Our Levels

Il Sillabo offers six levels of Italian language classes. The following introduction is a general outline subject to adjustments due because the actual content depends on student skills, aims and group collaboration .

A1 – Breakthrough (Beginners) - This level is for those who have no or little knowledge of Italian language. During the standard course (80 hrs intensive) students will learn the basic language for social use, such as in a bar, a restaurant, in a shop, at the railway station and for introductions. Lessons will be also aimed at teaching students some vocabulary related to food, leisure time, family, jobs, animals and grammar will include definite articles, singular/plural/masculine/feminine nouns, adjectives, prepositions, present tense, the progressive form “stare + gerund” and possessive adjectives.

A2 – Waystage (Elementary) – This level is for those who already know the contents of the Beginner level. During the standard course (80 hrs intensive) students will learn to ask and give directions, to talk about themselves, about their habits and their childhood, to tell a personal experience or a story in the past, to express preferences. The increasing of the vocabulary will be related to clothes, house, holidays, weather, towns. Grammar will include reflexive verbs, “passato prossimo”, indefinite article, more prepositions, an introductions to indefinite adjectives and pronouns, “imperfetto”, direct and indirect object pronouns. Present conditional of “volere” and “potere”.

B1 – Threshold (Intermediate I) This level is for those who already know the contents of the previous levels. During the standard course (80 hrs intensive) students will learn the language useful in talking comprehensively and in a more complex way about themselves in formal or work contexts, they will learn to express their opinion about current events, to invite, how to accept or refuse an invitation to speak about past experiences or fairy tales, to talk about future, to give advices, orders and make requests, to compare two people, objects or places.

Lessons will be also aimed at increasing vocabulary about character and personality, the horoscope, fairy tales, free time, human body, Italian towns and regions. Grammar will include future, conditional, combined pronouns, “ci”, “ne”, comparatives and superlatives, some conjunctions and imperative.

B2 –Vantage (Intermediate II) This level is for those who have a good knowledge and can use properly the contents of the previous levels. During the course ( 80 hrs intensive) students will learn to express and support their own opinions in difficult contexts, to understand and comment on texts from newspapers, magazines and novels, to comment stereotypes and different cultures, to attend a job interview, to write their own CV. Vocabulary treated during the lessons will be related to town and countryside, advertising, superstitions, stereotypes, recipes, the mobile phone, weddings and manners. Grammar will include subjunctive, the impersonal form, relative pronouns, the hypothetical period, “passato remoto” and an introduction to consecutio temporum.

C1 – Proficiency (Advanced I) This level is for those who already have familiarity and a good or excellent knowledge of the contents of the previous levels. During the standard course ( 80 hrs intensive) students will deepen and strengthen their vocabulary, language and grammar by studying different authentic materials articles from newspapers or magazines, literary texts, audio and video materials) all selected by the teacher according to the students needs and capacity. Vocabulary will be related to politics, literature, current events, music, emigration and immigration, multi ethnicity in Italy, weddings and more. Grammar will include the indirect speech, the passive form, consecutio temporum and gerund and a continue deepening of the old grammar structures. Particular attention will be paid on writing in Italian and students will be asked to work both in class and at home writing essays, articles, formal and informal letters, summaries and compositions on given or free topics.

C2 – Mastery (Advanced II) This level is for those who have successfully completed the previous levels or who have a deep knowledge of their contents.

Students can attend the standard course of 80 hrs intensive both in groups or in one-to-one lessons.

Students will deepen and strengthen their vocabulary, language and grammar by studying different authentic materials articles from newspapers or magazines, literary texts, audio and video materials) all selected by the teacher according to the students needs and capacity. Students will learn idiomatic expressions, slang expressions and some business Italian, the language of journalism, TV, advertising and cinema, literary genres, language registers, an introductions to figures of speech and creative writing. Particular attention will be paid on writing in Italian and students will be asked to work both in class and at home writing correctly and cohesively complex essays and composition on different topics.