Phrases to Talk About Your Italian Lessons (interview with a student)

We snaked our way through the streets of Florence as we made our way to il mercato di Sant'Ambrogio. I turned toward Mary, “Com’è andata la tua lezione? - How’d your lesson go?” She responded, raising her voice slightly so I could hear her above the clamor, “È andata benissimo, Beatrice è un’insegnante fantastica. - It went well, Beatrice is a fantastic teacher.” These natural walking conversations had become such an integral part of the immersion retreat experience that Rachel & I decided to build more structure around them so students could get more of out of them. Now, every participant who comes on the trip receives a situation-specific workbook that gives them phrases and vocabulary to study before coming on the trip to help them prepare for these spontaneous conversations. I thought it might be cool to give you all a sample of what’s included in this workbook, too. :) Below you’ll see vocabulary and phrases for talking about Italian lessons. And if you’re interested in coming on one of our trips, read more details and apply for one of the six spots here. How to Talk About Your Lessons: Verbs -- Dovere - To have to / must -- Imparare - To learn -- Insegnare - To teach -- Sentire - To listen / to hear -- Dire - To tell / to say -- Dimenticare - To forget -- Migliorare - To improve -- Consigliare / Suggerire - To suggest / advise -- Fare errori - To make mistakes -- Sbagliare - To be wrong -- Ripassare - To review Vocabulary -- L’imperfetto - Imperfect tense -- Il passato prossimo - Past tense -- Il congiuntivo - Subjunctive mood -- Il condizionale - Conditional tense -- Le preposizioni - Prepositions -- I pronomi - Pronouns -- Test di ascolto - Listening test -- I compiti - Homework Phrases -- Cos’ hai imparato oggi? - What did you learn today? -- Abbiamo fatto pratica con il congiuntivo. - We practiced using the subjunctive mood. -- Hai finito i tuoi compiti? - Did you finish your homework? -- Beatrice mi ha detto che devo esercitarmi con l’imperfetto. - Beatrice told me that I need to practice using the imperfect tense. -- Roberta mi ha consigliato di ascoltare dei podcast in Italiano. - Roberta suggested that I listen to some podcasts in Italian. -- Ho continuato a dimenticare come usare correttamente il passato prossimo. - I kept forgetting how to use the past tense! -- Continuo a sbagliare / continuo a fare errori il congiuntivo. - I kept making mistakes with the subjunctive mood! -- Abbiamo ripassato le preposizioni semplici. - We reviewed simple prepositions. -- Devo imparare più vocaboli per descrivere il mio lavoro. - I need to learn more vocabulary around (my job). -- Devo migliorare l’ascolto. - I need to improve my listening skills. -- Roberta era fantastica! Mi piace tantissimo il suo metodo di insegnamento. - Roberta was fantastic! I really like the way she teaches. -- Beatrice mi ha aiutato tantissimo. - Beatrice was really helpful. Sample Conversation Cher: Che cosa hai imparato oggi? - What did you learn today? Mary: Abbiamo ripassato l’imperfetto e il passato prossimo. - We reviewed the imperfect and the past tense. Cher: È difficilissimo! Faccio ancora degli errori… uso spesso l’imperfetto quando dovrei usare il passato prossimo. - It’s really difficult. I still make mistakes… I often use the imperfect when I should use the past tense. Mary: Anche io!! - Me too!! Cher: Ma ora la differenza è più chiara? - But is the difference clear now? Mary: Sì, però penso che io abbia bisogno di più pratica. - Yeah, but I think I need more practice. Cher: Piano, piano. Hai dei compiti? - Slowly you’ll get it. Do you have homework? Mary: Sì, Beatrice mi ha dato un test di ascolto. Lei vuole capire meglio il mio livello. - Yes, Beatrice gave me a listening test. She wants to understand better what level I’m at. Cher: Ahh, interessante! - Ah, interesting! EXERCISE: FILL-IN-THE-BLANK 1) Cos’ hai ___________ oggi? - What did you learn today? 2) Abbiamo ___________ pratica con il congiuntivo. - We practiced using the subjunctive mood. 3) Hai finito i tuoi ___________? - Did you finish your homework? 4) Beatrice mi ha detto che devo ___________ con l’imperfetto. - Beatrice told me that I need to practice using the imperfect tense. 5) Roberta mi ha ___________ di ascoltare dei podcast in Italiano. - Roberta suggested that I listen to some podcasts in Italian. 6) Ho ___________ a dimenticare come usare correttamente il passato prossimo. - I kept forgetting how to use the past tense! 7) Continuo a sbagliare / continuo a fare ___________ il congiuntivo. - I kept making mistakes with the subjunctive mood! 8) Abbiamo ___________ le preposizioni semplici. - We reviewed simple prepositions. 9) Devo imparare più ___________ per descrivere il mio lavoro. - I need to learn more vocabulary around (my job). 10) ___________ migliorare l’ascolto. - I need to improve my listening skills. 11) Roberta era fantastica! Mi piace tantissimo il suo ___________ di insegnamento. - Roberta was fantastic! I really like the way she teaches. 12) Beatrice mi ha ___________ tantissimo. - Beatrice was really helpful To download this worksheet in PDF, click here.   Resources & more at... http://icebergproject.co/italian   Like the podcast? Leave a review in Apple Podcasts! If you like the podcast, I would appreciate it a TON if you left a review. You can hit a star rating in your Podcasts app on your iPhone or go to the iTunes store and click Leave a Review on the show page.