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learn italian


 

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How to learn italian by oaksy

"It takes an extreme amount of practice to learn a language and even more dedication to keep up with it."

How I did it: When college rolled along, I was looking for something to round out my first term of credits. My dad asked me, if I had to take a language, which would I take? My immediate reaction was "Italian" (after three lousy years of Latin--I think I just wanted to use it for something). He replied that I had read his mind.

I ended up taking a year of Italian and made some great friends and really liked my teacher--Nobuko. After having her for three terms, I learned she was not only fluent in English, Italian and Japanese but was also fluent in French and could read German. None of this made very much sense to me until I finally discovered that she was an opera singer--hence her study and attentiveness to Romance languages.

The first year, I studied a lot for the class and did really well. I ran through phrases in my head, had conversations in my head, counted in Italian at the bus stop and tried to chat with friends outside of class.

The next year, I started the architecture program and it made it difficult to fit extra electives into my schedule. After a few years off, I decided to take a second year, accelerated, during the summer before my junior year. I was extremely rusty, but it did sort of come back--never fully though because I never spent as much time at it.

The program was tricky because we ran through so much material so quickly. I did well but never was able to get back to the the "thinking" in another language thing.

The Italian did come in a lot of handy when I visited and lived in Rome for several months over the next summer. I was particularly grateful for my vocabulary of food when I went to restaurants, the grocery store and produce market. Knowledge of transportation and direction vocabulary also saved me quite a few times while traveling around.

It's a great language and really fun to learn. Like any language it's hard to keep up with if you don't have the patience and dedication to follow up after the class is over. I wish I had more discipline and the diligence to keep up with it. I keep telling myself that one day I will pick up my book and it will all come back again.

Lessons & tips:

  • Make flashcards to review whenever you find a free moment: standing in line, riding the bus, waiting between classes.
  • Find a friend and try to converse as much as possible in Italian.
  • Around the house, try to think and describe what you are doing, to yourself in the language. It will facilitate the process of being able to think and thus internalize the new language.
  • Make verb conjugation charts and keep them through your classes: one from each conjugation is helpful, as are the irregular verbs.
  • Try to understand the patterns behind a language and don't just try to memorize words. If you understand how the language works, it will make it easier to memorize. (This is particularly useful for irregular verbs: learn why they are irregular and how that makes them more predicable to conjugate)
  • For memorization: spend a lot of time up front learning the verbs that take "essere" vs. "avere"
  • Note the genders of nouns and try to come up with creative ways to remember them
  • Use mnemonic devices to remember weird grammar tidbits and other tricky things to memorize

Resources:

  • "English Grammar for Students of Italian" was really great to really review grammar. A must have for English speakers rusty even with the ins & and outs of English grammar (crucial to understand before trying to pick up a new one).
  • "Bantam New College English/Italian Dictionary"
  • Italian textbooks & workbooks
  • Flashcard resources: notecards, Microsoft PowerPoint, "Ebbinghaus" free software


13 people found this helpful
 

Feb 03, 01:43AM PST | 3 comments | 9 cheers



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    People doing this are also doing these things:

    Entries

    francesch

    learn Italian 6 days ago

    I’d love to speak fluent Italian

    Nov 14, 01:37AM PST | 0 comments


    Rene is focussing on learning Italian

    Impariamo L'italiano 1 week ago

    Looking for a way to improve my Italian by communicating with others (and without being taking serious) I was pointed to http://impariamo.com/ by 43things member melissamuldoon. This seems a very nice community that allows you to write and chat with Italians and is focussed on people that try to learn Italian. So mistakes are allowed ;)

    I didn’t know that such website existed before and it looks like a great addition to the tools that are available to people like myself. Grazie mille Melissa e ci vederci là !

    Nov 13, 02:08AM PST | 0 comments


    melissamuldoon

    My life as an Italiophile 1 week ago

    By now everyone who knows me, knows I am a passionate italianophile!

    I began my love for Italy in 1983 when I studied Art History in Florence. I lived with an Italian family and traveled throughout il bel paese soaking up the culture. I was a painter and an historian, but didn’t learn the language – then. The experience of living in Italy however, changed my life forever and when my mother gave me a copy of Frances Mayes’ book “Under the Tuscan Sun” years later, just reading the passages awakened my longing for Italy and the beautiful language I had never mastered. The Italian words Maye’s sprinkled through out her writing rolled around my head, awakening in me a longing and a passion to reconnect with Italy. Shortly thereafter, I went straight into Borders filled with my new ambition to learn the language – and bought the first of many Italian grammar books. The rest is history. I self taught myself the language. Then branched out into the internet to meet Italians to converse with. I bought and read every travel diary as well as innumerable accounts of expats living extraordinary existences in Italy. THEN I began to read them in Italian.

    The main thing about learning Italian, or any language for that matter is determination, love and passion. You have to WANT to learn it. You have to spend hours a day on it. And still after 10 years, after you can read books, converse with Italians and have half your facebook page be in Italian, be continually humbled by how much you have yet to learn and master…how can anyone learn all those beautiful words (beyond the basics) in just a semester?

    It is a never ending process. I’m not sure how anyone can say they can learn a language in 2 weeks, 2 years or 2 decades. You have to love the process and live with learning a language for the rest of your life…it is that good!

    Best advice. Learn grammar first. Build vocabulary daily. Find Italians to converse with. Find Italian Meet Up Groups in your area. Travel to Italy. Read books and magazines in Italian. Find chat groups on the Internet (www.Impariamo.com) Listen to RAI Click (italian tv on the internet). Listen to italian songs. Love Italy!

    Non c’e’ un posto migliore di Italia. Per me Italia vive sempre nel mio cuore. Ritornero’. Ritornero! La lingua mi tiene in contatto con il bel paese!

    Nov 11, 12:59AM PST | 1 cheer | 2 comments


    verdandi

    Mi piace... ? 1 week ago

    Like everything that ends up being a significant part of my life, I began this endeavor for totally superficial reasons. I decided I wanted to study abroad, but after my experiences with Attic Greek (insert screams of terror here) my grades were not exactly the nice, shiny grades they needed to be in order to be approved for the Rome program I wanted to do.

    BUT THEN: there was this little note down at the bottom about this program in Pisa. This program in Pisa that no one ever does, and no one ever applies for, because there’s a language prerequisite. And thus the cogs began to turn.

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    Nov 10, 04:34PM PST | 3 cheers | 0 comments


    Rene is focussing on learning Italian

    Finished Michel Thomas foundation today 1 week ago

    Today, I finished the 10 cd’s of the Michel Thomas Foundation series and the Review series. In one word: excellent!

    The Michel Thomas (MT) method does a good job explaining you the concepts of a language, without falling into explaining the grammar only. This is also the main selling point comparing MT to other methods like Pimsleur or other on-the-go courses.

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    Rene is focussing on learning Italian

    Learning verbs 1 week ago

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    Nov 09, 02:33PM PST | 1 cheer | 0 comments


    L3XX1 is chillin' at home

    Untitled 1 week ago

    Speaking Italian would be way cool. i love to learn new things.

    Nov 08, 04:04PM PST | 0 comments


    MerPrincessKnowledge believeess*

    Untitled 2 weeks ago

    wishes wishes

    Nov 06, 05:49AM PST | 0 comments


    MerPrincessKnowledge believeess*

    Untitled 2 weeks ago

    this is amazing http://www.real-wishes.com
    this can help youu (:

    Nov 06, 05:07AM PST | 0 comments


    noriange is calmed now

    tips to learn italian... 2 weeks ago

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