Welcome to Gaku!
The Japanese character 楽 (gaku) means joy, happiness, and comfort.
We believe learning Japanese should feel that way too.
Learn with level-appropriate materials created by qualified Japanese teachers, enjoy the process, and gradually discover more things you can do in Japanese.
Gaku is here to support you on your Japanese learning journey.
Choose the content that fits your time and goals.
Whether you’re busy or have time to study in depth, Gaku can fit your learning style.
Long: For when you want to study in depth
Medium: For a balanced learning session
Short: For when you only have a few minutes
You can turn furigana on or off depending on your kanji level, and listen to natural Japanese audio with adjustable playback speed.
Gaku also supports JLPT N5 to N1 with flashcards and practice exercises.
You can also enjoy Japanese folktales, culture, free-talk topics, and more—content designed to make Japanese learning feel more familiar and more fun.
Step by step, lesson by lesson, we hope you’ll feel your confidence growing.
Make Japanese learning more “fun.”
Let's make Japanese... Gaku!
For teachers
The name Gaku (楽) comes from the idea of “learning happily” (楽習 / gakushū).
Gaku is filled with the kinds of materials that both learners and Japanese teachers have wished for: “I wish I had a resource like this!”
Gaku’s content is carefully designed and organized by level, so learners can practice and review Japanese at a level that suits them. Our goal is to help learners experience those moments of “I can read it!” and “I understand it!”
The kanji 楽 can also be read as raku, meaning “easy” or “comfortable.”
If you are a Japanese teacher, you have probably thought at some point:
“Creating teaching materials takes too much time.”
“I wish I had materials I could use right away in my lessons.”
Gaku provides teaching materials that you can use with no preparation, or with only minimal preparation.
Textbooks: Based on Minna no Nihongo, with audio and English translations. These supplementary materials can be used for reading, listening, preparation, review, and other activities depending on your lesson.
Stories: Reading materials for learners from beginner to advanced levels, carefully matched to their level.
We also offer a variety of other content to support Japanese learning, including flashcards and free-talk topics.
Use Gaku not only as lesson materials, but also for extra time, icebreakers, or self-study.
Making your lessons easier and Japanese learning more enjoyable.
We hope Gaku will be a helpful part of your Japanese lessons.
About Me
Hello everyone! I’m Saya, a Japanese teacher in my fifth year of teaching.
After gaining experience teaching at a Japanese language school, I now mainly teach Japanese online.
I wanted to make my lessons more effective and enjoyable for my students. I also wanted to spend less time searching for and preparing teaching materials, so I could use that time to make my lessons even more meaningful. That’s what inspired me to create Gaku.
I want to enjoy as much as I can—not only my work, but also raising my children, spending time with friends, enjoying my hobbies, and learning new things myself!
Teaching can be challenging at times, but I truly love this job because it gives me the opportunity to meet and connect with people from all over the world.
I hope Gaku will be helpful for both teachers and learners, and that it will help you feel that learning and teaching Japanese can be a little more “fun” and a little more “楽” (easier).
Thank you for being here, and I hope you enjoy using Gaku!
Professional Background
- • 2021 – Passed the Japanese Language Teaching Competency Test
（日本語教育能力検定試験） - • 2022 – Completed the 420-hour Japanese Language Teacher Training Course
（日本語教師養成講座420時間） - • 2024 – Passed the Japanese Language Teacher Examination
（日本語教員試験） - • 2025 – Became a Registered Japanese Language Teacher, a national qualification in Japan
（登録日本語教員）