SHODO JAPAN a new way to enjoy learning Japanese! Learn Japanese calligraphy ONLINE! Study using tutorial videos presented in natural English.

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course

Course Guide Course Guide

Course Guide

Free assessment and counseling
 This is a free service we offer for first-time users of SHODO Japan.If you already possess your own calligraphy tools, we will send you an assignment, which you will reproduce and upload, and an instructor will give you a free assessment. Once you sign up you can submit assignments.
難易度
初心者～中級者向け
For Beginners?Intermediate learners Advanced Courses
(For students who have completed the intermediate course)		 Request Course
Introductory Course
Beginner Course
Intermediate Course
Advanced Course
Examination Course
Request Course

Introductory Course （Lesson：6、 90days）

Course Outline

 This course gets beginners familiar with calligraphy tools, tool usage and the basics of proper brush technique. Assignments include kanji characters learned by first-year elementary school students in Japan.
After the final lesson, the instructor will assess student progress and recommend the next level course to take.
Introductory level courses may continue through Intro Course EX I（90 days）and Intro Course EX II（90 days） as recommended by the instructor.

Curriculum

 （Difficulty ★☆☆☆☆）
① Calligraphy Tools & Usage, Basic Brush Technique
② Using the Brush
③ Basic Brush Technique
④ Kanji (1 character)
⑤ Kanji (2 characters)
⑥　 Hiragana (2 characters)

Course Fee
￥12,000（w/o tax）

Best for

Best for：First-time students of calligraphy, students wanting to review the basics

（To enroll, you must register for free site membership and login）

Beginner Course （Lesson：6、 90days）

Course Outline

 This course is for students already familiar with calligraphy tools and their usage.
This course includes hiragana and kanji characters. Assignments cover kanji learned in years 1-3 of elementary school in Japan.
After the final lesson, the instructor will assess student progress and recommend the next level course to take.

Curriculum

 （Difficulty ★★☆☆☆）
① Kanji (1 character)
② Kanji (2 characters)
③ Hiragana (4 characters)

Bonus

Your name written in hiragana!

Course Fee
￥15,000（w/o tax）

Best for

Students who have finished the Introductory Course, or beginners with some calligraphy experience.

（To enroll, you must register for free site membership and login）

Intermediate Course （Lesson：12、 180days）

Course Outline

 This course contains more difficult characters than the Beginner Course, and there will be more characters to an assignment.
Some assignments include a mix of kanji and hiragana, and the student will have the opportunity to learn more practical Japanese expressions. Kanji, hiragana and also katakana will be covered. Assignments cover kanji learned in years 4-6 of elementary school in Japan.
After the final lesson, the instructor will assess student progress and recommend the next level course to take.
Intermediate courses may continue with Intermediate Course EX I（180 days）as recommended by the instructor.

Curriculum

 （Difficulty ★★★☆☆〜★★★★）
① Kanji (1-2 characters)
② Kanji (3-4 characters)
③ Kanji/Hiragana (+Katakana) up to 6 characters

Bonus

Your name in Katakana!

Course Fee
￥36,000（w/o tax）

Best for

Students who have completed the Beginner Course or students with 2 years or more experience willing to commit to a 180-day program.
We also recommend Intermediate level courses as preparation for the Examination Course.

（To enroll, you must register for free site membership and login）

Advanced Course （Lesson：24、 360days）

Course Outline

 This course is the highest level of difficulty in terms of kanji characters. Besides writing in regular script, this course will cover semi-cursive and cursive script, allowing for more beautiful and artistic character renditions. This is the course for students looking to explore the depths that calligraphy study has to offer. Assignments cover kanji learned in junior high school, and include characters that even native Japanese may have difficulty reproducing on command. Other sizes and styles of media will also be used to create works. Skype lessons will be conducted as private, one-on-one 30-minute sessions.
In the advanced course, assignments can also be tailored to the student.
For example, if the student wishes to learn extra difficult or complex kanji or practice long sentences, the Advanced Course can accommodate.
Upon completion, the Advanced Course can be retaken as desired. Each course runs 360 days.

Curriculum

 （Difficulty ★★★★☆〜★★★★★）
① Kanji (4 characters)
② Kanji (5-6 characters)
③ High-level Kanji
④ Proverbs・4-character idioms
⑤ Hiragana/Katakana・Sentences

Bonus

① Your name in Kanji! (regular and semi-cursive)
② Handmade high-quality calligraphy paper-1,000 sheets（¥5,000 value）
③ High-quality brushes (1) large, (1) fine（¥10,000 value）

Course Fee
￥90,000（w/o tax）

Best for

Students who have completed the Intermediate Course and are willing to commit to a 360-day program. This course is designed to mirror the same regimen a 15-year old Japanese student would undertake to become a serious student of calligraphy. Even for students who do not wish to advance to the Examination Course, the Advanced Course is a great way to further hone one’s calligraphy skill.

（To enroll, you must register for free site membership and login）

Examination Course （Lesson：24、 360days）

Course Outline

 This course is for high-level students of calligraphy and will guide the student through taking the licensing exam and receiving a Master License.
This course requires membership in the Bunka Shodokai, which will hold final judgement over the student’s licensing.
We will also need students to send originals for any assignments to be submitted for the exam. We will take care of submission to Shodokai upon receipt of the student’s work.
The exam can be taken each month, but works must be sent to us by the 20th of the month. Upon receipt, we will submit them to Shodokai.
In order to receive a Master License, the student must to complete a total of 13 levels, from 10-kyuu through 3-dan.
Each exam level requires the completion of multiple assignments, so it is extremely difficult to attempt them all in a single month.
Completing all levels from 10-kyuu through 3-dan takes a minimum of three years.

Upon passing the exam, the student will receive a certificate for that level.
Exam assignments can be highly challenging, requiring students be able to write in regular script, semi-cursive script, cursive script and clerical script. Paper sizes also range from regular-sized calligraphy paper to scrolls and include reproducing difficult works such as Chinese poetry.
This course is for seriously dedicated students looking to achieve a Master License.
Skype lessons will be conducted as 30-minute long private sessions.

Curriculum

 （Difficulty ★★★★★）
① Lessons revolve around examination assignments

Bonus

① Your name in Kanji!（regular and semi-cursive script）
② Handmade high-quality calligraphy paper-1,000 sheets（¥5,000 value）
③High-quality brushes (1) large, (1) fine（¥10,000 value）

—Materials Included—
Bunka Shodokai textbook


※First time only

Course Fee
￥90,000（w/o tax）

Best for

This course will be recommended to students 15 and older based on their performance in Intermediate Level and higher courses. However, if you are a prospective student with significant prior calligraphy experience who wishes to take this course, please feel free to contact us.

Notes

Course Fee：
・Examination Course　One-time payment　¥96,000 (w/o tax) → ￥90,000(w/o tax)
　　　　　　　　　Monthly plan 　¥8,000(w/o tax) × 12 payments

・Bunka Shodokai course fee（incl. textbook）must be paid up front.
¥23,000 (tax incl.)
The Bunka Shodokai fee will be paid to SHODO Japan, upon which we will handle the process of getting the student membership required for the exams.
・The exam itself also has a fee per attempt.
（Examination fee varies by level … ¥1,200〜¥1,800）
・The Examination Course requires that original works be sent through the mail. The student is expected to cover the cost of shipment.
・Upon passing the highest level, 3-dan, the student can apply for their Master License. The Master License application carries an additional fee of ¥30,000.
This fee will also be paid to SHODO Japan, upon which we will forward the fee to Bunka Shodokai and complete the process of securing the student’s Master License. Once the process is complete, we will mail the license to the student.

※All payments to Bunka Shodokai, including membership（incl. textbook） exam fees and license applications are forwarded directly to Bunka Shodokai. SHODO Japan does not take any portion of these fees.
For more information on the Bunka Shodokai → Bunka Shodokai homepage

（To enroll, you must register for free site membership and login）

Request Course （Lesson：2、 30days）

Course Outline

 This is a complementary course that can be taken in conjunction with any other courses we offer. We also offer this course for students who have previously completed any other course with us.
In the Request Course, we can build lessons around specific kanji characters the student wishes to learn.
Samples of the desired characters are provided, and the student’s work is assessed during Skype lessons. There are no video seminars.

Curriculum

 To begin, the student requests characters and a sample is sent by the instructor.
For example, let’s say a student wishes to learn his/her name in kanji. The student would first use the sites listed below to select the preferred kanji to represent their name, take a screenshot, and send the data to the instructor.

＜Websites＞
Kanji-Fandom　　http://kanji-fandom.com/
RomajiDesu http://www.romajidesu.com/

Another option is to use Google Translate or a similar service to translate a word or phrase the student would like to learn. Take a screenshot and send the data to the instructor.
Once the instructor receives the image data, they will create a sample and send the image data of the sample back to the student. Once everything is checked, and the kanji the student wishes to learn is confirmed, payment for the course is made.
The student is allowed up to (3) exchanges with the instructor regarding the characters. Meaning, the student and instructor cannot endlessly discuss back and forth through email what characters to use. Please consider carefully what you would like the content of your course to be.
We also recommend a maximum of (6) characters to compose the lessons.
Please contact us if you would like to learn more.

Course Fee
￥10,000（w/o tax）

（To enroll, you must register for free site membership and login）
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