Reddit mentions: The best study guides & workbooks

Hi /u/L0rkan -

You might know more than you think. Until you take the GED ready practice tests ($6/each, online) or TABE test at your local Adult Education center, you won't really know for sure.

I do an overview of the GED exam in one of my videos https://youtu.be/RqBmvgnaJQg?t=121 That's the specific section with the GED, but I also describe the other HSE exams.

Also there are GED practice tests and questions at, ged.com. They actually have a number of free resources, after you register for a free account - but make sure that is the test for your state.

>Is the GED the HSE in my state?

First things first, make sure GED is the authorized HSE (High School Equivalency) examination in your state.

Look on this chart for updated information:

https://www.careeronestop.org/FindTraining/Types/State-HSE-Options.aspx

I have an overview of the different HSE equivalency exams I did here in video form in that same video.

The GED is no longer a state designated HSE in 10 states (excludes Federal Correctional, certain exceptions):

• Indiana
  
• Iowa
  
• Louisiana
  
• Maine
  
• Missouri
  
• Montana
  
• New Hampshire
  
• New York
  
• Tennessee
  
• West Virginia
  
  >are there textbooks that i should get?
  
  Kaplan is popular around here, there are several different ones. The McGraw-Hill is quite good as well. Get one of them. Passing the GED is about practicing.
  
  Kaplan and McGraw-Hill Book purchase links:
  
  Kaplan
  
  https://www.amazon.com/GED-Test-Prep-Plus-2019/dp/1506239439
  
  McGraw-Hill
  
  https://www.amazon.com/McGraw-Hill-Education-Preparation-Test-Third/dp/1260118282
  
  The test itself -
  
  With Math - Algebra, Basic Math, and Graphing on the co-ordinate grid and slope are often sticking points for students
  
  I have a GED math review course that goes over that and plenty of other stuff on youtube with videos 5-10 minutes in length if you want to check that out. It's free
  
  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhKeRZHhWR9veH4hmUy4bPTHp8Dqg-RT0
  
  Here's the playlist for the entirety of my GED language arts review course.
  
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CM3j7BJ3DQA&list=PLhKeRZHhWR9sGgcVquYpXtmJcZO7ugsSr
  
  I have some readings in the exercises I think you'll like, including a wonderful selection from Sherlock Holmes (and I even linked a free audiobook if you'd like to listen as you read along), Dickens, a corrupt Tammany Hall politician (a favorite of mine), among others, so you can practice your skills while reading some interesting materials. The GED readings may not be particularly interesting, but at least mine aren't dull.
  
  The review course has a number of short (5-10 minute) videos so you can skip around and focus on what you need reviewing, plus longer In-depth (often 15m + reading), Guided Practice (10-25m) and Reinforcement Exercises to help guide you through improving your skills and preparing you for the kinds of questions and passages on the GED exam. It also has real essay preparation with an actual essay prompt to practice on. The course is free. The total length is about 4 1/2 hours of content.
  
  With some studying and effort, you can do this :)

I used to teach the GED. I'm a certified teacher in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, with my education focusing on early years (Primary to 6) but having 3 years experience teaching math and sciences at the high school level. I also tutor 9-12 math, including advanced 10 and 11.

GoNSSAL.ca is the NS School for Adult Learning website. You can find out when the courses are offered and when the tests are as well. If you are a good self-motivator, you can buy the GED book here or this one here. I used both when teaching, but more the white/red one for some reason. They have great chapter summaries and practice tests.

If you need help with any of the math/science I am more than willing to help you. I can post videos to YouTube with explanations of concepts, email you extra worksheets, correct stuff you've done, or type out clarifications on things you might not get.

Best of luck with whatever you decide. I've seen some amazing people graduate the GED class, obtain their GED, and move on to some really great stuff. Some do it just to get it. Others want better jobs. Whatever the reason, you have help!

Ninja edit: If anyone else needs help, PM me. I love teaching math, so it's not a great deal of trouble. Or questions regarding the course/material/etc.

Family Math is one of three books in a series (that also includes a younger years book and a middle school book) that is little more than games. They cover everything from simple counting and number recognition to word problems, logical thinking, measurement, geometry, spatial thinking, probability, statistics, estimation, arithmetic, and simple algebra. Used it will cost $5 shipped, and they are great at keeping kids entertained and engaged in math. I play some of the games with a 2-year-old, and some with my 5-year-old, and it's fun even when they don't really understand the games. If it's not enough, get the one for middle school grades and use that instead. These books keep it light and fun, which is really where you want to be with a child so far ahead of the curve.



>for the next three years until school can help me help him, Hopefully?

What kind of school are you looking at for him? The average public or private school is going to sit him in a class of his chronological peers and bore him to death. They can't place him in a higher grade level without him being capable across the board, and even then they will be hesitant to move him too much farther than he should be.

Your son is 3, but his ability to count to 1000, count by 1s/5s/10s, and the rest place him firmly at a post-kindergarten level of math skills. He's special, and that's awesome. There's always a chance that his ability and drive will sort of wane if he loses interest, and his level will regress down to what is normal for his age, but if not then he really needs to not be left to a classroom setting that is almost guaranteed to not be good for him.

>I don't know what skills come next to start introducing to him.

• Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division
  
• Number lines (important to get down early, because they setup background needed for graphing points later on)
  
• Estimation
  
• Fractions and decimals
  
• Geometry
  
• Probability: dice rolling
  
• Money
  
• Algebra: using simple variables (X + 2 = 4, solve for X, as opposed to ___ + 2 = 4, fill in the blank) and formulas. The three big gateway math skills are arithmetic, algebra, and calculus. Once you understand one, everything becomes about laying the foundation for the next one.
  
  Another excellent choice at this age is Cuisenaire Rods (that's just the workbook - you would need to find rods as well). They can be used to teach number recognition, geometry, symmetry, number lines, and even algebra. They are extremely flexible as a math learning tool. And they keep kids engaged in physical manipulation of math concepts, which is great.
  
  

Alright, here goes nothing! Kinda Long list, sorry for wall of text!

YouTube

• Learn Italian with Lucrezia
  
  
• Tia Taylor (More culture than anything; but American Girl who lives (or lived) in Italy for awhile. While I feel like she tries to make videos JUST for views, some of her earlier ones are very informational!
  
  
• Debby Arts: I really enjoy drawing, and I came across her one day. Her main youtube channel is in English, but she does have an Italian version.
  
  
• FavijTV is a decent gamer youtuber. I don't watch him that often, but decent none-the-less.
  
  Twitch.tv
  
  
• Rengoland (my personal favorite, super chill dude, also fluent in English but streams in Italian for his viewers)
  
  
• Paoloidolo
  
  Sites
  
  
• I believe Uni. of Vermont Italian
  
  
• Italian Grammar Exercises!
  
  
• Reading of Italian Passages This site has everything though.
  
  Here are all of my books that I bought, I can't find some of the old ones that were given to me though!
  
  
• Practice Makes Perfect: Italian
  
  
• English Grammar for Students of Italian
  
  
• 501 Italian Verbs
  
  
• I love this buy, I dislike Anki Vocabulary Cards
  
  
• Same thing as above, but grammar
  
  
• Regret this buy, but I own it: Living Language
  
  
• This is a picture vocab book. A SIMILAR ITEM (i.e. not this one specifically) was given to me when I first was learning Italian. Picture Voacb Book
  
  
• Grammar cheat sheet
  
  
• And I have some school books from uni classes I took.
  
  Italian movies I recommend
  
  
• Benvenuti al Sud
  
  
• Benvenuti al Nord
  
  
• La Vita è Bella
  
  
• Un americano a Roma
  
  
• La grande Guerra
  
  
• Il Postino
  
  Others
  
  Other resources include the free ones that are giving in the language resources! I also go over to /r/Italy and /r/Italianlearning and read topics and help others with Italian!

For Literature, read around your set texts. Critical interpretations are essential and it's never too early to start gathering them. If your school has them, there are magazines called English Review and e-something or other that are useful and aimed at A-Level students. Otherwise just look online. They're worth marks in the exam if you can reference so-and-so's critical interpretation and they'll help you understand the texts.

Also, revising quotes. You'll need to know them by memory so whenever you're reading, be thinking about killer quotes. If you think you might end up writing a lot about feminist interpretations of the text and there's a line that supports that, highlight it or something.

Don't watch the films. My mate kept having to remind himself that Lord Henry doesn't actually have a daughter, that was made up for the film. It'll only narrow your interpretation of the text and maybe mislead you entirely.

Once you've read all the texts for an exam, start asking your teacher to mark your practice essays. If you have more than one teacher, maybe vary it up who you hand your essay in to.

If there's more than one English class, talk to people in the other class. Because you can go in so many directions with a text there will inevitably be differences in what the two classes discuss and learn about. You'll know things they have no idea about and vice versa. Also, talking about texts is really fun.

Don't rely on them, but don't be ashamed of going to York Notes if you're a bit lost. They're generally worth the money and can really help. With York Notes, I found out that I didn't actually know what was going on in 'Tis Pity She's a Whore at all. Like, that text is a mess. Yeesh. If you get set it at any point, feel free to send me a PM. Jesus.

Look at past exams now and see what you're in for. If there's always a question about a specific character, you'll need to revise every character. Past exams are also good for finding out what sort of themes you should be looking at, although it won't make a comprehensive list by any means. Just nice to have.

For Politics... I don't know how I did well. Those thin little revision guides are magic and I had an incredible teacher. Lots of past paper questions - the politics spec I studied had been around for long enough that almost every possible question had come up. Make use of that.

Another thing, keep up with current political goings-on and keep a bank of evidence for whatever you might need to argue in an essay. Evidence is crucial in tying your arguments together and examiners like recent evidence as well as the historical context. You don't want to forget anything - start gathering. Like, apparently part of the Edexcel spec is "consensus and adversary politics". Right now, Labour and Conservatives are both spewing the same "Better Together" rhetoric about Scotland. That's cracking evidence of traditionally adversarial parties reaching a consensus for pragmatic reasons.

Again, reading a lot is good. Read the news from somewhere decent - BBC's alright, The Guardian's a good one. Read Owen Jones' The Establishment and How They Get Away With It for more on consensus. I'm reading it now, the chapter about how Thatcher brought a new consensus to replace the post-war consensus is fascinating and I would be highlighting the hell out of it for essays if I was still studying politics.

I think I was OCR for English and AQA for Politics, but yeah. Hope that all helps!

For Me:

North Face ACCESS Pack Backpack, No zippers to get your more frequently used items, and plenty of protection for a laptop.

Dell XPS 13 9350-10673SLV Signature Edition Laptop, Is laptop, does what it says on the tin. 13 inch is the perfect size imo, as long as you have something bigger available in your room or a computer lab.

Dell Power Companion External Battery, For those long days on campus where you need a bit more power. Reasonably light with lots of power.

Pilot G2 Pen, The best pen in the world I think. Fantastic at writing a clean, smooth line, and cheap enough that I don't care if I lose it.

Pentel Graph Gear 1000 Automatic Drafting Pencil
, I think one of the best pencils in the world. However I save this for scantron tests and other places where I can't use a pen, as I honestly prefer the Pilot G2.

Writing Tablet
, It's paper, what more do you want. I experimented around with proper bound notebooks and such but I find this is much more convenient because I usually need to pass in what I write, or it's just scratch I can throw out.

Fuse Chicken TITAN LOOP Key Chain Cable, Charge your phone on the go! Always have to have a lightning cable available.

Casio FX-115ES Scientific Calculator, A nice capable (but not graphing) calculator. I've never had a class where my graphing calculators could be used, and I rarely use this now as well. Still good to have in the backpack though.

iClicker, Gotta get those sweet lecture quiz points.

Mini Wireless Mouse, Just a bluetooth mouse to use with the laptop if I'm doing more intense work. Rarely used, but good to have.

+Phone +Wallet

Figure out what kind of writer you are.

Are you a planner or a pantser (writing by the seat of your pants)?

Planner's love to write outlines before they get started. They plan every little detail and THEN write the story.

Pantsers are the opposite. They love to make things up as they go, but forcing a pantser to make an outline, and form the plot and all that stuff actually makes them less creative - and less likely to write the book. Conventional wisdom is that writers are supposed to write outlines before they get started, but that's not always true. Even George RR Martin said that when he writes a book, he's more like a pantser - knowing a few key plot points, but not everything before he writes it.

Read this book:
"How To Write Faster: Strategies for Planners and Pantsers."

https://www.amazon.com/How-Write-Faster-Strategies-Planners/product-reviews/1507729057/ref=cm_cr_dp_see_all_btm?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1&sortBy=recent

It's got a lot of great strategies on how to make a good plot outline, as well as how to write for your writing style.

I am very curious about what makes you think the notion of a thesaurus is specific to English.

Sanskrit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amarakosha

Russian: http://www.thesaurus1.narod.ru/

Hindi: https://hi.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%B0_%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%8B%E0%A4%B6

French: https://www.amazon.fr/Dictionnaire-synonymes-Poche-Collectif/dp/2035862760

Latin: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/latin-thesaurus-has-been-progress-1894-180959137/

The concept itself of a thesaurus existed many centuries before Old English was even a thing. It can exist for any language, and as far as I know people have compiled them for all languages that have a writing system (or at least an academic tradition).

Also, you ask people for examples but you base your arguments on statements like:

> I'm pretty sure that there are factors that make English a better language

and

> I'm pretty sure English and Japanese are the only languages that use synonyms to any great extent

so you really look like you've just formed an uninformed opinion and are upset people tell you you're wrong.

My partner recently got me a set from Little Planet Factory which is really cool. Unfortunately they're closed for orders at the moment due to an insane backlog, but hopefully they'll open soon enough.

If you know anyone who has a 3D printer then you can get patterns for astronauts and other cool stuff and make your own gift.

Otherwise, if you're able to team up with someone else in the family for a joint present, owning the Feynman Lectures on Physics is almost a rite of passage for physics/astrophysics students. I'm saving up to buy my set when I graduate, but I would have loved to get it as a gift.

I like New Reader's Press material, particularly Breakthrough to Math and Number Sense series. New Reader's Press is made specifically for adults with low literacy skills, so the material is all specific to the adult world. You can find lots of resources here - http://www.laubach-on.ca/bookstore/math

We use the Complete Canadian GED Preparation guide. It is all Canadian material and is made for the Canadian test. The book is huge, but filled with very valuable content and very thorough. http://www.amazon.ca/Complete-Canadian-GED-Preparation-Handbook/dp/0774716312

Although I use a variety of different books for literacy and writing, one of my favourite websites is English for Everyone. It is made for adults learning ESL, but I find it valuable quite the same. http://www.englishforeveryone.org/

Those are at least some good areas to start :)

I'm currently in AP Chemistry, and as a supplement to our textbook, we were given this book written by the same author as our textbook: http://www.amazon.com/Preparing-Chemistry-Examination-Fast-Track/dp/1133611516/
It's stupidly expensive, but definitely worth it as an alternative to reading the actual Zumdahl textbook (which is insanely long). I have studied nothing but this book and have gotten high A's all year. I also feel like this book has more credibility than any other review book publishers.

As far as APUSH goes, I inherited a ton of review books, but none really helped. I read through about half of the new Princeton Review and skimmed through Barron's flashcards the morning of the exam, but neither helped significantly (I still got a 5, but APUSH was my favorite class so I really paid attention). The redesign of the exam ensures that stupid details are not asked directly. The majority of the multiple choice exam is analyzing primary sources, so I recommend practice reading quickly but carefully. The free response questions are available on the CollegeBoard website (I definitely recommend checking it out.) You don't need a review book to learn how to write essays. Throughout the year, we referenced this handout: http://franklin.episd.org/common/pages/DisplayFile.aspx?itemId=26669589. It's written by a teacher that my teacher knows personally, and apparently he helped write the AP exam, so he must know what he is doing.

My brother also got a 5, but on the OLD exam (pre 2015). He studied this book (more or less): http://www.amazon.com/Insiders-Complete-Guide-History-Essential/dp/0985291206 and watched the Adam Norris videos on YouTube. He claimed these videos covered EVERYTHING on the old exam.

I think it would be worth thinking about what the purpose of getting the GED would be for. If it is for just the sake of having it, then just passing is good enough. If it is for getting into a Uni or other secondary educational purposes, you might want to aim higher (usually 175+ scores.) Having said that, if it's just for the sake of having it - I would not drop your job, especially if you are working your way up the pay grade. I would only take some classes if you're really struggling on passing. I agree with what mshecket said that it would be wise to take the practice tests online.

To be more specific, I would do the GED Ready tests on the actual GED website. They cost money to take but are worth it because they will tell you what to focus on AND if you're likely to pass.

Studying at your own pace on your own is usually the route most people take. I've heard people use https://www.khanacademy.org/ (I have not used it myself personally) and also https://www.amazon.com/GED-Test-Prep-Plus-2019/dp/1506239439/ Kaplan book. Only once you've taken a look at where you stand would I then consider classes.

Good luck! :)

Wait!!!

PMI has released the new PMBOK based on the 6th edition on March 26th. So what you are studying is outdated. Here is what changed:
ind the following updates in the PMBOK® Guide – Sixth Edition:

-A new chapter on the role of the project manager that focuses on effective leadership — including necessary competencies, experience and skills.
-Two renamed Knowledge Areas that more accurately reflect which elements can be managed and which cannot:
-Schedule Management (formerly known as Time Management)
-Resource Management (formerly known as Human Resource Management)
Every Knowledge Area now features four new sections:
-Key Concepts
-Trends and Emerging Practices
-Tailoring Considerations
-Considerations for Agile/Adaptive Environments

Another Reddit comment said review the ITTOs. Very true and you should concentrate on that. The PMP Notebook will help you with this.

Don’t freak out. If you study the ITTOs, equations, and treat the PMBOK as the only answer to PMP questions, then you’ll be fine. Good luck!

1. I really want to learn Japanese! I've taken it for two semesters in school and have been working on it on my own, but I'm just not great at languages. I want a job where I travel a lot, so knowing another language would be fantastic. I also want to learn German and Russian.
   
   
2. I'm really bad at Kanji, so this book would definitely help!
   
   
3. Tommy Heavenly6's new version of "La Soldier" is so good.
   
   
4. This is cute and funny! It always cheers me up.

Thanks for checking out this post! I've put a great deal of effort into this project, and I feel that this could be helpful to any college students here. There aren't a lot of books about college success, and I wanted to share my own unique perspective on college study and lifestyle. I Have no email list and nothing to upsell you. Just a book I put a lot of effort into.

Free Until October 3rd.

Some links for my foreign friends...

UK

CAN

AU

IN

DE

BR

NL

IT

ES

FR

This isn't exactly what you're asking for, but it's something similar.

Michael Chabon wrote a novel about the early history of superhero comics. It's called The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay.

It's really good, especially the first half that really focuses on the early comic book industry.

I've taken it and passed on the first try. It was not even nearly as difficult as any law school exam I've ever taken, even compared to the easiest law school exam.

I had next to no previous privacy experience nor had I taken the class at my law school yet, and studied roughly for a week prior to the test. I used a book I bought off of Amazon, but I didn't use any of the material the IAPP wants you to buy because it was so expensive. I also googled around for flash cards available for free online and that helped me fill in some of the gaps that the book I bought had left out.

Good luck - it'll be fine. I finished probably an hour early, and I did not think it was difficult. Just read over that book I linked to a couple times or make flash cards out of the material and work on it for about a week.

My only misgiving is now the Privacy Shield is a thing instead of Safe Harbor - I don't know if the book I used and linked has updated yet to reflect that, but when I took the test that wasn't an issue. Keep that in mind, but it is otherwise a good, inexpensive resource.

Go with PMI-ACP, it dovetails nicely with a PMP. PDUs overlap, so it's easy to maintain. PMI have also updated the PMBOK to include some agile pieces, so it's worth a look.

I highly recommend this book: PMI-ACP Exam Prep https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1932735984/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_vrW7Cb5HRKR7T

Mike Griffiths helped to shape the certification.

Note that like the PMP, PMI-ACP expects a certain number of experience hours.

CSM is much easier to get, but does not give you the breadth and depth that the PMI-ACP has.

Also, for what it's worth, I would steer clear of PRINCE2. I found it to be a cookie cutter approach to project management. You're much better off focusing on the PMI side of things.

Source: PMP, PMI-ACP, CSM, Lapsed PRINCE2

So I took it last Tuesday (should be getting the results any day now) and I used 3 different materials.

1. The FE Electrical And Computer Review Manual from Lindeburg
   
   
2. NCEES Practice Exam
   
   
3. Wasim 500 Problems Study Guide
   
   Just a heads up, I don't know if I passed (nor do I think I did pass), but I wanted to give you a quick rundown of what I did.
   
   I would start by reading (actually reading, not skimming) the Lindeburg manual. I would do the examples given WITHOUT LOOKING AT THE SOLUTION. It's very important to not look at the solution until you have struggled through it. Struggling and making mistakes helps the learning process. Once I did the whole chapter, I would then test myself using the diagnostic test at the beginning of the chapter. A word to the wise, I found that in the Lindeburg book, the in-chapter examples were far easier than the diagnostic question. I found some of the diagnostic sections to be absurdly difficult (Comms and Control Systems IIRC).
   
   Once I did the diagnostic sections, I would then reinforce using Wasim problems. The Wasim problems are easier than what you'll see on the FE, but it's helpful because it helps process the basics of a problem and gives you new ways of solving problems (i.e. using thevenin to solve a BJT problem with multiple sources). The repetition also helps with just solidifying the concepts.
   
   Lastly, I would test myself using the NCEES practice exam problems for that section.
   
   The exam for me was really easy on the first half, but quite difficult on the second half. Still unsure if I passed. If I had to go back, I would definitely study more of the computer engineering stuff as a good portion of the second half was computer coding/architecture problems. The Lindeburg and Wasim books don't really get in depth on the computer stuff. Get the Wasim Practice exams #2 or #3 as most people say #1 is a little too easy. I don't know what books to buy for the computer stuff.
   
   Hopefully this helps!
   
   
   EDIT: I passed! First try!

Hi.
If you're looking for some kind of textbook, I've found the Schritte International Glossary XXL German-English books to be quite good when starting out. The first 4 books cover the A1 and A2 levels and are available here. If you'd like, I could send the first volume your way so you could get a feeling for the material.
Otherwise, as an all-in-one solution, I've read good things about Schaum's Outline of German Grammar.
Dictionaries - I don't own a physical one. Online, I use dict.cc and pons.com for word definitions and linguee.de for usage examples.
If my answer is unsatisfactory, also try asking in /r/German which is the dedicated sub-reddit for learning German.

Make sure to go to Supplemental Instruction sessions! They’re weekly sessions open to everyone in CoE hosted by the Engineering Learning Center (ELC). You’ll have an SI leader there every week that picks a set of problems for you guys to work through and explain in detail, and I’ve found that consistently going helps me tremendously. They also host practice exams that are different than the ones you’ll find online. Here’s the schedule: http://elc.engin.umich.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2019/01/ELC-SI-schedule-WN19-1-27.pdf

Also, I HIGHLY recommend buying the following book. One of my friends recently wrote it before graduation and he was the best tutor/SI leader I’ve ever had. This book is basically a collection of all his note/teaching material: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1983340995/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_QvZvCb3692JBJ

Schaum's Outline of German Grammar is good.

Also, English Grammar for Students of German

And as RadiiRadish has said, Memrise is fantastic for vocabulary. I haven't been to German is easy! so I can't attest to it's merits.

Here is a pretty good site with likely familiar fairy tales in German.

Get Germanized is a fun youtube channel that teaches vocabulary, culture, etc. I know it's not reading material, but fun no less.

If you want to study beginner kanji for Japanese, you can use this: http://www.amazon.com/Kanji-Look-and-Learn-Workbook/dp/4789013502/

That book will only get you about 500 kanji. You don't need to buy the associated Kanji Look and Learn index book as you can find the readings elsewhere. But the two do go together so the other book will point out key readings that are tested in the workbook.

> Grammar is recommended to be done last.

Uh, no never. You're not going to make it through 2000 kanji before learning any grammar. You should start on grammar immediately after you are comfortable with kana. Think of grammar, kanji, and vocabulary as the three pillars of Japanese. Each one is equally high. You need to study and practice all three simultaneously.

> How much grammar/writing knowledge is needed to form basic sentences as I would feel better about the lack of readings in RTK if I could make some sentences out of what I'm learning.

First you're not going to be able to form sentences with only kanji. As for a basic sentence, I'm not sure. I just crossed into the "intermediate" level and I still feel some basic stuff is hard to express.

To put it into perspective, the textbook Genki I usually takes 2 semesters at community college. You can say basic stuff like "my name is teek" and "I like to play tennis" and even "I am studying Japanese because it is fun." But the common pattern here is you're severely limited in expression. The conversation would dry out pretty quickly (about 5 minutes) with a native speaker.

The following book, Genki II rounds you out so you can start talking about more complicated things and situations. But again, this book usually takes another 2 semesters. At the end of this book, you can say some pretty complicated stuff, but still have trouble making reasonably simple expressions. For example I can say "I don't know if the person you met yesterday is coming to the party tomorrow." But then ask me to write detailed cooking instructions for making curry and I wouldn't be able to do it simply because I lack vocabulary. So for general conversations with a native, you could probably keep them entertained for a good half hour. But for repeat visits and more specific conversations, you would still struggle.

If you're self-studying, you can get yourself a book like this one to help you. Several reviews by people who bought it said it's enough to pass the GED if you study consistently, so you can save yourself the money of enrolling somewhere.

Here are all the local Amazon links I could find:


amazon.co.uk

amazon.ca

amazon.com.au

amazon.in

amazon.com.mx

amazon.de

amazon.it

amazon.es

amazon.com.br

amazon.nl

amazon.co.jp

amazon.fr

Beep bloop. I'm a bot to convert Amazon ebook links to local Amazon sites.
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GED grad here.

Its applied Highschool. That's all.
Split up into 4 parts, 3 hours each and 2 days.
Math, English - hearing and writing, social science AND art.
Even if you do fail a section, (and believe me people do) they give you the chance to write it again. Only that section (you fail math you only write math). They want you to pass in the end. (And want your money)


To further your study's, you can look into this book. It did help me ALOT.
http://www.amazon.ca/Complete-Canadian-GED-Preparation-Handbook/dp/0774716312


My opinion? You seem an intelligent guy. You sentences and grammar is better then mine. Go wing it. See what happens. Its mostly multi choice so even if there is an answer you don't know, guess. You will even build confidence when you walk into the classroom and see that majority of the people are 50 year olds that don't know the difference between "their, there and they're".

Vocabulary: While vocabulary is not tested directly on the GED, I have noticed that it can be a key sticking point for some students, particularly for non-native English speakers. It can also hold some people back on the Social Studies and Science sections. But if you have a basic high school-level vocabulary, you're going to be in good shape.

Typing: The only part you need typing for is the essay, on which (if you want to get points) you need to be able to produce between 300 and 500 words in 45 minutes. If you spent the whole time just typing, you'd only need to type like 10 words per minute, which is really slow. But if you spend 30 minutes planning, proofreading, and so on and only 15 minutes writing, then you need to hit roughly 30 words per minute. Typing is an important skill for college and your career, so I'd recommend investing some time into it. You could use a site like TypingClub to get started.

Arithmetic: There are only five non-calculator questions on the test, so it's more important to have solid calculator skills than paper-and-pencil arithmetic skills. The non-calculator questions include roots and exponents, non-perfect squares, number line problems, and questions about knowing that when you divide by zero, it's undefined.

Prep guides: We have used the Kaplan GED book for some time and have been happy with it. There are a lot of other books out there, but I haven't had much experience with them.

It seems that your comment contains 1 or more links that are hard to tap for mobile users.
I will extend those so they're easier for our sausage fingers to click!


Here is link number 1 - Previous text "UK"

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^Please ^PM ^/u/eganwall ^with ^issues ^or ^feedback! ^| ^Delete

Be sure to get the textbooks. You WILL be using them. Especially the workbooks.
These are what you'll need:
https://www.amazon.com/GENKI-Integrated-Course-Elementary-Japanese/dp/4789014401/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501126453&sr=8-1&keywords=genki

https://www.amazon.com/Genki-Integrated-Elementary-Japanese-Workbook/dp/478901441X/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=478901441X&pd_rd_r=9T6QJ16NYXTG8SS140AV&pd_rd_w=Rs3eV&pd_rd_wg=AzzaO&psc=1&refRID=9T6QJ16NYXTG8SS140AV
https://www.amazon.com/Kanji-Look-Learn-Eri-Banno/dp/4789013499/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1501126506&sr=1-1&keywords=kanji+look+and+learn
https://www.amazon.com/Title-KANJI-LOOK-LEARN-WORKBOOK/dp/4789013502/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1501126506&sr=1-2&keywords=kanji+look+and+learn

I also suggest getting little things like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Japanese-Vocabulary-Quickstudy-Inc-BarCharts/dp/1572229195/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1572229195&pd_rd_r=9T6QJ16NYXTG8SS140AV&pd_rd_w=Rs3eV&pd_rd_wg=AzzaO&psc=1&refRID=9T6QJ16NYXTG8SS140AV
https://www.amazon.com/Japanese-Grammar-Quickstudy-Inc-BarCharts/dp/1572229128/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1572229128&pd_rd_r=1R88XNVSTEQ0BSSQ6J78&pd_rd_w=lbplP&pd_rd_wg=hbKyk&psc=1&refRID=1R88XNVSTEQ0BSSQ6J78

Memorization: Memrise (Memrise Courses), Wanikani.



Production: Lang-8 (Sign-ups currently suspended :(), Hello Talk.

Misc: Kanji Study

I've paid for a lifetime membership for WaniKani, Memrise and Kanji Study, so your mileage may vary if you're using their free options.

I use Kanji Study to look up stroke order and how to write the kanji by hand, and practice with a Kanji Practice Book (https://www.amazon.co.jp/KANJI-LOOK-LEARN-Workbook-坂野/dp/4789013502/),

I passed the EE exam about a month ago. I used these to study:

https://www.amazon.com/Study-Fundamentals-Engineering-Electrical-Computer/dp/1985699710

https://www.amazon.com/Fundamentals-Engineering-Electrical-Computer-Specification/dp/1534759492

and they really helped a lot to prepare for the test. hint: you can buy and return on amazon when you're done :)

Let me know if you have any questions

I used Schaums, it's really easy to follow, has loads of examples and you just fill in the blanks over and over until you get it!

Buy an FE exam prep book (or find one online). This one has a diverse collection of questions from 1st/2nd year level university courses. Found it very helpful when I finally took my FE last year.

For beginners: http://www.amazon.com/English-Grammar-Students-German-Learning/dp/0934034389/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1413161749&sr=1-2&keywords=german+english+grammar

Beginning to intermediate: http://www.amazon.com/Schaums-Outline-German-Grammar-4ed/dp/0071615679/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1413161727&sr=1-6&keywords=german+grammar

Beginning to intermediate: http://www.amazon.com/Hammers-German-Grammar-Usage-Edition/dp/1444120166

Intermediate to advanced: http://www.amazon.com/Practice-Grammar-German/dp/3190272557/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1413161823&sr=1-1&keywords=hueber+practice+grammar+german

What training did you attempt last time?

The two I'm working with are Joseph Phillips' Udemy course and Mike Griffiths' book.

For those of you outside of the US replace the .com in the URL with your country code, eg. for Canadians: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07H93D4WW instead of https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H93D4WW

Go to the .com page and change '.com' to '.co.uk' and it should work

Edit: link - https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07H93D4WW/ref=pe_385721_48724741_TE_M1DP

I am starting to look into whether or not to try to certify and saw this book linked in another post