Learning Katakana:   

  - a  -  Looks like an "a" or an "@"   
  - i   - Looks (slightly) like an "i"   
  - u  - Looks like an ear, or like a "u" on it's side   
 -  e  -  "Eh?  looks like a running man."   
 -  o  - Looks kind of "o"ish    

  - ka - Looks kind of like a "k"   
  - ki -  Looks kind of like a key.  Also looks like a tree (ok, a telephone pole) and tree is one meaning of "ki"   
 - ku -  It's so cool, 'cause it's the simplest so far.  Also looks kind of like a     
 - ke -  I just think of Keiko O'Brian from DS9.  Don't ask me why it works, it just does.  (Notice ko is next) 
  - ko -  Looks sort of like part of both a "c" and an "o"  pronounced "ko"  (Say, now you know how to phonetically spell Keko!)  

 - sa  -  Sometimes written  it looks like an old fashioned saw    
 - shi - You use a fishhook  to fish in the shi... I mean sea   
 - su -  It's Curly Sue!   
  - se -  It looks like a man wearing a hat, saying something    
  - so - Looks like a Z and an O put together, sound similar to "so"   

  - ta  -  Looks like Ta   
   - chi - It's a man with a big chin  
   - tsu -  What's that growing under your tsu+noot  (snoot aka nose)  
   - te  - Looks like a golf tee   
   - to  - It's pointing to a toe     

  -  na - Looks (kind of) like an N  
  -  ni - looks like a knee    
  -  nu -  Well, it certianally is a new character. 
 -  ne -  Nay, I have no help for you here. 
   -  no -  Looks like a cursive N, also O shaped.   

  -  ha -    
  -  hi -  Hee Hee!  Big grin!  
  -  fu - Also written  looks like a fishhook in the rain.  You say "Foo!" to the rain when fishing. 
  -  he - "Hey, look!  It's Mt. Fuji!"    
  -  ho -  Looks like  

  -  ma -  looks a lot like   
  -  mi -  It's me, you can tell by the devil's tail!  ^_^ 
  -  mu -    
  -  me -  Looks like a cross between  and  
  -  mo -  Looks just like the kind of anchor that Moe (of 3 stooges fame) would get hit in the head with. 

  -  ya -    
  -  yu -     
  -  yo -  It's a stick figure holding out it's hand saying "Yo!  Gimme five!"  

  -  ra -   I know to follow so.  (Bad musical joke)  
  -  ri -   Turn it upside down and it spells "ri" (a little editing is allowed!) 
  -  ru -   It's got a little loop at the end. (Remember, the Japanese "r" is a cross between an "l" and an "r") 
  -  re -   There are two rays, one in the middle, and one looping up at the end.  
  -  ro -   The end of it is round. 

  -  wa -   Looks like a W 
  -  o (or wo)  - Looks like the letters t h c 
  -  n -    Looks like an n.  D o' t   t r y   t o  t e l l   m e   d i f f e r et.