Italian I is an introductory course offering opportunities for student interaction and practice in listening to, speaking, reading, and writing basic Italian in meaningful contexts.

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

• What is the purpose of language?
• How is the structure of a language related to its function?
• What kinds of beauty does language create?
• How do we express our values and beliefs through language?
• How do culture and language interact?
• How does language influence who I am?
• How does language influence perception and understanding of diverse cultures?
• How does competency in language empower us in decision-making?
• How does language influence the development and interaction of civilizations?

FOCUS QUESTIONS

• What is special and unique about the Italian culture, history, geography and people?
• Why should I study and learn the Italian language?

CONTENT OBJECTIVES

INITIAL UNDERSTANDING The student will . . .

• describe physical features of the Italian peninsula.
• identify key lakes, rivers, mountains, islands and cities of the Italian peninsula.
• retell a brief history of the Italian peninsula.
• list major products of modern Italy (i.e. food, fashion, art, architecture, opera, cars, tourism, etc.).

DEVELOPING AN INTERPRETATION The student will . . .

• relate cause/effect of climate and geography to the development of culture, character and history.
• generalize common elements of Italian culture and character.

MAKING CONNECTIONS The student will . . .

• predict which of their interests will be stimulated by their study of Italy and Italian language.
• compare and contrast the cultures of the United States and Italy.

FOCUS QUESTIONS

• How does one greet, say goodbye, and communicate in the classroom with the proper level of formality?
• How do we use numbers to tell the time, the date, and use the calendar ?

CONTENT OBJECTIVES

INITIAL UNDERSTANDING The student will . . .

• greet and say goodbye with the proper level of formality at different times of day.
• recognize and use correctly various classroom-based commands and questions.
• recite the Italian alphabet and spell correctly using the alphabet names.
• count to 100 in Italian and tell the time and the date.

DEVELOPING AN INTERPRETATION The student will . . .

• apply knowledge of formality to choosing correct forms of greeting.
• correlate ways of telling the time and date in Italian to those in the U.S.A.
• create and explain a calendar using their new knowledge.

MAKING CONNECTIONS The student will . . .

• compare and contrast ways of telling the time and date in Italy and the U.S.A.
• examine the similarities and differences between Italian and English names and words (cognates).

FOCUS QUESTIONS

• How do I describe myself and others?

CONTENT OBJECTIVES

INITIAL UNDERSTANDING The student will . . .

• recognize fundamental Italian sentence structure using the verb essere (to be), and
• use this structure to describe one’s own physical and emotional characteristics and those of others.
• identify and recall the major nations and nationalities in Italian, and describe one’s own nationality and that of others.
• list key descriptive adjectives with correct forms of masculine/feminie and singular/plural.

DEVELOPING AN INTERPRETATION The student will . . .

• apply their knowledge of formality in addressing teachers, elders and classmates.
• decide what levels of description might be hurtful to others.
• predict the correct form of newly acquired adjectives in singular/plural and masculine/feminine.

MAKING CONNECTIONS The student will . . .

• contrast English and Italian modes of formality.
• personalize their knowledge of formality and adjectives in impromptu dialogues.

FOCUS QUESTIONS

• What are the objects we see and the subjects we study in school?
• How do I express likes and dislikes for things?
• What are the similarities and differences of the Italian and United States’ education systems?

CONTENT OBJECTIVES

INITIAL UNDERSTANDING The student will . . .

• identify objects found in a school or classroom, including colors.
• describe the various subject matters studied in school.
• recall key –are verbs and how they are conjugated.
• match objects with their proper definite and indefinite articles, and determine the plural ending of plural nouns.
• express likes and dislikes using the verb “piacere”.

DEVELOPING AN INTERPRETATION The student will . . .

• distinguish between the uses of “piacere” in Italian and “to like” in English.
• classify words that are used with the various definite and indefinite articles.
• describe the patterns in the 1^st conjugation verbs (with –are at the end).

MAKING CONNECTIONS The student will . . .

• compare and contrast the education systems of the United States and of Italy.
• examine possible advantages to the Italian system of verb conjugation (no need for subject pronouns, etc.).

FOCUS QUESTIONS

• How do I talk about my family and family relationships and activities?
• How do I speak about my body and physical state?

CONTENT OBJECTIVES

INITIAL UNDERSTANDING The student will . . .

• describe family relationships in Italian, using possessive pronouns and other ways of describing possession.
• identify the different parts of the body, and illustratehow to express aches and pains.
• express physical states and age using the verb “avere”.
• demonstrate proper forms of –ere verbs to describe family activities.

DEVELOPING AN INTERPRETATION The student will . . .

• describe patterns in the conjugations of –ere verbs.
• distinguish between the use of the possessive in English and Italian.
• correlate the use of expressions with “avere” with their own experience.

MAKING CONNECTIONS The student will . . .

• compare and contrast family life in Italy to that of the United States.
• connect the use of expressions with “avere” to English expressions having the same meaning.
• appropriate expressions in Italian to the corresponding physical gestures they are familiar with.

FOCUS QUESTIONS

• Can I describe any kind of home and everything in it completely and accurately?
• Can I describe days, activities or things in their proper sequence?

CONTENT OBJECTIVES

INITIAL UNDERSTANDING The student will . . .

• describe housing, location, rooms and furnishings.
• identify by sight and sound the six persons of the two families of –ire verbs, and demonstratetheir proper use.
• sequence events and objects using ordinal numbers.
• identify and demonstrate the proper use of the verb of obligation, “dovere”.
• identify and demonstrate the proper use of the articulated preposition (nel) and the changes in “bello” and “quello”.

DEVELOPING AN INTERPRETATION The student will . . .

• apply their knowledge of the unit’s vocabulary to their own home and its furnishings.
• categorize the use of –ire verbs, articulated prepositions, and “bello” and “quello”.
• construct a replica of their home and summarize the contents.

MAKING CONNECTIONS The student will . . .

• compare and contrast their home with a typical Italian home.
• take a perspective on the advantages and disadvantages of different styles of living.
• express their opinion on the beauty and qualities of their own home.

FOCUS QUESTIONS

• How do I describe the weather, the climate, the seasons and our response to them?
• How can I describe the more common animals and how they are a part of our lives?

CONTENT OBJECTIVES

INITIAL UNDERSTANDING The student will . . .

• describe various weather patterns, climatic conditions and seasons of the year.
• identify activities common to various weather conditions and seasons.
• list common animals and their behaviors.
• summarize the conjugations of fare, stare and dare.
• contract the preposition “a” with the various forms of “the”.
• compute the Celsius temperature from the Fahrenheit and vice-versa.

DEVELOPING AN INTERPRETATION The student will . . .

• correlate verbs and activities with their appropriate seasons.
• describe patterns typical for each season or weather cycle.
• construct questions using Who? To whom? With whom? And from whom?

MAKING CONNECTIONS The student will . . .

• compare and contrast the weather in Italy with various parts of the United States.
• relate their own experience to the weather and climate of Italy.

FOCUS QUESTIONS

• Can I speak about shopping for food and clothing, and how they go places in general?
• Can I express how people know things, and are able or not able to do things?
• Can I give commands and suggestions?

CONTENT OBJECTIVES

INITIAL UNDERSTANDING The student will . . .

• match products, especially foods and clothes, with the stores in which they are found.
• identify 10 different ways to travel, using the verb “andare”.
• express capacity to do, and knowledge of, using the verbs “potere” and “sapere”.
• correctly use the familiar imperative to tell or suggest to one or more people what to do.

DEVELOPING AN INTERPRETATION The student will . . .

• apply their knowledge of products and stores to say what can and cannot be bought at a particular store.
• improvise responses to various prompts.
• describe relationships between transportation and shopping.

MAKING CONNECTIONS The student will . . .

• compare and contrast shopping patterns in the United States and Italy.
• take a perspective on high fashion, and discuss their opinion of it.
• analyze their own shopping and fashion patterns in light of the information learned from the unit.

FOCUS QUESTIONS

• Can I speak about food, beverages and the three main meals of Italy?
• Can I order a meal and communicate with others using polite or formal speech?
• Can I talk about past actions and events?

CONTENT OBJECTIVES

INITIAL UNDERSTANDING The student will . . .

• identify and describe foods typical of an Italian breakfast, lunch or dinner, with herbs and spices.
• summarize polite speech patterns.
• name weights and measures.
• conjugate the verbs volereand berein the present tense, with the polite (conditional) forms of volere.
• conjugate simple verbs in the past tense using the helping verb avere.
• form the contraction of di+ the (del, dello, etc.) to mean “some”.

DEVELOPING AN INTERPRETATION The student will . . .

• analyze social situations correctly to determine if polite speech should be used.
• apply knowledge of foods to order correctly in a restaurant.
• generalize from grammar rules to spontaneous speech in a real situation.
• plan a menu for a meal using the knowledge gained in the unit.

MAKING CONNECTIONS The student will . . .

• compare and contrast Italian and U.S. eating patterns.
• discuss nutrition and take a position on what is a healthy diet/lifestyle.
• incorporate knowledge gained into a realistic role-play.