Alberto Pirovano

Languages have always been my passion.
I want my students to learn how to speak English without translating. In Italy this is particularly difficult due to the teaching methods used in the public school. Grammatical rules are important, but little children learn how to speak a language before they know anything about grammar. Thus, the key to language learning is to try to do what kids do: listen and repeat. This is the most important thing. In order to repeat, though, one must be able to decode the spoken message (recognize every word), and to remember it as it is, without translations. This is not easy if you've been taught to translate since the elementary school.
English grammar is fairly simple compared to Italian. The problems Italians have with English don't have much to do with the grammar. It's a matter of pronunciation, word order, and speed. That is why, along with a thorough explanation of the grammar, I try to teach my students how to read properly, how to spell, how to imitate sounds. In a way, my approach can be defined as quite 'musical', because what you need in order to speak a language correctly is not too different from what you need if you want to sing a song well. In both cases you have to listen, remember what you've heard, and reproduce it without altering it.
My students will learn English starting from how native speakers do it. Video-watching and audio-listening are very important activities in my courses, as well as reading, writing and spelling.