Call me lazy, or impatient maybe, but I hate learning things in the usual order.
First studying the rules, then doing a practice exercise or two, and so gradually developing over time what I am able to confidently say and understand in Italian?
What a bore.
On the other hand, show me some examples of new grammar, in an understandable context, and my eyes will light up!
Today’s free Italian grammar exercise, for example.
First time I tried it I was scratching my head a lot, and when I pressed ‘punteggio’ I saw I’d got about half of them wrong.
I had another go, using the trial and error method, and picked up a few more green ticks!
The third time I got them all correct, but with little idea of why.
By which point I was motivated to read through the sentences again, one at a time, and think about them.
Trying and failing got me interested enough to spend a few minutes working out the rules, or trying to.
Did I figure it all out?
That’s between me and the computer.
OK, I admit that my ‘learning grammar backwards’ approach may not be very efficient.
And as I’ve been learning Italian for 17 years, it can’t be very fast, either.
But it IS well-suited to exercises like the ones on this site.
Here there’s no teacher, and few explanations.
All you get is a set of examples to complete, and a button to press to get feedback on how you’ve done.
Perfect for learning Italian grammar backwards!
Today’s exercise is Uso del congiuntivo 1.
(For more on the congiuntivo, check out our alphbetical Italian Grammar Exercises Index.)
Book of the Day!
Monday we’ll have a new Italian easy reader for you.
But for now, another ‘Book of the Day‘ half-price offer on a reader that we published a while back and which you might not have heard about.
‘Il ristorante‘ is by far the shortest, easiest easy reader in our shop. It’s IDEAL for beginners and almost-beginners.
The idea of the book is to get you using what little Italian you know in a way that will be enjoyable and will boost your confidence.
The chapters are very brief so you can make rapid progress through the story. Each chapter has a glossary and a simple exercise. The audio is available online – listen to it as often as you wish!
Get ‘Il ristorante’ for just €4.99 – offer ends in 48 hours or so.
(If you’re not a beginner, please download and read the free sample chapter before deciding to buy. This really is a very simple text and you might be better off with something more demanding…)
Browse other Italian easy readers in our online shop.