Tired of struggling putting sentences together in Italian? Use greased Italian readers.

The problem

Having spent the last eight years teaching Italian to native English speakers, I’ve come to realize that the most challenging part of learning Italian is putting all of the bits and pieces of grammar and vocabulary all together to form flowing Italian sentences.

The solution

A few years ago, after trying different teaching approaches, I decided to use simplified Italian content in the form of stories as a way to provide my students with something to talk about during our classes. After a few classes using this method, I was already able to tell that the more my students would talk about the stories they had read and heard, the easier it became for them to construct complete sentences. Due to reading and listening to simple Italian texts and dialogues multiple times, they would learn the correct order of words in sentences. In addition, it was also evident to me that by selecting the right stories (taking into account my students’ interests and levels), I would always provide my students with new and relevant vocabulary to discuss in our classes (instead of using the same old, boring conversation topics).

What happened next?

It took me a while, but eventually, I came up with the right ideas to write and record my own short stories, which you can now purchase on Amazon or Gumroad.

All my Italian short stories are easy readings and include an audiobook narrated by me and a flashcard set which I made. They’re designed for beginners and intermediate learners and created with native English speakers in mind. They are also culturally relevant and will aid you in your understanding of Italy and Italian through real-life dialogues and situations.

All my easy readers for beginners and Italian intermediate learners

SNEAK A PEEK INTO CHAPTER 1

Le Avventure di Paul a Roma (Short Story in Simple Italian)

Do you know that Rome is jigsaw puzzle of different neighborhoods, each one with its own identity and history? Follow Paul’s adventures in the Eternal City and experience the Italian capital better through Italian dialogues and texts.

This book is meant for advanced beginners and pre-intermediate Italian learners and includes:

12 bite-sized chapters with slow audio narrated by a native speaker (which you can download for free online)
12 sets of online flashcards
Interesting facts about the Italian capital
Insights on relevant vocabulary and grammar
Dialogues and experiences you’ll commonly encounter in Rome
Review questions for measuring comprehension

BUY the story on gumroad

BUY the Story on amazon

Sneak a peek into chapter 1

Due amiche e un album di fotografie (Short Story in Simple Italian)

Costanza is a young Italian woman from Sicily who decided to spend her summer vacation with her Milanese friend Anna in Alto Adige (the Dolomites region), in the heart of Italy’s Alpine region. Together they visit and learn interesting facts about the culture, geography, and food of this region, which is located in the far north of Italy’s peninsula, while also assisting a tourist who has dropped something on a trail.

This book is meant for beginners and advanced beginners and includes:

16 bite-sized chapters with slow audio narrated by a native speaker (which you can download for free online)
16 sets of online flashcards
Interesting facts about the one of the most beautiful alpine Italian regions: Alto Adige
Insights on relevant vocabulary and grammar, with exercises.
Dialogues and experiences you’ll commonly encounter in the Alps
Review questions for measuring comprehension

get the the story Gumroad

GET THE THE STORY AMAZON

Sneak a peek into chapter 1

Incontri (Short Story in Simple Italian)

Incontri is the second episode of my short story collection which help you understand Italian and Italy better through real-life dialogues. The protagonist is Fiona, the first in her Italian-American family to learn her ancestors’ language. At university in the US, she earned a scholarship and moved to Rome to improve her Italian for a semester. But there’s more to the story. To complete an Italian citizenship application, she must obtain a copy of her great-grandfather’s birth certificate. This brings her to Sicily. In Sicily, she has several encounters that will forever alter her future.This short story is appropriate for all Italian learners who have at least a pre-intermediate level of proficiency in the language (A2). This book might be useful for advanced beginners as well.

Level of difficulty: good for advanced beginners, lower intermediate and intermediate Italian learners.

get the the story here

Readers's reviews

I am delighted with your Italian short stories. The vocabulary at the end of the story had exactly the words that I did not understand. I will look at the photos soon. This will make the experience unique and personal to my Italian teacher. I do not think that anyone has put their own pictures into stories written for teaching. How wonderful that you can be so creative, teach, write, take photographs, it all feels like magic and inspired. Thank you for being my Italian teacher, and thank you for your contributions to students who love Italy and the Italian language. You are a blessing to all of us.

Barbara

Psychologist

California

Serena guides your learning through the adventures of two companions, Costanza and Marina. In the process, you learn Italian as it is used during everyday life in Italy. Reading aloud, listening, and responding to questions help you learn and organize your thoughts in useful and culturally relevant ways. The result is internalization instead of memorization. Each lesson can be completed in a bite sized amount of time and is completely portable, even on your phone!

This method makes learning fun and it works. I have been using it with Serena and, during my 7 week trip to explore Italian culture, I was able to communicate almost exclusively in Italian, including meaningful conversations beyond simple travel language. If you are serious about learning Italian, don’t look any further, you have found a true language coach.

Aldo

Lawyer

Washington

What you can expect from my story learning method

ENJOYMENT

Our Italian short stories are easier to digest, but if they are filled with amusing anecdotes and fascinating facts about Italian culture, they are much more enjoyable, sucking you into that world.

A TIME EFFECTIVE WAY OF LEARNING ITALIAN

You’ll be able to read a complete story in the native language in no time, while also expanding your vocabulary. We estimate it will take only 10 minute to round up every chapter. And another 5-10 to complete the annexed exercises.

CULTURAL AWARENESS

You will learn to understand Italy better across its regional differences. This Italian short story series is set in various off-the-beaten-path locations throughout Italy. Our goal is to compel you to talk or experience what you’ve read.

GRAMMAR LEARNING

This Italian short story contains enough grammar to keep learning without becoming overwhelmed. Most chapters conclude with brief explanations of how to correctly use certain key aspects of Italian grammar and vocabulary.

A SMART WAY OF LEARNING

Science supports that learning languages through short stories is the best way to develop the brain for any language learning process. Even in our native language, we learned the majority of our vocabulary as children by reading. Similarly, we encourage reading in simplified Italian to absorb words and patterns in a fun and agreeable way.

I am Serena, a Certified Italian Language Teacher, avid language student, and polyglot.

A little over six years ago, I started my own small online school with the goal of inspiring English native speakers to successfully learn and speak Italian. Today I work with a fantastic team of hand-picked teachers who’re helping in achieving my goal of making Italian learning enjoyable, motivating and doable for non-native speakers.