Ciao! I have been teaching Italian for the past twelve years. I have taught privately and at language schools like La Scuola Italiana del Greenwich Village in New York and ItalCultura, the school of the Italian Cultural Institute of Chicago. During the first few lessons I will make sure you have the tools to pronounce and identify all the sounds of the Italian language. This step is essential! And it will make everything easier afterwards. When I teach Italian I try to avoid all the things that I hated as a language student. We will use real songs, real literature, do real conversation and storytelling. When you are engaging all your senses it is easier to keep your mind relaxed and to remember new words. I will customize my materials to your interests, needs and desired pace. And because you are learning from a native Italian you will also learn about Italian culture and history. You will absorb a way of thinking, not just grammar rules. I speak a bunch of languages so I know a thing or two about how tedious language classes can be. My terrifying French teacher in middle school made us repeat the same fake dialogue from a really bad book ad nauseam, over and over and over again. Some of those dialogues are carved in my brain: “Bonjour, je m’appelle Richard Drapeau, je viens du Canada, je suis Canadien...” When I teach Italian I try to avoid all the things that I hated as a language student. We will use real songs, real literature, do real conversation and storytelling and we will go on “talking walks” because when you are engaging all your senses it is easier to keep your mind relaxed and to remember new words. I hold a degree in Lingue e Letterature Straniere (Foreign Languages and Literatures) from Università Roma Tre (equivalent to an American MA) and a Master’s of Fine Arts in Interdisciplinary Arts and Media from Columbia College Chicago. I wrote a thesis about translating a long epic poem by W. H. Auden and I tried to ride a horse across America.

Reviews (7)

Very clear and good start. High concentration, pleasant attunement. Good pace!
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Friendly hospitable lady. Can explain well. Is patient and amicable
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Valentina has been my Italian teacher since February. Since then, I have made great progress in learning Italian! She uses a very good method/book which also allows you to work online. But the best thing is the personal interaction with her, which really makes the difference: the explanation of grammatical stuff, the correct pronouncation and which words to use when and also some background information about Italy and the Italian people. A very pleasant and effective teacher! Alexander
Had an excellent introduction, open and relaxed.
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Patient, kind, has a great flow in her lessons and knows exactly how to tune in on her student's way of learning.
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  • Instructor since June 2019
  • 1 repeat student
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