Learn how to order food and drink, greet people, and introduce yourself, in this first Italian for Beginners course.
82,253 enrolled on this course
Duration
4 weeksWeekly study
4 hours100% online
How it works
Italian for Beginners 1: Meeting, Greeting and Eating
This online course is the first of six courses. It will introduce you to the basic language, so that you are able to:
- order snacks and drinks in a café;
- greet people and introduce yourself and others;
- talk about where you live and where you come from;
- talk about the languages you speak;
- talk about what you do.
Start to speak, listen, read and write in Italian
During the four weeks of the course, you will learn some of the vocabulary and phrases you need to help you interact with people at a basic level.
You will start to develop the four language skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing through a range of activities, which will introduce the language in authentic settings, and audio resources, which will let you hear the language in action.
There are some activities where you will also practice your speaking skills, as it is important that you start speaking as soon as possible.
You will also learn some essential Italian grammar, including some basic verbs, such as essere (to be) and chiamarsi (to call). Finally, you will get some tips and advice on how to develop your study skills, so that you can become a successful language learner.
Take your Italian learning offline by purchasing two hours of downloadable audio files and transcripts made by the course creators at The Open University. These MP3s are a great way to practise your Italian listening and speaking wherever you are. They cover examples and exercises in the same topics as the course.
Syllabus
Week 1
Ordering drinks and snacks
Welcome to Italian for Beginners 1: Greetings, names and introductions
Let’s get started, but first meet your fellow learners.
Drinks and snacks
Find out the names for some common drinks and snacks, and the grammatical forms you need to understand in order to talk about them.
Ordering drinks and snacks
In this activity you will learn and practise the language needed to place an order in a bar or café, and you will find out more about the Italian bar.
Definite articles
Learn more about Italian bars and coffee houses and how to use definite articles.
Over to you
Learning another language requires personal effort. Here you can find some guidance to get the most out of what you learned this week.
Week 2
Greetings and introductions
Greetings
In this activity you will look at how Italian speakers greet each other.
Asking people how they are
Learn how to ask people how they are and how to respond appropriately
Addressing people
In this activity you will learn how people are addressed in Italian and the conventions surrounding forms of address.
Introducing yourself
In this activity you will learn how to say your name and how to spell it. You will learn the Italian alphabet and practise some pronunciation points.
Pronouncing c and g
In this activity you will learn how C and G are pronounced in different letter combinations, and about some famous Italians of the past.
The Italian alphabet
In order to spell names and surnames, you need to know the Italian alphabet.
Over to you
Learning another language requires personal effort. Here you can find some guidance to get the most out of what you learned this week.
Week 3
Nationalities and languages
Saying where you are from
In this activity you will learn how to say where you are from and how to use adjectives of nationality.
Talking about yourself and other people
In this activity you will learn how to use subject pronouns.
Talking about where you live
In this activity you will learn how to say where you live and ask where other people live.
Saying what languages you speak
In this activity you will learn to talk about the languages you speak and will find out about the languages and dialects spoken in Italy. You will also learn a little about the Italian regions.
Over to you
Learning another language requires personal effort. Here you can find some guidance to get the most out of what you learned this week. A range of additional audios are available for purchase, to help you consolidate the words and
Week 4
Occupations, jobs and workplaces
Jobs and professions
In this activity you will learn the words for several occupations.
Talking about your occupation
In this activity you will find out how to say what you do for a living.
Using verbs ending in -are
You will now learn how to use verbs in –are to say what you and other people do and where they live.
Over to you
Learning another language requires personal effort. Here you can find some guidance to get the most out of what you learned this week.
When would you like to start?
Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.
Available now
Learning on this course
On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...
- Develop skills in basic Italian for interacting in common communicative situations
- Engage in simple communication in Italian
- Apply the language introduced in order to greet people, talk about where you live and what you do
- Apply the language introduced to talk about languages you speak and order drinks and snacks
Who is the course for?
This course is aimed at people with no prior knowledge of Italian, who want to learn the basic language, and find out about Italy and its regions and culture. This course is taught through English.
Who will you learn with?
Lecturer in Italian at the Open University, author of Italian course books. I'm Scottish but learnt Italian in Italy when young. I love singing, dancing and travelling around Italy.
I am a Lecturer in Italian at The Open University. I am Italian but live in the UK. I love learning new languages, reading novels, walking in the country, listening to music and yoga.
OU associate lecturer and materials writer. I have written materials on business communication, Academic English and Italian.
Who developed the course?
Established
1969Location
Milton Keynes, UKWorld ranking
Top 510Source: Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2020
Ways to learn | Buy this course | Subscribe & save | Limited access |
---|---|---|---|
Choose the best way to learn for you! | $79/one-off payment | $244.99 for a whole year Automatically renews | Free |
Fulfill your current learning need | Develop skills to further your career | Sample the course materials | |
Access to this course | tick | tick | Access expires 5 Mar 2025 |
Access to 1,000+ courses | cross | tick | cross |
Learn at your own pace | tick | tick | cross |
Discuss your learning in comments | tick | tick | tick |
Tests to check your learning | tick | tick | cross |
Certificate when you're eligible | Printed and digital | Digital only | cross |
Cancel for free anytime |
Ways to learn
Choose the best way to learn for you!
Subscribe & save
$244.99 for a whole year
Automatically renews
Develop skills to further your career
- Access to this course
- Access to 1,000+ courses
- Learn at your own pace
- Discuss your learning in comments
- Tests to boost your learning
- Digital certificate when you're eligible
Cancel for free anytime
Buy this course
$79/one-off payment
Fulfill your current learning need
- Access to this course
- Learn at your own pace
- Discuss your learning in comments
- Tests to boost your learning
- Printed and digital certificate when you’re eligible
Limited access
Free
Sample the course materials
- Access expires 5 Mar 2025
Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades) Sale price available until 3 March 2025 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply. |
Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)
Sale price available until 3 March 2025 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply.
Learning on FutureLearn
Your learning, your rules
- Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
- Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
- Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores
Join a global classroom
- Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
- Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
- Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others
Map your progress
- As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
- Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
- Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate
Want to know more about learning on FutureLearn? Using FutureLearn
Learner reviews
Do you know someone who'd love this course? Tell them about it...
You can use the hashtag #FLItalian to talk about this course on social media.
More courses you might like
Learners who joined this course have also enjoyed these courses.
Browse more in Language