Open to students with no previous training in Italian, the course aims at developing the communicative ability in order to satisfy a limited number of immediate needs necessary for survival in the target language culture, such as basic personal information, and a limited number of activities. Major emphasis is given to pronunciation, basic vocabulary and syntax, and to speaking ability and listening comprehension. The course also aims at building a grammatical foundation to develop further levels of proficiency, and introducing basic reading and writing. Cultural items explored during the semester include: Italian gestures, Italian cooking, the working world in Italy, youth and leisure time, and traveling.

*Course content subject to change