A case for Grammar

(or how learning one sentence can help you create endless others) 

Read advice about learning a language nowadays, and you're likely to hear that you should abandon your grammar books and instead simply immerse yourself— move to the country if you have to, but get a lot of input and pick up words and eventually sentences, in context, like a child learning their native language.

I think immersion is a valuable tool, and I'm all for getting over your shyness and communicating with native speakers straight away BUT I believe in immersion AND grammar.

Phrases & Context:
Suppose you hear in a bar/caffè: 

Vorrei un cappuccino. 
I would like a cappuccino.

You could deduce from context the meaning, and you could even memorize and repeat the phrase yourself....but, by also understanding a bit of the grammar behind it, you can adapt and change the sentence as needed to express thousands upon thousands of related concepts and ideas, and create your own unique sentences that you've never heard before.

How?
Grammar helps you understand the different parts of a sentence, and how the different parts interact and affect each other to change the meaning.

Knowing grammar, I am able to break the sentence down as follows:

VORREI (the verb "volere" conjugated in the 1st person singular conditional tense: means "I would like")
UN (indefinite masculine article— gender corresponds with noun it modifies: means "a")
CAPPUCCINO (singular, masculine noun: means "delicious coffee-based drink with foamed milk")

Knowing this, I can modify the sentence to communicate a variety of things.

Changing 'the who':
For example, I can change who does an action by changing the person of the verb's conjugation. I know how to change the person, because I know that in Italian, the root of the verb stays the same, and I add different endings.

For the conditional tense, those endings are as follows:

(io) vorrei
(tu) vorresti

(lui) vorrebbe

(noi) vorremmo

(voi) vorreste

(loro) vorrebbero

Immediately, I am able to say six different sentences:

(1) Vorrei un cappuccino.
I would like a cappuccino.
(2) Vorresti un cappuccino. 
You would like a cappuccino.
(3) Vorrebbe un cappuccino. 
He/She/You (formal) would like a cappuccino.
(4) Vorremmo un cappuccino. 
We would like a cappuccino.
(5) Vorreste un cappuccino. 
You all would like a cappuccino.
(6) Vorrebbero un cappuccino. 
They would like a cappuccino.

And that's just by knowing one tense— the conditional… 

Other tenses:
If I've learned other tenses, I can expand what I'm saying even more.

For example, I can talk about what will be wanted in the Future:

volere— to want, simple future tense:
(io) vorrò I will want
(tu) vorrai you will want

(lui) vorrà he will want  

(noi) vorremo we will want

(voi) vorrete you (all) will want

(loro) vorranno they will want

So, that's another six sentences!

(1) Vorrò un cappuccino.
I will want a cappuccino.
(2) Vorrai un cappuccino.
You will want a cappuccino.
(3) Vorrà un cappuccino. 
He/She/You (formal) will want a cappuccino.
(4) Vorremo un cappuccino. 
We will want a cappuccino.
(5) Vorrete un cappuccino. 
You all will want a cappuccino.
(6) Vorranno un cappuccino. 
They will want a cappuccino.

I could even combine them:

Vorrei un cappuccino adesso, e vorrò un cappuccino domani.
I would like a cappuccino now, and I will want a cappuccino tomorrow.

And there are plenty of other tenses to choose from!

Present: Voglio— I want
Imperfect Past: Volevo— I wanted
Past Perfect: Avevo voluto— I had wanted
etc.

Changing 'the object':
And that's just changing the verb, what if we change the object of the verb?

In this case, the object of the verb is un cappuccino— "a cappuccino".

I can change the indefinite article un-"a" to the definite article il- "the" 

(1) Vorrei il cappuccino.
I would like the cappuccino. 

Now, I'm able to talk about a specific cappuccino. (Maybe there are two drinks on the counter, and I'm saying I would like the cappuccino, not the tea.)

Or, maybe I'm feeling especially gluttonous and would like multiple cappuccinos.

If I've studied grammar and know how to make a noun plural, then I can easily change the article to any number due (two), tre (three), etc. and change cappuccino from singular, to plural: cappuccini

Vorrei un cappuccino.
I would like a cappuccino. 
Vorrei due cappuccini.
I would like two cappuccinos. 
Vorrei tre cappuccini.
I would like three cappuccinos. 
Vorrei duemila tredici cappuccini.
I would like two thousand and thirteen cappuccinos.  

And that's of course, if we only want to talk about cappuccinos.  If you know other masculine nouns, you can simply swap them out:

Vorrei un succo d'arancia.
I would like an orange juice.
Vorrei un cane.
I would like a dog.  

If you know how to modify the article, you can say you'd like a feminine noun quite easily too:

Vorrei una collana.
I would like a necklace.
Vorrei una coperta.
I would like a blanket.

Wanting an action:
Knowing a bit more about the verb volere, I know that instead of wanting an object, I can also "want to do something."  

In English, we say "I want to go" but thanks to my grammar studies I know the equivalent in Italian is the version of the verb that ends in -ARE, -ERE, or -IRE, also known as the infinitive.

So now, I can put practically any infinitive verb after the conjugated verb volere…

Vorrei andare.
I would like to go.
Vorrei nuotare.
I would like to swim.
Vorrei leggere.
I would like to read.
etc..

Adding it all up:

Now that's a lot of sentences!  Thanks to grammar, one thing I might have overheard in a bar can now be used as a basis for creating tons of my own, unique sentences.  Not only can I look for opportunities to use my new sentences, but my knowledge of grammar can also help me make sense of new things I overhear from native speakers, too.

—Vorrei sciare.
I would like ???

"Well, I know it's a verb… because it ends in -ARE and there are no articles or anything to suggest it's a noun.. but what does it mean??"

—Cosa vuol dire "sciare"
What does "sciare" mean?

(The other person mimes skiing)

"Ahh, sciare means to ski…, I know how to say "I like + verb"… it's:"

—Ah! Sì..Mi piace sciare.
Ah! Yes...I like to ski.

See? Grammar is fun!

So, instead of looking at each grammar point as some dull lesson to be suffered through, or skipped entirely for "something more useful"— it should be thought of as another transformation to apply to the sentences you already know.  Then, you can look for (or even create) opportunities to use what you've learned...

"Ahh, the imperfect past tense! Now I can tell Giovanni about how I wanted a cappuccino, but then changed my mind!"

Volevo un cappuccino, ma adesso voglio un tè.

I wanted a cappuccino, but now I want a tea.

Eventually, with enough practice and immersion, you will no longer think in conjugations, tenses, articles, and gender agreement.  The right way to say it will just "sound natural..."

…but until then— use grammar!

Put it into practice:

Take the basic components of Vorrei un cappuccino and see if you can transform it based on each of the following grammar points:

 ITALIAN BASICS:  
   (1) Indefinite Articles, (How to say "A/AN")
   (2) Definite Articles (singular), (How to say "THE")
   (3) Pluralization, (How to make singular nouns plural)
   (4) Definite Articles (plural), ("THE" for more than one thing)
   (5) The Partitive Article, (How to say "some")

 BEGINNER'S ITALIAN:  

  (1) How Italian verbs work, (Intro to verbs & grammar terms)

  (2) Italian present tense: -ARE verbs

  (3) Italian present tense: -ERE verbs

  (4) Italian present tense: -IRE verbs 

  (5) La negazione - Negation 
  (6) Ogni quanto? Quante volte? (Adverbs of frequency)
  (7) C'è & Ci sono (There is & There are) 

Buono studio!

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Vuoi is the present tense, 2nd person of 'volere', means: You want/Do you want?
far parte, means: to be a part of
Via Optimae: a great way to learn Italian

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How to teach yourself Italian… Step 03: Learning Style

You know now where you want to go (Goals) and where you’re starting from (Assessment), now you need to start getting specific on the HOW.  Just like when planning a trip, you have the choice of going by foot, train, car, plane, boat (or often a combination of several modes of transport) there are different methods and activities that you can choose from to help you learn a language.  A great way to decide which method(s) you choose is to consider your goals as well as your own studying preferences or learning style.

Learning Style

The various learning styles are the common ways that humans have of acquiring and processing new information.  Your own learning style is the methodology that you prefer and that is most effective for you.  It is possible to have a very strong dominant style, or to have a combination of strengths, and to fluctuate and change over time.  

In any case, it is important to understand what learning approaches exist so that you can better understand your own current learning style and find activities that both cater to your natural tendencies and challenge you to improve where you have more difficulty.

If you’re not sure, think back to previous learning experiences and classes growing up... 

Which classes were your favorite?  Which classes did you not enjoy so much? Specifically, think not only about the subject matter, but how information was presented to you and how you were expected to show what you had learned. 

Perhaps your favorite classes were determined not just by your preference for the subject matter— but by how closely the teacher’s teaching style corresponded with your learning style!


Questions to ask yourself…



Did the teacher lecture? (Aural/Verbal)  Were you expected to just listen?(Aural) Take notes? (Visual/Verbal)

Were there a lot of visual elements? (Visual) Maybe pictures and graphs on a projector? (Visual) Notes on the chalkboard/whiteboard? (Visual/Verbal)  


Did you do a lot of reading? —either from a textbook or more narrative stories? (Visual/Verbal)

Were you expected to follow or create steps, rules, and formulas? (Logical) Were you asked to show your steps, how you got there? (Logical)


Did you watch a lot of films? Presentations? Listen to songs? (Visual/Aural)  

Was it lab? (Physical) Were you were asked to build or otherwise do something with your hands? (Physical)

What were the tests like?  Mostly written? (Verbal) Oral? (Verbal) Were you expected to give presentations or do a project, either alone or in a group (Verbal/Aural/Visual/Physical)

Did the teacher encourage working alone/silently or was there a lot of emphasis on discussion and group work with your fellow classmates? (Social/Solitary)

~

Again, an ideal study plan will include a lot of your dominant learning style so that you can learn new information easily and remain encouraged, but will also include some of the more personally challenging activities to push you and help you grow.

Language — just Verbal??

You may have answered all of the above questions and determined that Verbal is NOT one of your dominant learning styles— Don't be discouraged!  Learning a language will give you the opportunity to develop in this area and strengthen your cognitive abilities in general.  

Also, learning a language is a verbal endeavor but that doesn't mean you can't incorporate all of the other learning styles and use them as a bridge to greater verbal capabilities! For example…

Visual Learners

Seek out materials that combine words & expressions with graphics, images, and visual representations. This is something I try to do all the time on Via Optimae! In particular, you'll want to check out:

• Frase del giorno Series on Facebook
• Italian Food Picture Dictionary Series*
• Via Optimae on Pinterest
• The most-used nouns digital magazine

Aural Learners

Use the natural rhythm and cadence of sentences or practice with songs and other media to help you memorize new vocabulary and structures.

• Claudio Baglioni - Amore bello
• Ligabue - Il Sale della Terra
• Neffa - Quando Sorridi
• Marco Mengoni - L'essenziale
• The most-used nouns digital magazine

Physical Learners

Anytime you can associate a word or phrase with a physical action or representation, then you're on the right track. Look for recipes or other projects in your target language and practice reading and saying aloud the words as you perform each step.  Also, use flashcards or play games where you can physically sort, move and organize words and sentences.

• Etichette (free labels!)
• An example of Flashcards with Games (on Quizlet)
• L'insalata caprese & Italian food prep terms (Recipe!)

Logical Learners

If you're a Logical learner— then let Grammar be your guide!  Learn the rules of word and sentence formation (as well as the exceptions) and use this knowledge to deduce new structures and create ever increasingly complex sentences.

• Italian Basics Series
• Beginner's Italian Series

All Learners

Use Via Optimae's Site Map to find the content you need!

My learning style

As a Verbal/Logical learner, I learn information best when I can organize information into groups and I am best able to retain information when I put it into my own words. That's why I love a good worksheet, with dedicated space to organize my thoughts and put them into writing.  

If that sounds appealing to you too, or if you're visual, you'll want to print and complete this free Language Level Self-Assessment worksheet:

Share your results with me and your fellow Via Optimae readers!:

Click to tweet:

Buono studio!

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How to teach yourself Italian… Step 02: ASSESSMENT

Would you ever book a flight without knowing the departure airport? Of course not, because you can’t plan where you’re going without knowing where you’re starting from.   Similarly, you need to assess where you’re at in learning Italian if you plan on reaching your goals.

The European Framework of Reference for Languages is a useful tool that helps standardize language levels.   There are three main levels: Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced, and two sub-levels within each. Use the following self-assessment guide to determine your current level: 

If you’re still not sure where you fall between A2 and B2, this free online test can help: http://www.italian-test.com/italian-test.htm (Be sure to come back here after completing the test and let us know your results!)

And my level is...

Current subscribers can add or update their level by clicking on *update subscription preferences* at the bottom of any of the emails from Via Optimae.  

Not a subscriber yet? {Subscribe here!} to receive the latest updates plus subscriber-exclusive perks like Etichette (labels) to create your own mini-immersion at home!

It really is more fun when everybody shares!

Be sure to share your level in the comments, on Facebook, or on Twitter {Click to tweet!}.

I'll share first! I'm a certified* level C1 who's working on becoming C2… (I have lots of practice in informal situations but could improve my confidence in formal, business Italian!)

I know my level... what's yours??

Buono studio!

*Interested in certifying your Italian?  I took the CILS exam (Certification of Italian as a Foreign Language) through the University of Siena for Foreigners— offered at several exam locations around the world!

Next up: Determining your Learning Style

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