Each of us is simultaneously auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learners. When we learn hiragana/katakana (or anything) we must use all these types of learning.
In his 1987 article, Learning and teaching styles in engineering education, Richard M. Felder and Dr. Linda Silver discussed the different types of students who require different teaching styles, particularly in the challenging field of engineering. To meet the challenges of a class full of diverse learners, they cite the importance of “teaching to address all learning styles.”
The same goes for learning Japanese kana (hiragana and katakana). What Dr. Silver and Richard Felder were saying is true. Different types of learners must use different learning methods.
Going one step further every we learn with all learning styles, but at different levels of information retention for each of those styles. For example, maybe you are 10% kinesthetic, but 40% auditory and 50% visual. So it’s not just an auditory learner absorbing information in audiobooks, or just a visual learner getting information with pictures, or just a kinesthetic learner needing an activity… but these are all on different levels with each new set of information and/or skill set to be learned. This means that you must use all methods to learn new information. Use all your senses to collect new data.
Visual learning techniques
あ is a hiragana letter (also known as a kana) that makes the “AH” sound. With visualization, it helps to use shocking images such as violence or sex. For example, to memorize あ, imagine the letter “e” being struck so hard that if it flips backwards, you then stab it with a sharp cruciform sword that looks like a t. The e stabbed and backwards makes a pitiful “Ahh” sound as it passes into the afterlife. Merge tye isn’t exactly what it looks like あ, but it’s close enough to help with memorization. The more impactful the image, the less likely you are to forget it.
Auditory learning techniques
We use a little auditory with the visual learning technique of our dying あ making the “Ahh” sound and you can use it with all hiragana and katakana letters. Auditory works even better with words. Because you can use a sound in Japanese that sounds like something you recognize. For example, the Japanese word for “you’re welcome” is “dou itashimashite.” This sounds like “Don’t touch my moustache” in English. Sound association is a good way to remember hiragana, words, and even complete Japanese phrases.
Kinesthetic learning techniques
Kinesthetic includes some type of movement or activity. Thus, including flashcards, writing, or sounding out the words are all examples of kinesthetic (also known as tactile) learning. It can also be merged with our first visualization of あ. We imagine the shock of being stabbed, but if we included kinesthetics, we could imagine what it would feel like to stab “e” ourselves. Kinesthetic is best for learning to write hiragana and katakana.
The above are just a few examples of using visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning to memorize and retain hiragana and katakana. Don’t limit yourself to any one style of memorization because we are all visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners. Combine them all together using all the senses to capture the language. Don’t be fooled by the dominance of one of your learning styles and don’t minimize the effectiveness of your weaker one.
We have developed a Hiragana practice game called Moji Master http://mojimaster.com for the iPhone that incorporates the combination of these hiragana and katakana learnings with visual, auditory and kinesthetic ones.