Why I Created My Own Method to Teach Italian (and How It Really Works)

🇮🇹 Leggi questo articolo in italiano

When people ask me “which method do you use to teach Italian?”, the honest answer is: not just one. In this article I tell you how my way of teaching was born – I call it humanistic-affective and eclectic – and how it works in practice during a lesson.

Why I don’t use “a method” from a textbook

I started as a substitute teacher of Italian and Latin in middle schools, then taught at a language school, and since 2020 I have taught mainly online, to students from all over the world. In more than twenty years I have learned one thing: no rigid method works the same way for everyone. A German manager moving to Milan, a teenager preparing for school exams and a retired lady who wants to read Dante have completely different needs.

What “humanistic-affective” means

The starting point is not grammar but the person. You only really learn a language in a safe environment, where making mistakes is not scary. Language teaching research calls it the “affective filter”: when we are anxious, the mind closes and words don’t stick.

That’s why, even before the syllabus, I want to understand why you want to learn Italian: for work, for a certification, to move to Italy, to talk to your partner’s family or for the pleasure of reading in the original language. Your goal changes everything else: the texts, the exercises, the pace.

What “eclectic” means

I don’t follow one single method from start to finish. Depending on the person and the moment, I use:

• communicative techniques: conversations and role plays about real situations;
• structured grammar, when you need a solid base;
• the inductive method: you discover the rule from examples instead of starting from theory. A rule you discover yourself is a rule you remember.

With adults I prefer a practical approach you can use straight away in real life. With teenagers I look for a balance between structure, which reassures them, and gamification, which keeps them engaged. In groups, which work best with up to ten people, I use short progress tests to check that the class is really following, not just nodding.

What a lesson with me looks like

1. Warm-up: a quick chat about how you are and what you did, already in Italian.
2. A real text or situation: a dialogue, an article, a video, a form to fill in.
3. The rule, discovered together from the text.
4. Practice: exercises and conversation to use what you have just learned.
5. Feedback and homework tailored to you, with materials you receive after the lesson.

Where this approach comes from

I hold a master’s degree in Modern Literature from the University of Bologna and the CEDILS certification from Ca’ Foscari University of Venice for teaching Italian to foreigners. I also completed a postgraduate master’s in digital technologies and distance-learning methods, essential for teaching well online rather than simply moving a classroom lesson into a video call. I am currently training as a tutor for students with specific learning differences such as dyslexia, which makes me even more careful to create clear, accessible materials.

The same method in my courses

I am turning this approach into a complete Italian course from A1 to C2, designed both for people learning Italian to travel or live in Italy and for those aiming at CILS, CELI, PLIDA or the fide test in Switzerland. Every lesson follows the same philosophy: real context first, then the rule.

Want to try it?

The best way to find out if my method is right for you is to try it. Book a free 30-minute trial lesson: we will talk about your goals and your level. If you like, take the free Italian level test first.