ITALIAN LANGUAGE

La Nostra Bella Lingua

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Grace's Page

Italian Language Classes Spring 2023

The Italian Cultural Society will offer virtual and in-person opportunities for members and friends of the Society to learn and speak la nostra bella lingua. You need not be an ICS member to attend classes.

ADVANCE REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED FOR ALL CLASSES AND FOR EACH SESSION. Online registration begins January 30 for the Spring Session. All participants will register and make payment online prior to the start of the first class. Click ‘See More Information and Register’ to enroll in the course of your choice.

Fee: $65 for ICS Members and $75 for non-members.

Courses are response driven and will be offered on the days and at the times listed below with a minimum of 6 registered participants. Every effort will be made to ensure that participants are properly placed in a class that offers the “best fit” for their skill set. Separate registration required for each session even if you are currently enrolled.

In-person classes are conducted at the Community School of Naples, 13275 Livingston Road, Naples 34109. 

Proposed Course Offerings for Spring Session February 27-April 14, 2023

Participants will have six 90-minute classes weekly. Virtual class size will be limited to eight participants. Class dates will appear in the course description. Spring Break: April 3 - 10 (no classes).

Italian II with Grace Mannino Wednesdays 4:30 - 6:00
In person at Community School of Naples

Prerequisite: Italian I or an equivalent from another course of study

Required Text: “The New Italian Project” 1a Marin et.al. ISBN# 9788899358846 (Book, WKBK/DVD/Audio CD) available from Applause Books (Edilingua publication)  www.applauselearning.com Item #EDL8846 in the Italian Language Section of the applause learning website. Also available at Amazon and other sources.

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Italian III (Third course in the Intro Series) with Viviana Ardesia Mondays 1-2:30
Zoom

Prerequisite: Italian II or an equivalent from another course of study

Required Text: “The New Italian Project” 1a Marin et.al. ISBN# 9788899358846 (Book, WKBK/DVD/Audio CD) available from Applause Books (Edilingua publication)  www.applauselearning.com Item #EDL8846 in the Italian Language Section of the applause learning website. Also available at Amazon and other sources.

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Italian IV/V (Intro Series) with Alessandra Castoldi Thursdays 11:30- 1:00
Zoom

For those with some experience with entry level vocabulary, verbs, greetings and sentence structure who would benefit from review and advancement toward beginner conversation.

Prerequisite: Italian III or equivalent from another course of study

Required text: “Arrivederci!1 For English Speakers” Applause books (Edilingua publication) ISBN# 9789606931215 www.applauselearning.com, Item #EDL1215 in the Italian Language Section of applause learning website.

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Italian VI (Final course in the Intro Series) with Nancy Sguera Wednesdays 3:30-5:00
Zoom

This course will prepare students for beginner conversation class.

Prerequisite: Italian V or an equivalent from another course of study

Required text: “Arrivederci!1 For English Speakers” Applause books (Edilingua publication) ISBN# 9789606931215 www.applauselearning.com, Item #1215 in the Italian Language Section of applause learning website. 

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Beginner Conversation with Joan Hoffmeister Tuesdays 4:00 – 5:30
Zoom

For those with some experience with grammar and sentence structure who are ready for entry level conversation.

Prerequisite: Intro Series with ICS or an equivalent course of study 

Required text: “Italian Made Simple” by Cristina Mazzoni ISBN# 9780767915397

Secondary text: “Read and Think Italian” McGraw Hill, ISBN# 978-1-259-83633-6 (masked Venetian on the cover). Both texts are available online. 

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Beginner Conversation with Nancy Sguera Tuesdays 3:30 – 5:00
Zoom

Prerequisite: Introductory Series with ICS or equivalent course of study

Required text: “Easy Italian Reader” premium third edition by Riccarda Saggese, McGraw Hill ISBN# 9781260463644 at approximately $16 online and locally.

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Intermediate Conversation I with Grace Mannino Thursdays 4:30-6:00
In person at Community School of Naples

Prerequisite: Conversational experience beyond the Beginner Conversation level course of study

Required text: “Read and Think Italian” McGraw Hill, ISBN# 978-1-259-83633-6 (masked Venetian on the cover). Available online. 

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Intermediate Conversation II with Joan Hoffmeister Wednesdays 4:00 – 5:30
Zoom

Prerequisite: Conversational experience beyond the Beginner Conversation level course of study.

Required text: “In Viaggio: Moving Toward Fluency in Italian” by Olson, Edwards, Foerster McGraw Hill www.mhhe.com  ISBN # 9780072402643. 

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Italiano avanzato with Viviana Ardesia Mondays 10:30 – 12:00
Zoom

Advanced level conversation course with weekly assigned homework.

Prerequisite: Intermediate Conversation II or equivalent course of study

Required text: “novissimo progetto italiano 3” (Book/MP3/Audio CD) www.applauselearning.com Item# EDL8983 at about $36 in the Italian Language Section of the Applause webpage or Amazon about $33.

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No refunds will be given after the first week of class.

 

Winter Break: February 20 – February 24 (No Classes)

Spring Session: February 27 – April 14

Spring Break: April 3 – April 7 (No Classes)

Summer Session (Optional): April 17 – May 26

 

Contact: Donna Lenzi,  lenzidonna@gmail.com

Our Instructors

Viviana Ardesia

Viviana Ardesia is a native of Pescara, a tiny city on the Adriatic Sea, where she attended high school in Classical Studies. She has a degree in Literature and Philosophy from the University of Bologna, the oldest university in the world, and a PhD in Italian History from the University of Udine. She has lived in Pisa, Milan and Turin teaching Italian Grammar and Literature at the public school level and History at university for more than 10 years. Viviana moved to Florida recently with her family and is enthusiastic about sharing the language and culture she loves.

Alessandra Castoldi

was born in a city near Milan where she completed Classical Studies at the high school level and graduated in Italian Language and Literature at the University of Milan. She taught Italian and History in public school in Italy for almost 20 years. In 2016 she moved abroad with her family and started teaching Italian as a second language at all levels. She loves to meet people from different cultures and to share the Italian language and culture.

Joan Hoffmeister

was born in Italy and moved to Buenos Aires with her family at the age of 5. She grew up speaking Spanish and Italian in the home, and later moved with her family to NY at age 15. With a Masters Degree in Spanish and French from St. John's University, she went on to teach in NY public schools, the Tehran American School and at the British Council in Bahrain. After extensive travel in Europe and the Middle East, Joan moved to Naples, Florida and taught in the public schools where she was awarded Teacher of Distinction from Collier County School System.

Grace Mannino

a native-born Italian, author and educational consultant who received her doctorate at SUNY Stony Brook, brought 33 years of high school and college teaching experience in NY to the ICS program in 2003. In addition to teaching Italian, French and Spanish, Grace was President of the American Association of Teachers of Italian of Long Island, President of Long Island Language Teachers, and a member of numerous committees on the national, state and regional level. Since retiring, Grace's enthusiasm in promoting Italian language and culture has found a new home in Naples.

Nancy Sguera

was born in Italy and moved to the United Sates with her family when she was 12. As an adult, she majored in Italian to continue to learn of her language, heritage and people. After receiving a Masters Degree from CUNY (Queens College), she taught Italian and Spanish in the public school system for 18 years and retired from George W. Hewlett High School in NY in 2008. While teaching, Nancy received scholarships to L'Università per Stranieri di Siena, The Summer Institute of Spanish Language and Culture in Salamanca and the NHE Summer Institute in Rome.