日本語 Coach roadmap / 1-on-1 reference
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The road to N1
Daily non-negotiables
- Full daily native-level immersion — as much as possible without overwhelming them
- Grammar fundamentals — at least 3 new patterns every day
- Vocabulary — at least 15 new sentence cards a day, or 500 new words a month
- Tracking sheet, when applicable
- Every action, every day. Even 1 minute counts. 1 is better than 0.
Priority order — when they can only do some of it
- 1Watching
- 2Listening
- 3Reading
- 4Grammar
- 5Anki flashcards
- 6Speaking
- 7Writing
- 8Testing
- 9Everything else
Setting S.M.A.R.T. goals
Every 1-on-1, no exceptionsSpecific
Name the action and the material, never the skill. “Get better at listening” is not a goal. “One episode with Japanese subtitles” is.
Measurable
A number they can report back to you next meeting. Cards made, patterns learned, hours listened, partners found.
Achievable
Size it to survive their worst day. If it breaks on a sick day or a vacation day, cut it down until it can’t.
Relevant
It must move a graduation requirement or sit high on the priority order. Below #5 on that list, ask why it’s a goal at all.
Time-bound
Write the daily rate, not the total, and set the review date — which is your next 1-on-1 with them.
Run it in this order
- Read last meeting’s numbers out loud first. Hit or missed — say the actual figure before setting anything new.
- Open their stage card and find the gap. The goal comes from the nearest unmet graduation requirement.
- Convert the total into a daily rate. 250 grammar patterns is 3 a day. 500 words a month is 15 cards a day.
- Cap it at 1–3 goals. Weight them toward the top of the priority order — watching, listening, reading.
- Set the 1-minute floor for each one. This is what they do on a bad day so the streak never breaks. 1 is better than 0.
- Name one challenge and one milestone. Definitions on the right.
- Write the review date. Next 1-on-1. They should know exactly what you’ll ask them.
Goal vs challenge vs milestone
- GOALThe daily rate they repeat every single day. 3 patterns. 15 cards. 2 hours of passive listening.
- CHALLENGEA short push with an end date. Seven straight days at 2 hours. One new language partner this week.
- MILESTONEThe graduation marker they’re crossing. Card #500 — the monolingual gate. RTK halfway. First project submitted.
Rewrite it in front of them
“I’ll study kanji more this month.”
Strong20 RTK cards a day, floor of 5 on a bad day. Puts them at 50% of the book by the March 1-on-1.
“I want to speak better.”
StrongContact 1 new language partner per week and hold one 30-minute call. Floor: 1 message sent.
What they say → what you do
Nothing matches that.
Try their own words — boring, tired, kanji, partner, vacation, reviews — or