Show guide
Nihongo Storytime for Beginners tells slow, simple original stories made for learners — one of the gentlest ways to start listening. Here’s how to study with it in Wakatta.
About the show
Each episode is a short, original story narrated slowly and clearly in simple Japanese, chosen for beginners — roughly N5. Following a story (rather than a lecture) keeps you listening, which makes it a great first podcast once you know some kana and basic grammar.
How to use it in Wakatta
In Wakatta the show is ready to play, and every episode is a tappable transcript with furigana. Tap any word for its reading and meaning, save the ones worth keeping, and review them later with the exact sentence and audio — so you actually understand what you hear instead of listening past it. (Don’t see a show you love? Search for any podcast in the app.)
What a transcript looks like
今日はお茶を淹れます。
淹れます iremasu · to brew (tea)
Every episode becomes a transcript like this — tap any word for its reading and meaning.
Recent episodes
- 189. 北アイルランドとアイリッシュウイスキー · 2026-07-09
- 188. マンガ：本なら売るほど · 2026-07-02
- 187. Norikoの誕生日 · 2026-06-25
- 186. JLPT N4 文法ストーリー7 Passive Form 2 - ケンさんの最悪な一日 · 2026-06-11
- 185. JLPT N4 文法ストーリー6 Passive Form 1 ゆきさんのスペインでの一日 · 2026-06-04
- 184. 佐藤さんのペコペコの午後(Storytime) · 2026-05-21
Tap an episode to open it in Wakatta and read along with the transcript.
Common questions
Is Nihongo Storytime good for beginners?
Yes — it’s made for beginners (around N5): slow, simple, story-based Japanese you can follow almost from the start. In Wakatta it comes with a synced transcript and furigana, so you can read along and tap anything you don’t catch.
About the creator
Nihongo Storytime is made by Noriko — a certified Japanese teacher and Neurolanguage Coach in Northern Ireland — as the beginner companion to her main podcast and her "Japanese Together" community.
Read along in Wakatta
Wakatta turns real Japanese podcasts into tappable transcripts — tap any word for its reading and meaning, and review what you save with the original audio.
