Beginners Italian:
Part 3 (A1)
In this 10-week course, you'll build on what you covered in Part 2, working through Units 5 and 6 of Nuovo Espresso 1.
You'll develop the confidence to handle more real-life situations — from checking into a hotel to getting around a new city and asking for directions. The emphasis remains on speaking, with grammar woven in to support your communication.
Suitable for students who have completed Beginners Italian Part 2, or anyone with an equivalent foundation in the language.
The course will broaden your vocabulary and grammar so you can describe places, ask for and give information, and navigate everyday life in Italian with growing confidence.
Course Outline
Course start date: Tuesday 22 September
Course end date: Tuesday 24 November
Time: 12:00 to 13:00 BST
Location: Zoom
Price: £180
Topics
Revision of Part 2 content
Checking into a hotel and making requests
Describing a room and its furnishings
Renting an apartment
Getting around a city
Asking for and giving directions
Describing a route
Opening and closing times
Apologising and expressing regret
End-of-term project: una vacanza in Italia
Grammar
Revision of Part 2 grammar
C'è / ci sono
The verbs potere and venire
Prepositions of time da… a
Articulated prepositions
Months and ordinal numbers
The interrogative quanto
Cardinal numbers from 100
Dates
The verb andare and ci
Adjective agreement with nouns
Adjectives ending in -col/-ca
The partitive (indefinite article in the plural)
Molto
Expressions of place
The verbs dovere and sapere
C'è un…? / Dov'è il…?
The interrogatives quando and quale
Opening hours (a che ora…?)
Learning outcomes (what you will be able to do by the end of the course):
Book a hotel room and make simple requests
Ask about room prices and facilities
Describe a room or apartment
Rent an apartment and explain preferences
Ask for and give directions in a city
Describe a route and guide someone around town
Ask for travel and timetable information
Apologise and respond to apologies
Talk about opening and closing times
Build more confident sentences using the present tense
More generally, you will:
Expand your vocabulary
Become more confident communicating orally and in writing
Discover some surprising and wonderful things about Italian culture
There may be slight content variations at the discretion of the tutor. Additional content may be included when general progress is good, or topics may vary according to students' interests.
Info about the course and resources
This course is focused on spoken interaction and communication. Typical activities include pair work, group work, role plays and games. Your teacher will provide a range of activities to support your learning including presentations, hand-outs, and audio-visual material. After each session, you will be assigned homework which is highly recommended to consolidate learning.
About the textbook
Textbook:
Ziglio L & Rizzo G (2014) Nuovo espresso 1: Libro dello studente e esercizi Florence: Alma Edizioni (Italian version)
Books you may find useful:
Ziglio L (2015) Nuovo espresso 1: Esercizi supplementari Florence: Alma Edizioni
Adorni S – Primorac K (2011) English grammar for students of Italian: The study guide for those learning Italian Ann Arbor, MI: Olivia and Hill Press
Fall in Love with Italian – One Word at a Time
Join a course, drop into a club, or come for the conversation and culture. However you show up, you’ll be welcomed, supported, and inspired to keep learning.
