Recognised as an expert in the field of language teaching for over 30 years, the Centre of Italian Studies has developed a number of highly successful children's courses such as 'Avanti' and ' Forza' that are widely used throughout Australia and around the world.

Learning Italian at CIS is fun. Our Centre comes alive with the sound of little voices many as young as 3 years of age, singing and chattering in Italian. Our lively and creative program helps children feel the excitement of learning Italian and gives them an insight into Italian culture.

Whilst conversation is the main focus of all CIS classes, our program is a fully integrated one. The classes are activity-based and are for students from the ages of 3 to 14.

All children's classes at the Centre of Italian Studies offer the following features:

• A lively program that encourages children to speak in Italian from the very beginning
• Total immersion in an Italian environment
• Expert teachers
• A wide range of activities (games, songs, role-plays etc) relevant to each age level
• Information about the Italian speaking world
• Small class sizes which ensure that children receive lots of individual attention

Due to the high demand for places, we currently have a waiting list for many of our children classes. Should you wish to enrol your child, please notify us as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

CHILDREN'S LEVEL: 3 to 5 YEAR OLDS

Aim: To build students' communicative skills and give them the confidence and ability to use the Italian language in practical everyday situations.

Description: The program for this age group is activity-based. Students are presented with various interesting activities (games, songs, role-plays etc.) as a means of encouraging them to speak in Italian. The activities are vital to attract and maintain students' interest, but it is the language surrounding the activity that is the main focus of each lesson. Whilst the class is conducted almost entirely in Italian, every care is taken to cater for the specific needs and abilities of each child.

In classes of 10 or more, there are two or three teachers in the class at all times which ensures that each child receives lots of individual attention.

Class Text: No set text. Materials are prepared and supplied by teachers. Each child will receive a scrap book in which to store their work.

Homework: Words to all songs, poems, rhymes etc. as well as all worksheets are kept in students' scrap book so that parents can monitor their children's progress. Where possible, parents are encouraged to listen to children's poems, songs etc. to reinforce the new words and phrases that have been learnt during the lesson.

Possible communicative tasks:

• Introduce yourself and others
• Greet people in different ways
• Understand and carry out commands related to the classroom
• Express feelings
• Expressing likes and dislikes
• Describe people, things, animals, etc.
• Give information about family members and relationships
• Identify numbers and count up to 10 and beyond
• Recognize and identify colours
• Describe weather conditions
• And much, much more!

Possible themes:

• Celebrations: Christmas, Easter, birthdays, Mother's day, Father's Day etc.
• My family
• Parts of the body
• Feelings
• Favourite things: foods, animals, activities etc.
• Weather

CHILDREN'S LEVEL: 6 to 9 YEAR OLDS

Aim: To provide students with an opportunity to speak in Italian as much as possible. To expand students' vocabulary and extend their language skills to include reading and writing in Italian.

Description: While the emphasis of this level is on conversation, students are beginning to develop their reading, writing and grammatical skills. They are presented with various interesting activities (games, songs, role-play etc.) as a means of encouraging them to communicate in Italian. The activities are vital to attract and maintain students' interest, but it is the language surrounding the activity that is the main focus of each lesson.

The class is conducted almost entirely in Italian and every care is taken to cater for the specific needs and abilities of each child. Small class sizes ensure that each child receives lots of individual attention.

Class Text: There is no set text for 6-7 year old classes. Materials are prepared and supplied by the teachers. Each child will receive a scrap book in which to store their work. The 'Avanti' book is used in 8-9 year old classes. This is available from the CIS bookshop.

Homework: Children are encouraged to go over any new vocabulary and/or grammar points during the week. Words of all songs, poems, rhymes etc. are kept in students' scrap books so that parents can monitor their children's progress. Where possible parents are encouraged to listen to children's poems, songs, etc. to reinforce the new words and phrases that have been taught during the lesson.

Possible communicative tasks:

• Understand and carry out commands related to the classroom situation
• Describe physical appearance of self
• Identify and describe family members and extended family
• Describe weather conditions
• Identify months, days of the week and seasons
• Identify activities which take place during the day at home or at schools
• Express likes and dislikes
• Identify numbers and count up to 20 and beyond
• And much, much more

Possible themes:

• Celebrations: Christmas, Easter, birthdays, Mother's day, Father's Day
• Myself and my family
• Parts of the body
• Feelings
• Activities: at home and at school
• Animals
• Food and shopping

CHILDREN'S LEVEL: 9 TO 14 YEAR OLDS - Beginners & Advanced

Aim: To expand students' knowledge of the Italian language and provide them with the skills and the opportunity to speak in Italian as much as possible. To expand their vocabulary and extend their reading, writing and grammatical skills in Italian.

Description: At this level, the class is conducted entirely in Italian. Students are encouraged to use the language in as many different situations as possible. Whilst conversation remains the main focus of this level, grammar, reading and writing are also covered thoroughly. Students will examine contemporary Italy through various cultural units and their language studies may extend to other subject areas such as History, Geography, Art etc. Small class sizes ensure students receive lots of individual attention.

Class Text: 'Avanti' is used for Beginners and 'Sempre Avanti' is used for Advanced. These are available at CIS Bookshop.

Homework: Students are encouraged to learn new vocabulary and practice various phrases at home. Written exercises and cultural assignments will be set.

Possible communicative tasks:

• Understand and carry out commands
• Talk about where you live
• Ask and tell the time
• Ask for and give permission
• Express likes and dislikes
• Ask and say how much something costs
• Ask for and give directions
• Buy and order food
• Follow a recipe

Possible themes:

• Environment
• Sport and leisure
• History of Italy
• Geography of Italy
• Shops and shopping
• The home
• School
• Family
• Food
• And much, much more