Italian

Benefits Of Using An Italian Textbook

There are lots of ways to study Italian and these keep increasing as technology improves and we have more options. However, regardless of the advances in technology, people seem to still enjoy using Italian textbooks to study.

Some people question ‘should I use an Italian textbook?‘ or ‘should I be using a more hands on approach. Yet regardless of where they stand, Italian textbooks continue to be one of the most popular ways of learning. Obviously not the only way, but they are often included in people’s methods of studying.

So what are some of the benefits of using an Italian textbook?

You Can Check Your Italian Progress

Unless you were very unfortunate in the textbook you chose, you should be able to check your progress as you go. That’s because the vast majority of Italian textbooks come with exercises that you can complete as you go. Then once you’ve completed these exercises you can check your answers in the back of the book and see how you’re doing.

You Can Work At Your Own Pace

A lot of people find Italian classes quite slow. They only go once a week for one or two hours and don’t find themselves progressing that quickly. One of the benefits of using an Italian textbook is that you can work through the material at your own pace. Whether you’re a fast learner who wants to work their way through the material as quickly as possible or if you like to take your time, an Italian textbook is perfect as you can choose the pace that you work through the material rather than a teacher

It Teaches You Things In A Logical Manner

Textbooks have been produced for years to teach people Italian. The creators of textbooks know which order it’s most useful to learn different material in and set these out in the book accordingly. Maybe you’re going to find some of the material a bit dull to start with but the textbook will take you through the information in the most logical order to help with your learning.

Obviously a class should do this as well but if you’re self studying and jumping around using different tools a textbook can be the perfect way to teach you the material you need to learn at the different stages of your Italian journey.

They’re Portable And Easy To Carry Around

Unless you buy an incredibly heavy duty textbook, most Italian textbooks are portable and pretty easy to carry around with you. Which means you can study Italian on the go. You can take the textbook to work with you and brush up on your Italian there or if you’re meeting friends for a coffee you can arrive half an hour early and whip out your textbook for some quick studying.

No matter what other methods of learning Italian you’ve chosen, we would highly recommend an Italian textbook to help with your learning. Our only tip would be don’t spend a lot of money buying several books, buy one and work your way through it before you move on. That way you’ll be much more likely to complete the textbook and see the benefits.

So you’ve decided to learn Italian which is great news! And now you just need to find an Italian textbook to help you with your learning. Well you’re in luck because we’ve compiled a list of some of the best places where you can buy an Italian textbook from.

Where you can buy Italian textbooks will depend on where you live, but here are some great online stores where you should be able to find an Italian textbook that matches your needs.

Remember that using an Italian textbook alone won’t teach you Italian, you need to do other things to supplement your Italian textbook in order to make sure that you’re practising all of your skills and not just working your way through grammar and vocabulary.

Amazon

The number one place you can find Italian textbooks is Amazon. Amazon has a large selection of Italian textbooks and it can ship to pretty much anywhere in the world.

But remember that Amazon doesn’t have everything, and you might be able to find Italian textbooks cheaper elsewhere.

So with this in mind, make sure you keep reading and take a look at some of our other suggestions.

European Bookshop

The European Bookshop is a great resource where you can find textbooks and fiction books in various European languages, Italian included of course. The textbooks and fiction books available are suitable for learners of all levels so whether you’re a beginner or an upper intermediate there will be something there for you.

And if you’re interested in learning any other European languages they also have books in Spanish, French, Portuguese, German and Russian.

Blackwells

Blackwells is a fantastic bookshop based in the UK that serves as the main academic bookshop for UK universities.

As well as finding Blackwells online (if you’re not from the UK), you will find a store in all of the major cities near a university campus.

Blackwells has a section dedicated to foreign languages which includes Italian where you will not only be able to find Italian textbooks to help you study but also Italian fiction books if you’d like to improve your comprehension skills.

Italian Bookshop

Another great resource is the Italian bookshop itself. The Italian bookshop is an online store that specialises in Italian books. The Italian bookshop has a range of textbooks available for learners of different levels so you should be able to find one that matches your learning needs.

In addition to textbooks, the Italian bookshop also stock a range of fiction books so you can practise your reading skills and get immersed in some Italian literature. And don’t worry, you don’t have to wait until you’re fluent, they stock fiction books for beginners to so you can get started with your reading straight away.

These are just some of the places where you can buy Italian textbooks. Make sure you check out local bookstores where you’re from to see if they have anything. Unfortunately many local bookshops don’t stock these because the demand is low but is you live near a university be sure to check out their bookstore and you might be pleasantly surprised.

How To Supplement An Italian Textbook

Using an Italian textbook is a fantastic tool for learning Italian There are an enormous amounts of benefits of using an Italian textbook.

However using an Italian textbook isn’t going to help you learn Italian on it’s own. In order to learn Italian you need to be studying in other ways as well, so you can supplement your learning.

Here are some of our favourite ways you can study Italian alongside your textbook.

Italian Speaking Practise

One of the issues that Italian textbooks have is that they don’t give much of an opportunity to practise speaking, but this doesn’t mean that an Italian textbook isn’t useful, just that you have to find opportunities to practise speaking elsewhere.

If you are in Italy then obviously you are off to a huge advantage as you will be able to speak Italian every day in a variety of exchanges. However, if you’re learning from your own country which may be more likely then don’t worry, there are still things you can do to practise speaking.

Using websites like italki and Conversation Exchange, you can find languages partners. Simply schedule in a language exchange for once a week and you’re off.

If you’re a bit nervous speaking Italian with another person just yet then why not start narrating what you’re doing in the house and talking to yourself in Italian. You might feel a bit silly but it will help to make the sounds seem more natural in your mouth.

Find A Great Italian Series

Another thing you can do is to find a great Italian series. If you watch the series with the audio in Italian while reading Italian subtitles then you’ll be able to improve your listening skills and reading skills at the same time.

Another great thing about this method is that it enables you to listen to more colloquial language and come across natural speech patterns. This may be difficult for you to understand at first but as your Italian comprehension improves you’ll be happy that you chose to start watching them.

And the best thing is that you don’t even have to search that far. Netflix is getting better and better for foreign language series every day. There are a load of Italian series you can choose from on Netflix and work your way through.

Set The Language On Your Devices To Italian

This is one of our favourite tips for getting more exposure to a language. If you want to learn Italian then you want to see it written down often, you want to hear it often and you want to be exposed to it often. So a way to increase this exposure is to set the language on your mobile, tablet or laptop to Italian. Then you’ll be seeing it every single day and will start to pick up words that you might not otherwise have had exposure to.

The more you see the more natural it will seem to you and the more you’ll be able to pick up.

Should I Use An Italian Textbook?

The simple answer to this is of course your should! (If you’re learning Italian)

There is a lot of debate in the language learning community over textbooks. Some peopler think that textbooks are out dated and not useful anymore, others believe that they are everything. Here at Lingo Press Books we’re somewhere in between.

An Italian textbook is a great accompaniment to other methods of learning. 

We believe that an Italian textbook shouldn’t be the only way you study Italian as it wouldn’t give you any chance of getting speaking practise and limited listening practise. To get a fully rounded learning experience you need to be learning through lots of different mediums.

However, if you are doing other things like watching movies in Italian, talking to Italian people, reading books and so on, then an Italian textbook can be incredibly useful.

The textbooks are set up to take you through a natural progression to proficiency. You can follow the material in a similar way that you would do in a classroom setting. Then you can do the practise exercises to check your progress and to make sure you’re understanding everything as you go.

There are also certain ways to make the most out of an Italian textbook and ensure that your learning is being optimised.

Reasons Not To Use An Italian Textbook

There are some reasons that you might not want to get an Italian textbook but in our opinion they aren’t strong enough to not actually get one, just some of the reasons we’ve heard other people put forward that have put them off.

• You have to spend money on them
• They can be heavy to carry around
• They don’t give you a chance to practise speaking
• They require self motivation

Our responses to these reasons not get an Italian textbook would be:

• They’re not expensive and once you’ve bought one it can last you months. And it’s much cheaper than a course of classes
• Leave it at home and designate a specific time of the day to studying
• You can practise speaking in other ways, one resource isn’t going to match all of your learning needs
• This last reason is very true, they DO require self motivation and this can make a huge difference. If you’re someone who self motivates then a textbook can be a great option for you. If you’re not the kind of person who can self motivate then you may want to consider a class instead. Although even if you go to a class, a textbook can still be incredibly beneficial.

We hope we’ve managed to convince you that yes you should get an Italian textbook and if we haven’t then don’t worry, there are plenty of other resources that might be more suited to your personality. You might be someone who is more suited to an app, a podcast, learning through reading, but no matter what learning style, there will be Italian resources to help you get there.

How To Make The Most Out Of An Italian Textbook

An Italian textbook can be a fantastic resource to help with your Italian studying. There are lots of benefits of using an Italian textbook but there are certain things you can do to make sure you’re optimising your use of the textbook and making the most out of the resource.

Use Your Italian Textbook Every Day

To get the most out of your Italian textbook you really need to be using it every day. A great way to do this would be to set aside half an hour, either in the morning, on your lunch break or in the evening and make this the same time every day so that you build a habit.

Then sit down and complete one section. So if you learn one thing and then complete a set of exercises about it to test your understanding, this will set you off for success.

Do The Exercises

Make sure you’re not just reading the material in the textbook but engaging with it as well and a great way to do this is by doing the exercises in the book. Doing the exercises is a great way to not only practise what you’ve just learned but to also check your understanding.

So when you’re buying a textbook be sure to check that there are exercises for you to do along the way which leads us onto our next point…

Mark The Exercises As You Do Them

It’s very easy to do an exercise, shut your book and think you’ll mark it tomorrow but it would benefit you so much more if you picked your book up and marked the exercises as soon as you’ve done them. That way you can check your understanding and see what you need to work on.

Where as if you leave it for next time you might not remember why you answered a question in a particular way, you’ll just know that it’s incorrect.

Make A Note Of New Words

You’re going to come across new words as you work your way through the textbook. Make a note of these words as you go and then you can study this list later and learn the new vocabulary.

Acquiring new vocabulary can make a huge difference to how much you’re able to talk and communicate so each time you come across something new in your textbook make sure you look it up and see if you can find a way to commit it to memory.

Don’t Use It As Your Only Means Of Studying

A textbook is a fantastic learning resource but it shouldn’t be the only thing you use to study.  If you’re only learning a foreign language with a textbook then you’re not going to get very far. As well as using a textbook, ensure that you are practising your speaking and listening skills. It’s important not to let these fall behind because once they’re behind it’s harder to catch them all up again.

Now you know how to use one you just need to find out where to buy an Italian textbook.