Learning Italian can be a very exciting and fulfilling experience, but it can also be intimidating at first.

It's a beautiful and challenging language to master, requiring a lot of time, effort and patience.

Whether you've just started your journey to learn Italian or have been working at it for a while, having a good plan and effective strategies in place is really crucial to reaching your language goals.

In this blog article, I'll share some of my personal experiences, tips and resources.

I hope they will assist you in learning Italian to the best of your ability!

One of the best ways to avoid getting frustrated when you learn Italian is to practise regularly - I'm talking nearly every day.

Trust me, it's not just me saying this - it's backed by science!

But you shouldn’t worry too much. You don't have to spend hours hunched over a textbook.

There are plenty of fun and easier ways to practise Italian every day.

For example, when I first started learning English and Mandarin, I turned to my old childhood friend: cartoons!
Watching cartoons in Italian might seem a bit silly, but it's actually a very effective way to improve your Italian.
You can learn new words and expressions in context, and it's an easy way to immerse yourself in the language.

Another trick I've discovered is to set up your phone's virtual assistant, like Siri, in Italian.
This way, you can practise having small conversations with Siri.
Start asking easy questions like “Come stai?” (How are you?), or “Com’è il tempo a…?” (How’s the weather in...?), and gradually work your way up to more challenging conversations!

I really believe that you should figure out how you learn best, so you don’t waste any time doing something that is not going to help you improve.

There are three main types of learners out there, and while you might benefit from a combination of different methods, it's important to identify your learning style.

First of all, we have visual learners. If you're a visual learner, you'll find that using pictures, videos, and other visual aids can help you understand new concepts more easily. Try using flashcards with apps like Quizlet or watching Italian films with subtitles to get started.

Next, we have auditory learners. If you're an auditory learner, you'll want to focus on listening to Italian audio recordings or repeating words and phrases aloud. Podcasts and music might become your new best friends.

Finally, there are tactile learners. If you're a tactile learner, hands-on activities like writing and practising Italian sentences, sticking post-its with the names of things you find around the house and participating in role-playing scenarios can help you learn more efficiently.

It's all about finding what works best for you. By personalising your study routine, you'll find that Italian learning is actually more fun and effective.

When learning a new language, it is really important to be patient with yourself and to focus on making steady progress rather than striving for perfection right away.

I have heard so many students saying things like:

1. “Oh, but I am not learning fast enough!”
2. “When will I be able to finally speak properly?”
3. “Are your other students already speaking fluently?”

The truth is that you are learning a whole new language, and the process is going to be tough and maybe slow!

With language learning, you have to learn grammar, new words and expressions that can be very different from the language(s) you already know.

It's understandable to feel impatient and want to see progress quickly, but remember, it will take time to develop listening, speaking, reading and writing skills.

Try to be realistic, patient, and enjoy the learning journey. With consistent effort, practice and patience, anyone can learn a new language!

My most successful students are the ones who have fun while learning and try to “play” with Italian.

We all know that when you enjoy something, you're much more likely to remember it!

Positive emotions are linked to better memory retention, which means that if you associate learning a language with positive feelings, you'll remember words, phrases, and grammar rules more easily.

I once tried to tell my Mandarin teacher that my bedroom was full of “cockroaches” (zhanglang), but ended up saying "exhibitions" (zhanlan) instead.
My teacher couldn't stop laughing and I joined in, even if I felt a little bit embarrassed.
That funny moment still makes me laugh, and it actually helped me to remember those two words forever.

Try to make learning fun, and you'll realise that you'll learn much faster!