Adults' Courses

1. 01. What can I do if I miss my regular class?
2. 02. Can I change my class if necessary?
3. 03. What can I do if I can't attend the same time every week?
4. 04. How many free extra classes can I come to?
5. 05. What is the benefit of coming to extra classes?
6. 06. Is homework compulsory?
7. 07. What is the difference between standard and semi-intensive courses?
8. 08. How long will it take to become fluent?
9. 09. Are the teachers native speakers?
10. 10. How big are the classes?
11. 11. Can I still enrol if I miss the first week or more?
12. 12. What do you offer if I need extra help?
13. 13. I'm not sure at which level I should start. How do I decide?
14. 14. Does CIS provide Certificates?
15. 15. Are CIS courses suitable for travel?
16. 16. I know your courses are conversational, but do you cover grammar?

Children's Courses

1. 17. At what age can my child start attending classes?
2. 18. How big are the classes? How many teachers are there in each class?
3. 19. Are the teachers native speakers?
4. 20. What can I do to help my child settle in?
5. 21. Can I stay in the classroom with my child?
6. 22. Can I still enrol my child if they've missed the first week or more?
7. 23. Do you offer trial lessons?
8. 24. Are classes conducted entirely in Italian?
9. 25. Can my child attend more than one class per week?
10. 26. What happens if my child misses their regular class?
11. 27. Is there any discount if I enrol more than one child?

Adults' Courses

1. What can I do if I miss my regular class?

If you are forced to miss your regular class, you can make it up by coming to one of the other numerous classes on offer. If you cannot attend another class, you can phone or email CIS to find out what was covered and what homework was set.

2. Can I change my class if necessary?

Yes. If, for whatever reason, you need to change your nominated class or time, you can. Just ask one of our friendly office staff to arrange it for you.

3. What can I do if I can't attend the same time every week?

Not a problem. We have lots of students who work shifts or have busy, irregular schedules. Our program is very flexible. We have numerous classes running throughout the week and changing is not a problem. Just ask our friendly office staff for advice.

4. How many free extra classes can I come to?

As many as you like. After the third week of each term, you can attend any class you wish, as many as you wish and at any level, provided there are vacancies. Students enrolled in a standard course can attend any other standard class, while students enrolled in a semi-intensive course can attend any other semi-intensive or standard class.

5. What is the benefit of coming to extra classes?

Practice, practice, practice. As conversation is the focus of all CIS classes, the main benefit is the opportunity to practise more and thus improve at a quicker rate. It also enables you to consolidate what you've learnt in your regular class. Coming to extra classes at a lower level is also good for revision.

6. Is homework compulsory?

No. We understand that you have busy lives, therefore homework is not compulsory. However, homework is usually set to revise what was covered in class. If you are able to complete it, you will benefit. If not, don't worry, you won't be disadvantaged.

7. What is the difference between standard and semi-intensive courses?

In a standard course you attend class once per week for one and half hours and complete one level in ten weeks. In a semi-intensive course you attend class once per week for THREE hours and complete TWO levels in ten weeks. There is also a substantial saving in enrolling in a semi-intensive course.

8. How long will it take to become fluent?

It depends on the individual. At CIS, we get you speaking in Italian from Day 1, so by the end of level 1 you should already be able to communicate in a variety of everyday situations. Remember: Practice makes perfect!

9. Are the teachers native speakers?

Yes. At CIS, all teachers have native speaker fluency. More important is that they are all expert teachers.

10. How big are the classes?

The average class size is 9 -11. Some are bigger, some are smaller, depending on how popular the time slot is.

11. Can I still enrol if I miss the first week or more?

Yes, you can, provided there are vacancies. The first part of each lesson is often spent revising what was covered the previous week so you won't be disadvantaged. We can also provide you with lesson plans of the lesson(s) you missed. From week 3 the cost of the course is reduced. From week 4 you can also come to extra classes if you wish.

12. What do you offer if I need extra help?

You can come to extra classes from week 4 onwards. This gives you the opportunity to practise more. Alternatively, we offer private lessons to help you catch up. Please enquire at the office for more information.

13. I'm not sure at which level I should start. How do I decide?

You can check the What Is My Level? page to see what is covered in each level. This will help you to determine the most appropriate level for you, or alternatively, you can call one of our friendly office staff for advice.

14. Does CIS provide Certificates?

Yes, we do. Certificates of Achievement are presented to students upon completion of each level. On request, we can also provide written references which many of our students have used as verification of their level of Italian for work, scholarships and other courses.

15. Are CIS courses suitable for travel?

They certainly are. Our students often comment on how much more they enjoyed their trip to Italy because of their course(s) at CIS. Not only do we cover 'how to get to the station' or 'how to order a cappuccino' etc., but we provide you with the language tools that enable you to communicate in a wide variety of everyday situations.

16. I know your courses are conversational, but do you cover grammar?

Yes, we do, but always in a practical way. Firstly, grammar is presented in context, then it is explained in more detail, but the most important step is to put the language covered to real communicative use. This is done through dialogues, role-plays, games, information-gap activities,conversations etc.

Children's Courses

17. At what age can my child start attending classes?

At 3 years of age. Years of experience have shown us that this is the earliest age for a child to begin formally learning a second language in a classroom environment.

18. How big are the classes? How many teachers are there in each class?

The average class size is 10-12. However, in 3-5 year old and 6-7 year old classes with over 10 children, there is always a teacher and a teacher's assistant. With such a low teacher to student ratio, your child receives lots of individual attention.

19. Are the teachers native speakers?

Yes. At CIS, all teachers have native speaker fluency. What's more important is that they are all expert teachers.

20. What can I do to help my child settle in?

For younger children just starting at CIS, we strongly recommend that parents bring them in 5-10 minutes early, introduce them to their teacher and stay with them for a few minutes to help them get used to their new environment.

There is also a lounge area just outside their classroom where parents are invited to relax and have a coffee while their child is in class. Knowing that their parent is just outside can sometimes be quite reassuring to a child.

21. Can I stay in the classroom with my child?

Years of experience have shown us that a parent's presence in the classroom can be quite distracting. The child's focus is almost always on the parent and not on the teacher and the classroom activities. So to optimise your child's language learning experience, we do not allow parents to remain in the classroom once the lesson has begun.

22. Can I still enrol my child if they've missed the first week or more?

Yes, you can, provided there are vacancies. From Week 3 onwards, the cost is reduced.

23. Do you offer trial lessons?

Due to the high demand for places, we are unable offer trial lessons. However, once your child is enrolled, they can change class if necessary, provided there are vacancies. Just ask our friendly office staff for advice.

24. Are classes conducted entirely in Italian?

Yes, they are. We try to fully immerse your child in an Italian environment as much as possible; however, some situations may require that we communicate in English with them.

25. Can my child attend more than one class per week?

Yes, they can. Attending an extra class per week is certainly beneficial to your child's language learning. That's why we offer a substantial 50% discount off the second class for children attending 2 classes per week.

26. What happens if my child misses their regular class?

Parents are welcome to contact CIS to find out what was covered in class. We are more than happy to send out any worksheets that were given out. Unfortunately, there are no make up classes for children.

27. Is there any discount if I enrol more than one child?

Yes. There is a 10% discount for each additional child from the same immediate family.