CIAO !

if you are searching among Italian courses in Italy and among the different Italian language schools in Italy and you are looking for study abroad programs and a course of Italian in Sicily, then we have it! Please, read what follows to know more about our school of Italian and our Italian language courses in Sicily, Taormina.

Our Italian courses can be language courses in a group or private language courses. Our Italian language school in Taormina, Sicily, offers study stays from one week up to one year! We can assist you in finding accommodation in Taormina

If, beyond a full immersion study abroad stay, you also want a full cultural experience, we offer a wider choice of culture courses from which to choose:

· cooking courses
· arts & crafts: ceramics, painting, sculpture and wood restoration courses
· Italian literature courses
· Italian history courses
· art history courses

Or, maybe you prefer something more active, dynamic, sporty? Then you can choose from:

· eco-tours
· sport & adventure
· golf

On the other hand, if you need courses for specific purposes, we can offer:
· business & executives courses
· commercial correspondence

With our Italian language courses we offer a program of social and cultural activities

Beyond all of that, our Italian language programs are officially recognized by:

· THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
· A.S.I.L.S. - Associazione delle Scuole di Italiano come Lingua Seconda -, the only one south of Naples
· I.A.L.C - International Association of Language Centres -, the only one south of Rome

And our School of Italian has signed agreements with:

· UNIVERSITY FOR FOREIGNERS of PERUGIA as Official Authorised Exam Centre for CELI Exams - Certificato di lingua italiana. The CELI exam is conform to the ALTE- Association of Language Testers in Europe – directives on the European standards fixed by the European Council. The exam sessions are in June and November
· UNIVERSITY "Ca’Foscari” of VENEZIA as authorized language centre for the apprenticeship of ITALS Master for teachers of Italian as foreign/second language

Do you already know our town, Taormina, and our island, Sicily?

Taormina has very ancient origins: in its Bay of Naxos, in 735 b.C., the first Greek colonizers landed and founded their first colony (Naxos) which was later to become the Magna Grecia. After them, whoever ruled over the Mediterranean Sea left their “footprints” on this wonderful island. Would you like to know Taormina a little bit better? Click on Taormina and have a look at our photo album and, if you have time, go for a virtual walk in town among its monuments, its history and its beaches.

Taormina can also be the basis for a trip in Sicily to discover the roots of the Sicily's culture and traditions. As W. J. Goethe wrote in 1786: "Without Sicily, Italy cannot be fully understood. It is here one finds the key to all things.”. Sicily has been at the centre of the Mediterranean See, and therefore of the European interests, for more than 2.000 years, until the “discovery” of the New World.

At the time of Dante Alighieri there was already a discussion among academics about which should be the national Italian language: that of the writers and poets of the courts of Frederick II or that of the court of the Medici in Florence. Then the divine Comedy was written and this put an end to the discussion… But it is in Sicily that the national theatre has its origins, with the tragedies written by Eschilo, Euripide, Aristofane. It is here that the genius of Archimedes anticipated the genius of Leonardo da Vinci. And it was the culture of the Magna Grecia that fed the Etruscan civilisation, first, and the Latin civilisation, afterwards, making Rome “Caput Mundi”. Click on myths of Sicily, if you want to know more about them.

Two of the Nobel Price for literature were Sicilians: Pirandello e Quasimodo. But many are the Sicilian writers who are fundamental in the history of the Italian literature: Verga, Capuana, Rosso di San Secondo e Tomasi di Lampedusa. And still nowadays the contribution of Sicily to the Italian literature is immense: : Vittorini, Sciascia, Bufalino, Consolo e Camilleri.

The same in music: from the “cantastorie” telling the stories of the French Paladins to the Opera composer Vincenzo Bellini.. The same in paintings: from Antonello da Messina to Renato Gattuso. And in fashion: from Mariella Ferrera to Dolce & Gabbana.

Not to be forgotten are also the treasures of the eno-gastronomy: from pasta alla Norma to caponatina, from cannoli to pasta reale, from Marsala wine to Malvasia.

Our Italian language courses can be the beginning of an unforgettable journey in Sicily. From Taormina, it is very easy to get to Syracuse, volcano Mount Etna, the Eolian Islands, Catania, Piazza Armerina and Noto. And, travelling a little bit further, to: Palermo, Selinunte, Segesta, Agrigento, Erice. And many more are the treasures of Sicily.

We would love to welcome you to our Italian language school in Taormina, Sicily for an unforgettable cultural and learning experience.

Ciao e… a presto!

 
   Alessandro Adorno
founder & school director

PROGRAMMA

Our Italian language course program has been developed from a communicative based approach and focuses on the four language abilities (listening, speaking, reading, writing). Our first goal is comunicazione, both oral and written. Our courses are structured to conform with the European standards set by ALTE (Association of Language Testers in Europe) and by the Council of Europe.
 

Our Standard group course is divided in two parts: 2-hours of language analysis followed by 2-hours of practice with communicative tasks. The analitical activities includes controlled oral and written production, while the communicative tasks involve listening and reading comprehension and free oral and written activities. The instructors rotate weekly to add variety and interesse to the group dynamic. Grammatical structures are presented in order of frequency and relative complexity. The material is always introduced in some form of authentic text (newspaper or magazine article, taped dialogue, video-taped situation, letter, short story, etc.). Progress is monitored and all teachers meet weekly to facilitate organization and ensure proper student placement.
 

There is a massimo number of 10 students per class, although depending on season our average class size is generally between 4 and 6 people. This limit ensures a small group environment conducive to communication and offers each student the opportunity to speak as much as possible.
 

Ranging from Absolute Beginner to Advanced, our Italian language course
program is divided into six different levels of abilità. Students may enrol in our weekly
classes for up to 6-months of coursework, depending on their goals. All students
are placed in a level based on their entrance exam (both written and oral).

Though we are somewhat flexible, we highly recommend that all students begin
on our specified start dates, which occur roughly every two weeks
(please consult Course Schedule). Absolute beginner courses start only according
to our course schedule.

Our Italian language courses are structured to conform with the European standards set by ALTE (Association of Language Testers in Europe) and by the Council of Europe.

The Formation Program is diviso into three levels and allows students to reach the “threshold level”, the level of communicative competence according to the Modern Language Project of the Council of Europe.

Formation:

Beginner (1st level)
Intermediate (2nd level)
Superior (3rd level)

The Specialization Program is also divided into three levels and allows the students to reach a level of competenza in the Italian language which is necessary for entrance into an Italian university.

Specialization:

Advanced 1 (4th level)
Advanced 2 (5th level)
Advanced 3 (6th level)

Each level last four weeks. However, completion of a particular 4-week course does not guarantee advancement to the next level. Language learning is not a mechanical endeavour. It is an academic endeavour which also involves a personal and psychological component. Some studenti have elected to repeat a particular level or delay advancement by a week or two, so as to continue study and practice of particular structures. Since our Italian language program is developed by a communicative-based approach, our materials, activities and tasks are quite extensive and it is rare that the student will repeat the same activities, using the same materials. We have designed our program with this in mind.

Most of our students take full advantage of the authentic materiali we use in the classroom and the communicative activities and tasks we employ, which often extend out of the classroom and into the students’ free time.

Upon request, we also offer completion exams to solidify and measure progress achieved. As an accredited language institution, our school corresponds to various International continuing educational programs.

I NOSTRI INSEGNANTI

All the teachers of  our Italian language courses are university graduates and many speak at least one or two other lingue.
Most of them have studied foreign languages at università and/or language schools abroad and all have been trained to teach Italian as a second/foreign language.

As a member school of A.S.I.L.S. our teachers take advantage of the regularly scheduled teacher training seminari and workshops offered by the Association of Schools of Italian as a Second Language as well as by other professional organisations.In addition, we organize our own, ongoing, in-house teacher training program.

Progress of the students is continuously monitorati and all teachers meet weekly to facilitate organization and ensure proper student placement.

We consider extremely importanti our weekly teachers' meeting during which teachers can also exchange their own experiences in class and the results of the different activities proposed to the students.

ITALIAN LANGUAGE GROUP COURSE PRICES 2008
Learn and study Italian in Italy at our Centre for Italian Studies: full immersion Italian programs & intensive Italian language lessons in group

one time fee valid for all language courses for the whole year:
€ 50,00

The course price includes:

· first day package
· free internet access (DSL & wireless area)
· student card for discounts
· free extra curricular activities
· student insurance
· educational material
· oral and written entrance test
· final certificate

Minimum course length: 01 week
Maximum number of students: 10 (ten)
Lesson hour: 55 minutes
Classes take place: from Monday to Friday
Each of the 6 levels lasts: 4 weeks

National Holidays (on these dates the school is closed)

· Easter Monday
· Liberation Day (25/4), 
· Labour Day (1/5), 
· Day of the Republic (02/06), 
· Assumption of Mary (15/8), 
· All Saints' Day (1/11), 
· Immaculate Conception (8/12) 

Click on the logos if you need to print out the official document

Our Italian study abroad programs are riconosciuti by:

• Germany’s Bildungsurlaub in Hamburg
• Sweden’s CSN (Swedish National Agency for Higher education)
• AAAI (Academic Assessment Associates International) for credits for U.S University students