This section contained authentic Italian materials 1“Authentic materials” are reading texts, videos, TV programs, songs, and any other sources of language created by native speakers and published in contexts designed specifically for native-speaker consumption, with no thought given to non-native accessibility.. Listen, watch, read, and answer the questions. Do not worry if sometimes you understand just a little bit; it is absolutely normal. It is well known that authentic materials provide real language presentations, real-life situations, authentic cultural information and, of course, they motivate learners. Have fun!
Note: Closed Captions on YouTube allow you to obtain a transcript and subtitle translation for all videos. Some texts (not all of them) are translated into English. Click the images for it.
| Buon compleanno.
If you want to wish “Happy Birthday” in Italian, you simply say Buon compleanno, but if you sing it, things work in a different way and you can’t literally translate from English. Let’s find out about it with “ll Volo” (“The Flight”), that is a contemporary Italian vocal trio. Piero Barone, Ignazio Boschetto, and Gianluca Ginoble started singing together as teenagers, and soon they become pop-opera stars. Now, these three guys are famous all over the world and, with Andrea Bocelli, are the real ambassadors of Italian “Bel Canto.” |
| Il Panettone.
Natale is a time for joy, but it is also an exciting occasion to cook up some best-loved family recipes. Each area has its own specialties. Many different types of bread and pasta are made; different types of meat and fish are prepared in a variety of ways. Hundreds of types of cakes, cookies, and sweets are prepared from North to South, all of them different and delicious. But there is a dry, bread-like cake, shaped like a dome that makes Italian Christmas what it is. In fact, Natale wouldn’t be the same in Italy without Panettone. Actually “It would not be Christmas without panettone.” Among the most popular brands, we can mention the Tre Marie, a confectionery company in Milan, which offers a panettone of excellent quality. |
| Un test. Quanto peserai fra due anni?
You can now take a Test and see what your weight will be in two years. Get a pen and paper. Mark the points you accumulate and see how many kilos correspond to them. Then convert the kilos into pounds using the formula provided below. Finally, add the accumulated pounds to your current weight. Don’t worry. It is just a game (IL LATO POSITIVO created the following clip that was adapted for this Italian Class). NOTE: Italy, like most of the world, uses the decimal metric system, and kilograms are used to measure weight (a kilogram is divided into a thousand grams). 1 Kilogram (kg) is equal to 2.20462 pounds (lbs). To convert kilograms to pounds, multiply the kg value by 2.20462. For example, to find out how many lbs in 70 Kilograms, multiply 70 by 2.20462, that makes 154.3234 lbs in 70 kgs. |
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