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Long Distance Language Learning

Mar 31st, 2013 by

Online Italian language lessonsThe online phone and video service provider Skype says it has seen an increase in popularity in language lessons through video and voice call.

That is no surprise. With a free account anyone can talk and have a video call with another Skype user.

Online calls and video calls are the perfect tools for distance lessons, when student and teacher live in different places and can’t meet in person. It is also great for busy people who can only set time aside for lessons during evening or early morning hours. The teacher can be in another country and in a different time zone and find it convenient to teach from home according to his own schedule.

The advantage of long distance lessons is that the teacher can be a native speaker, still living in the country where the language is spoken, with direct contact with the current events and news of the country.

Another advantage of online teaching is choice and flexibility, for both teachers and students. Teachers can select their own schedule and the type of students they want to teach to. The same goes for the students who can select within a wide range of teaching methods and approaches.

It is a win-win situation for both students and teachers. This is the case, for example, for Martina, a qualified Italian teacher who offers lessons online trough Skype.

We will be adding a new page with listings of Italian language teachers available to teach using Skype. Come back soon to these pages to check it out.

 

 

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Italian Easter eggs, proverbs and other fun facts

Mar 29th, 2013 by

Italian Easter eggsItalians like to give chocolate eggs as Easter gifts. The eggs are hollow and contain a small surprise inside. The surprise can be a little toy for a child or a piece of jewelry for a loved one.

Pastry shops make custom eggs to order, so people can have names and sugar decorations applied to the exterior of the egg, just like one would do for a birthday cake.

But why eggs? And when did this tradition start?

Eggs are a symbol of life and have been used since Roman times to celebrate the arrival of Spring. The chocolate egg tradition is, instead, very recent.

There is a famous saying in Italian related to Easter: “Natale con i tuoi, Pasqua con chi vuoi”.

That means that you are expected to spend Christmas Day with your family and relatives, and when you do so, you can spend Easter Sunday with whomever you want, and you will not offend your family members (since you have already honored them during Christmas).

 

 

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Use Crosswords to Learn Italian!

Mar 18th, 2013 by

Italian crossword puzzleThere are many ways to learn and to practice Italian.

Many Italian language students really enjoy crossword puzzles because they provide an opportunity for both learning and entertainment.

There are two Italian words for “crossword puzzle”: one is “cruciverba” (made of two Latin words cruci and verba), and the other one is “parole incrociate” that literary means “words that cross/intersect each other”.

One of our readers told us that she is making Italian crosswords with English clues. The crosswords are made for people who are learning Italian and can be found here: http://sites.google.com/site/kittysitaliancrosswords/

Take a look and have fun!

 

 

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We don’t have those letters!

Mar 15th, 2013 by

Italian alphabetWhen you start learning the Italian alphabet you realize that some letters are missing. You may wonder why…

The letters j k w y x  don’t belong to the traditional Italian alphabet, although, in everyday speaking, some words that contain those letters are present in modern Italian. Those words are usually adaptation of foreign words, mostly English ones, or old words, like Latin ones, that are still used today.

So, when you DO encounter those letters, how do you pronounce them?

  • j and y: are pronounced as an Italian i.
  • w: a native Italian would pronounce it as a v.
  • x: native Italians pronounce it as “eecz”

Here are some examples: Julia (latin name), Yogurt, Walter (Name), Raggi X (medical terminology).

 

 

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Italian language blog, language lessons, and more

Jan 14th, 2013 by

Italian songs, art history, interesting articles and Italian language lessons are just a few of the many things you can find at http://www.adgblog.it/, the official Blog of Accademia del Giglio. Located in beautiful Florence, Italy, the Academia is a private school offering Italian language courses and art classes. Browse their blog to find lots of interesting articles to read in Italian and in other languages. To find out more about the school, visit their website at http://www.adg.it/index.html

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Italian Traditions: December

Dec 6th, 2012 by

Italian christmas traditionsGet to know what kind of traditions Italians celebrate in the month of December and learn a few new words in Italian.

On December 1st, Italian children start a brand new Advent Calendar (Calendario dell’Avvento). This is a one page calendar with 24 little windows. The children open one window each day, starting on December 1st. Behind each window there is an image, a word or a little gift for the child. The calendar is meant as a countdown to Christmas Day, so children can visualize how many days are left till Christmas. Children love it, especially little ones who have a hard time understanding the concept of time.

In the city of Milan and nearby areas, December 7th is the Day of St. Ambrose (Sant’Ambrogio), patron saint of of the city of Milan.

On December 8th people celebrate the Immaculate Conception (Immacolata Concezione). It is a national holiday (festa nazionale) and children don’t go to school.

December 13 is St. Lucy’s Day (il giorno di Santa Lucia). St Lucia was a martyr and one of the most illustrious figures in the Christian world. Before the introduction of the Gregorian calendar St. Lucia’s Day fell on the winter solstice. St. Lucia is the patron saint of the city of Syracuse (Sicily), where she was born. The feast of St. Lucy is also celebrated in some parts of North-Eastern Italy where she is said to bring gifts to good children and coal to bad ones the night between December 12 and 13.

December 24th is Christmas Eve (Vigilia di Natale), a day of celebrations commemorating the arrival of baby Jesus. People gather for a dinner feast and then go to Mass just before midnight. During the night between December 24th and 25th, Santa Claus/Father Christmas (Babbo Natale) will bring gifts to the children. Adults, too, exchange gifts as the ancient Romans used to do over 2000 years ago, to celebrate the winter solstice.

December 25th is Christmas Day (Giorno di Natale) and big celebrations are in order. Italian families gather for a traditional lunch and relatives and friends visit each other to exchange holiday wishes and gifts.

December 26th is also a national holiday in Italy. It is St. Stephen’s Day (Giorno di Santo Stefano), the first Christian martyr.

December 31st is not a national holiday, but it is nevertheless a day of great celebrations since it marks the end of the year. New Year’s Eve (Capodanno) is celebrated with a dinner feast and fireworks at midnight.

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Party like an Italian!

Aug 10th, 2012 by

Italian FestaStudying isn’t always exciting, but going to a party is usually a fun thing to do.

Now you can study (or at least practice) your Italian by going to a party-like event like an Italian Festival.

Summer and Fall are great times for festivals and many towns have and Italian Festa going on sometime during the year.

Here are a few Italian Festivals for the second weekend of August:

To find an Italian Festa near you, check the NIAF website.

Buon divertimento!

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Italian clubs, associations and language schools in the Washington, D.C. area

Jul 16th, 2012 by

If you live in the Washington DC area and are looking for Italian associations, language schools or places where you can meet Italians or Italian speaking people, the following links can help you in your search:

 

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Italian Language and Culture for Children in Sacramento, California

May 7th, 2012 by

Did you know that just an hour a week of foreign language gives an important grounding in the language which allows leads to conversation?

If you like the idea of your children learning Italian, you will be happy to know that the Italian Cultural Society of Sacramento brings Italian language to the many children who do not have Italian offered in their school.

The Italian Cultural Society offers year round language programs with small teacher to student ratio. These fun-filled programs are designed to let children explore Italy, its rich culture, food, art and language in a fun setting.

To learn more, visit their website: http://www.italiancenter.net/

 

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Italian Language Classes inside the Home of a Great Italian Inventor

May 2nd, 2012 by

In the heart of Rosebank (Staten Island, NY) is the Garibaldi-Meucci Museum, located in the historic home of the inventor, Antonio Meucci.

Meucci was a prolific Italian inventor, engineer, and practical chemist who is most known for developing a voice communication apparatus, precursor of the telephone, in 1857.

 

Today the house is a museum and a National Landmark, owned and operated by the Order Sons of Italy in America.

 

You can visit the museum,  take a historical tour to discover more about Meucci and his friendship with Italian hero Giuseppe Garibaldi and enroll in Italian language classes.

To find out more, please visit the museum website at: http://pub1.andyswebtools.com/cgi-bin/p/awtp-home.cgi?d=garibaldi-meucci-museum

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