ITALIAN LANGUAGE

                                                               Click here for Grace's page: La Nostra Bella Lingua  

Summer Session: April 15th to May 22nd.

Fall Session begins October 21st. Fall registration will open August 5th for In-person and Zoom classes.

The Italian Cultural Society offer a progressive language series Italian I-VI, followed by Beginner Conversation I and II, Intermediate Conversation I and II, Upper Intermediate Conversation I and II, Italiano Avanzato, Italian though Literature, Italian for Travel, and Advanced Italian Grammar Review.

Six week sessions include one 90-minutes class per week. In-person classes follow school break schedule of Community School of Naples.

Fee: $75 for ICS Members and $85 for non-members except as noted. No refunds after the first week of class.

Back by popular demand!  Italian for Travel

in person with Grace Mannino: Tuesdays 4:30 to 6:00 beginning April 16th at Community School of Naples 13275 Livingston Road, Naples. 

Brush up on Italian phrases and pronunciation to make your trip more enjoyable. Designed for beginner students who are specifically interested in acquiring basic communication skills before leaving for Italy.

No text required; instructor will provide material.

Prerequisite: Desire to learn Italian! This class fills fast, so don’t delay. Limit 20 students.

Registration and Payment

Italian Grammar Review for Students of Italian, Level 2

with Viviana Ardesia, Wednesdays 11:00-12:30 AM via Zoom beginning April 17th.

Rapid & challenging review of English grammar compared to Italian grammar. Beginning grammar will be offered again fall session.

1) verbi ausiliari (essere e avere), attivo e passivo, verbi modali; 2) pronomi diretti e indiretti; 3) pronomi doppi, ci e ne, verbi pronominali; 4) preposizioni semplici e articolate, possessive; 5) congiuntivo; e 6) condizionale e domande.

Prerequisite: Rapid & challenging review of English compared to Italian grammar; recommend Italian 4 or above. Beginning grammar will be offered again fall session.

Registration and Payment

Italian 3 - not offered this session.

Registration and Payment

Italian 4 - see Italian 4/5 Review below.

Italian 4

With Nancy Sguera:  Wednesdays 3:30-5:00 p.m. via Zoom beginning April 17th. 

Students will practice listening, speaking, writing and reading.

Text: Arrivederci 1 for English Speakers, by Cinzia Faraci, www.applauselearning.com as E-book or hard copy with CD/DVD.

Prerequisite: Italian 3 as above.

Registration and Payment

Italian 4/5 Summer Review

In person with Alessandra Castoldi: Wednesdays 4:30-6:00 p.m. beginning April 17th at Community School of Naples 13275 Livingston Road, Naples, Room M-4.  Students will review nouns, articles, adjectives, regular verbs, prepositions and Passato Prossimo.

Text: Arrivederci 1 for English Speakers, by Cinzia Faraci, www.applauselearning.com as E-book or hard copy with CD/DVD.

Prerequisite: Italian 3

Registration and Payment

Italian 6B

with Viviana Ardesia Mondays 1-2:30 pm/ via Zoom beginning April 15th.

A continuation of the basic grammar series. For students of Italian conversation, this class will offer review of passato prossimo versus imperfetto, direct & indirect pronouns and reflexive verbs.

Text: New Italian Project: 1B with CD+DVD, publisher Edilingua, ISBN-10 8899358842, available on Amazon.

Prerequisite: Italian 6A with ICS or an equivalent. Note: price structure is different for this class.

Registration and Payment

Beginner Conversation II

with Joan Hoffmeister, Tuesdays 4:00-5:30 p.m. via Zoom beginning April 16th.

For those with some experience with entry level conversation.

Texts: Facilissimo Corso Rapido di Lingua Italiana, (ALM297), available from Applause Learning.

Prerequisite: Beginner Conversation with ICS or equivalent course of study

Registration and Payment

Beginner Conversation II

with Nancy Sguera Tuesdays 3:30 – 5:00 via Zoom beginning April 16th.  Through readings about Italian history, biographical sketches of famous Italian personalities, songs and poetry, the students will develop skills that allow them to understand contemporary Italian language and traditions while building confidence and comprehension.”

Text: “Easy Italian Reader” premium third edition by Riccarda Saggese, McGraw Hill ISBN# 9781260463644.

Prerequisite: Beginner Conversation with ICS or equivalent.

Registration and Payment

Intermediate Conversation I 

in person with Grace Mannino Thursdays 4:30-6:00 beginning April 18th at Community School of Naples 13275 Livingston Rd. Naples, FL, Room O-11.  Instructor-led conversation of ”All Things Italian:” current events, history, recipes,. Students present a Word of the Day and synopsis of a current events article. All discussion in Italian,

Text: Subscription to L’Italo Americano, https://italoamericano.org/membership/ and  Read and Think Italian” ISBN# 978-1-259-83633-6 (masked Venetian on the cover). Available online.

Prerequisite: Beginner Conversation II level.

Registration and Payment

Upper Intermediate Conversation II

with Joan Hoffmeister via Zoom: Wednesdays 4:00-5:30 beginning April 17th.

Texts: Sapore d’Italia by Mariella Zurula, available on Amazon, and Uffa by Concetta Perna, edizionefarinelli.com.

Prerequisite: Intermediate conversation experience.

Registration and Payment

Italian through Literature:  Poetry

In person, with Grace Mannino Wednesdays 4:30-6:00 p.m. beginning April 17th at Community School of Naples 13275 Livingston Road, Naples FL 34109, Room O-11.

Upper Intermediate level discussion of Italian poetry. Course is conducted in Italian.

Text: Introduction to Italian Poetry, Luciano Rebay, Available on Amazon or Applause.

Prerequisite: Intermediate Conversation II.

Registration and Payment

Italiano Avanzato

with Viviana Ardesia Mondays 10:30 – 12:00 via Zoom beginning April 15th.

Advanced level conversation course with weekly assigned homework.

Text: “Nuovissimo Progetto Italiano 3” (Book/MP3/Audio CD) www.applauselearning.com Item# EDL8983 or Amazon.

Prerequisite: Intermediate conversation II with ICS  or instructor permission.

Registration and Payment

Fall Session 2024 October 21^st to Dec 6^th  (break Nov 25-29, no classes)

Winter Session 2025: January 7th to Feb 14th

Spring Session 2025: February 24^th – April 4^th

Summer Session 2025: April 7^th to May 23^th (Easter Break April 14-18, no classes)

For more information contact: Luisa Jansky, kjansky@aol.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.