Top 10 Tips for Learning the Italian Language (Part 2)

i migliori consigli

the best tips

In my last post, I shared five of the strategies that helped me learn and love la bella lingua. The secret of the next five is having fun as you acquire a second tongue. 

6. Play. Word games in any language strengthen the brain and boost memory. In Italian giochi di parole, such as cruciverba (crosswords), enigmi (puzzles), and anagrammi (anagrams) add the extra bonus of building your vocabulary. You can buy inexpensive puzzle books at newsstands in Italy or play online.  Another fun option is playing the Italian versions of popular board games, such as Monopoly and Scarabeo (Scrabble), with friends or fellow students. Or you can ask an Italian to teach you card games such as Scopa and Briscola. (Just don’t bet any money on them.)

7. Mingle. Join a bocce team or a Vespa club. Watch a soccer match in an Italian bar or restaurant. Take cooking classes taught by Italians. Go to Italian street festivals. For informal opportunities to speak Italian, look for a local conversation group at www.meetup.com. Enroll in a class at schools, community centers, Italian cultural organizations -- or, best of all, in Italy.

8. Don’t be afraid of tripping over your tongue. “Sbagliando si impara,” Italians say. “You learn by making mistakes.” Focus on communicating, not speaking in diagram-able sentences. If you can’t think of the correct tense, just say the infinitive of a verb -- parlare for “speak”, for example -- or stick to the present tense. And by all means, use your hands. That’s molto italiano.

9. Spend time in Italy every day. If you don't have time or money for a trip abroad, bring a little Italy into your life. Drink an espresso. Eat some pasta. Have a gelato. Listen to a Puccini aria. Wear something Italian (shoes are a great choice). Visit the websites of ex-pats, happy wanderers, and travel bloggers.

10. Be swept away. I fell so madly, gladly, giddily in love with Italian that I spent years researching and writing La Bella Lingua: My Love Affair with Italian, the World’s Most Enchanting Language. The more you know about how Italian became Italian, civilized the Western world, and enriched every aspect of our culture and life, the more Italian you’ll want to know.

For something entirely different, sit in on an Italian class with Monty Python:

Comments

[Mia]

The Italian language is a beautiful and amazing language to learn. I found that the best way of learning was to attend a language holiday abroad. It really helped me to get to grips with the language.

[Cath Andrews]

Great post. When we lived in the UK we went to an evening class, bought every CD there is, and even got Italian TV via a special satellite dish. But we're lucky - we now live in rural Italy and there's really nothing like having to speak Italian because your hot water has suddenly disppeared and you need a plumber to fix it before you can have another shower ... or because you have a nest of hornets in your chimney and need the fire brigade to come to the rescue ... Grammar goes out the window, but no-one cares and the job gets done!

Oh - and thank you in particular for that Monty Python clip - I had forgotten all about it. Timeless!

[Karleen Bradford]

Great post. Unfortunately there are no groups near where I live, but I am learning online and going back to Italy next spring to the Lucca Language School. Meanwhile, I am very much enjoying your blog and your books.

[LindyLouMac]

Great tips Diane, all of which I agree with and try to carry out. As for the expat bloggers well I am one of them, but there are others I follow :)
My Italian grammar is dreadful despite years of learning but as you say don't worry, I am finding where we are living now the locals never seem to complete a word anyway so that doesn't help with learning verb endings, maybe they are not sure either!

[Dianne Hales]

Re: [Becoming Italian Word by Word] Cindy Swain submitted a comment to My Top 10 Secrets for Learning Italian (Part 2)

Thanks, Cindy. I appreciate hearing from you. Where do you live in Italy?

[Cindy Swain]

Fantastic post! I have been living in Italy for the past year, and everything you have mentioned I absolutely agree with!