Everyone says that you need to listen to a podcast or watch a movie to grasp the Italian Language or even doing an Italian immersion trip. What if it does not work for you? Is there something wrong with you? No. The odds are you are more of a visual learner than an auditory one.
Have you ever felt frustrated while taking an Italian language course? Have you ever experienced feeling lost amongst endless vocabulary lists, grammar rules, must-see Italian movies or audio lessons? A myriad of inputs, and nevertheless, that feeling of stagnating is still there?
Maybe you already know or perhaps not, but every single person learns differently. No secret recipe works for every learner of Italian. We are humans, very dissimilar one another and thus, we absorb information in a variety of ways.
If you feel or if you have felt a little bit like this, at some point of your Italian learning journey, it is likely that you have been using a studying method which is not ideal for you.
The thing is, every single person is born with a different learning style, hence, knowing what style suits you best, is crucial to learn how to learn Italian smartly and efficiently. Using the most suitable learning method for you is vital to make the most out of the time spent with Italian (or anything other subject you want to master).
you is vital to make the most out of the time spent with Italian (or anything else).
HOW MANY LEARNING STYLES ARE THERE?
Neil Fleming, a New Zealand teacher, has divided people in three different styles of learning: a visual one, an auditory one and a kinesthetic one. The letter can coexist in the same person or one or two can be predominant. No need to say, knowing your prevalent learning aspect will pave your way to a more effective Italian language learning journey. .
If you don’t know yet what your learning style is, take the take the VARK test, designed by Fleming and start optimizing your Italian learning time.
WHAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE THREE LEARNING STYLES?
Visual (or spatial) learning style
The typical visual person is the one that won’t remember a person name, but would definitely remember a personal appearance. Visual students learn efficiently through mental visualization. This means that they need to visualize what they study, in the shape of an image or a graphic or by writing down words. Visual students would better retain an Italian grammar rule while reading, rather than when listening to it, for instance.
Auditory (or musical) learning style
The typical auditory person is the one that remembers the people appearance but skips their names. Auditory students retain what they listen to and, thus, learn efficiently through conversation and listening activities, such as songs or podcasts. Memorizing endless wordlists without writing them down shouldn’t be a big deal for them.
Kinesthetic (or physical) learning style
The kinesthetic person is one that does not remember a person’s appearance or what he says, instead, he reminds people for what they do. Kinesthetic students tend to learn through experience. Doing is far more important than listening or reading. Learning on the move (using role plays or simulation) is one of their strengths.
Test Your Italian
Not sure what your Italian level is? I’ve created a free online Italian test to help you determine it.WHAT ARE THE MOST PRODUCTIVE LEARNING ACTIVITIES FOR EACH STYLE?
Visual learners:
- reading (Italian novels, newspaper) for expanding the vocabulary
- using a solid textbook for grasping the grammar
- using pictures to describe situations
- making vocabulary lists
- working in small groups
- quiet study place
Auditory learners
- Listening activities (Podcasts, music, Italian Youtube videos)
- methods e.g. Assimil or Pimsleur
- learning in groups
- learning through Tv series or Italian movies
Kinesthetic learners
- role plays and simulations
- learning on the move (e.g. through podcasts)
- writing down on a notebooks or index cards the new words
- storytelling
Why knowing your learning style is important?
Long story short, knowing how your mind absorb information, will allow you to design your very own Italian learning routine. Using an approach which best suits your peculiarities, means that you will be most likely to maximize your linguistic potential and less likely to get bored, carrying out Italian learning activities that don’t suit you.
In my experience, the VARK test showed I am someone with a prevalent visual and kinesthetic learning style. This sums up my learning preferences: visualizing words, by writing them down, in the shape of lists. When learning German, jotting down and copying sentences helps me to magically memorize words with very little effort. Well, this is me! As an online Italian Language Coach, I have come across a great wealth of students with a surprising auditory style, who would learn anything just by listening to it.
No matter what your learning style is, the secret for an exciting Italian language journey is to customize, as much as possible, your studying strategies to your potential.
