the word without help?
Say each word aloud before clicking. Then reveal the meaning.
The question switch
One small sound changes the job of the sentence.
You already know the statement. Now watch what happens when か arrives at the end.
これは すし です。
ADD
か
AT THE END
これは すし ですか。
これは すし です。
says:
“This is sushi.”
これは すし ですか。
asks:
“Is this sushi?”
See it · ask it · answer it
Japanese now belongs to the world in front of you.
Look at the scene, understand the question and choose the natural response.
MISSION 01 · YES
これは すし ですか。
Is this sushi?
Choose the response.
MISSION 02 · NO
これは すし ですか。
Is this sushi?
Look at the photograph before answering.
Your first two-way exchange
You're no longer saying Japanese alone.
Listen to each side, then play both speakers yourself.
A
これは すし ですか。
Is this sushi?
B
はい、そうです。
Yes, that's right.
B
いいえ、ちがいます。
No, that's not right.
A
これは いす ですか。
Is this a chair?
B
はい、そうです。
Yes, that's right.
間
Japanese in real life
Japanese often trusts the situation.
Beginning learners often repeat every noun because they are translating directly from English. Japanese conversation frequently relies more heavily on shared context.
When both speakers already know what is being discussed, repeating everything may be unnecessary.
これは すし ですか。
Is this sushi?
はい、そうです。 Yes, that's right.
はい、そうです。 Yes, that's right.
The answer does not need to repeat これは すし です . Both speakers already understand the topic.
Listening lab
First hear the structure. Then hear Japanese.
Play the slower version first. Then listen at natural speed without staring at the written sentence.
STEP 01 · SLOW
Hear the parts.
Listen for これは → すし → ですか.
STEP 02 · NATURAL
Hear the meaning.
Don't chase every syllable. Listen for the complete question.
What did you hear?
Cumulative review
Fifteen hiragana now belong to the same system.
Read all three rows aloud. Every new lesson should strengthen the kana you learned before it.
あ
い
う
え
お
か
き
く
け
こ
さ
し
す
せ
そ
Sound detective
Which sound is this?
し
Choose the matching sound.
15
/ 46 BASIC HIRAGANA
What I can do now
I can begin a conversation.
Japanese is no longer only something you recognise. You can now ask for information and understand a simple response.
I recognise 15 basic hiragana.
I can practise さ・し・す・せ・そ in stroke order.
I can read words such as すし・いす・あさ.
I can ask これは ___ ですか。
I can understand a simple yes or no response.
I can follow a short Japanese exchange.
Next · Lesson 06