Studies At The Musée D’Orsay

I hope stars gaze back at us, too.

In times of tragedy, human beings come together.

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Hey, how do you learn Italian? what textbooks and apps do you use? Can you give any tips for someone who is just starting out? Thanks in advance?

Hi!! Thank you for your question. 

Here is a rough plan I made when I started this blog, which is July 2017. It contains a list of resources I was using at the time. I don’t have access to my Schaum’s vocabulary book at the moment, but I’ll be resuming it when I get home. I would definitely recommend it if you’re an intermediate learner like me.

Other resources I’ve used consistently over the past few months are:

this website for free ebooks

this website for free audiobooks

raiplay for series and films (I also watched Suburra on Netflix, it’s brilliant and you should go watch it right now)

Eduopen.org and federica.eu are two websites that contain MOOCs in Italian, if you’re into that

You could also consider getting the raiplay radio app on your phone to listen to the radio, podcasts, and audiobooks. Note that not all of their content is available outside Italy. 

My routine is now doing a MOOC class (making notes and looking up new vocabulary) in the evening, or going on tandem and chatting to people, because I really have to focus on university studies. (I 100% recommend getting tandem on your phone. It’s free and really fun)

Before that, I used to read a lot of articles on La Repubblica  - just pick a section that interests you. I liked reading outloud to practice speaking, and it also made me focus on the text more. At the end you could make a list of words you don’t know. I also used to watch Cucine da Incubo (the Italian version of Kitchen Nightmares) and the dubbed version of The Nanny, there are lots of other fun programmes available on youtube so just look for something you find interesting. That way you won’t feel bad about procrastinating.. because you’ll be doing it in Italian!

Here are some other useful posts with resources (links included)

radio stations

podcasts

movies and series

a masterlist of italian resources

My tips for someone who is just starting out would be:

Do something every day. Or every other day, if you have little time. This is a lot better than just doing a lot on one day and then doing nothing for the next week or two, or three… your brain won’t retain new information if you don’t practice 

Make it fun and varied. I don’t use apps like memrise, duolingo, etc for any of my target languages because I find them very boring and repetitive. Find a routine that works for you.

If you are a complete beginner, take your time to understand the grammar. Verb drills, gender agreement, articles, and the like. Find a grammar book you like and stick to it. You could look up exercises online to complement it. 

Again, if you’re a complete beginner, start by listening to Disney songs! Look up the lyrics, print them out or write them down if you like, highlight new words, try to translate the lyrics line by line, and/or learn the songs by heart. When you’re a bit more confident in the language, find artists in genres you like and listen to them, and do the same. I listen to a lot of rap music, for example. I look up the lyrics on rapgenius and try to follow them and understand what they mean.

I know I’ve said this before, but go on tandem. Try to have a conversation, even a very simple one. Ask your language partner to correct you if you make a mistake.

Good luck!!! If anyone else has tips or resources for beginners, it would be lovely if you added them to this post!

my 2021 reading list so far:

(i want to get it to at least 20 so if anyone has any recommendations i would greatly appreciate it :))

lolita

the little friend

dracula

the virgin suicides

a clockwork orange

homesick for another world

in a dark dark world

emma

you will get through this night

leonardo da vinci, issacson

american utopia

the complete poems of sappho

the wasteland and other poems

it’s not a coincidence that the words homeric and homoerotic are so similar to each other and that’s on achilles and patroclus send tweet

“It wasn’t the sort of question that needed an answer, so no one replied. Frederick was watching me, I realized, with the proud, fatherly affection he usually reserved for James—who gave me a faint but encouraging smile when I glanced across the table.

“That,” Frederick said, “is where the tragedy is.”

how to deal with mental fatigue

Hi, it’s werelivingarts! Exam season is coming so soon, and some of us might deal with a lot of stress and mental fatigue while preparing for the exams. 

Here are some tips on how to prevent and deal with mental fatigue (before it becomes too serious and leads to burnout). Exams are just ways to test your knowledge and understanding, so please do not expect too high and take care of your health! 🌿

Hope that we would all do well! 😊

had to be said.......

people in period clothing doing modern things is my aesthetic

here it is a collection of poems about hope and or holding on despite everything !

I Am Not Ready To Die Yet by Aracelis Girmay

A Litany for Survival by Audre Lorde

Snowdrops by Louise Glück

Most Days I Want to Live by Gabrielle Calvocoressi

Insha’Allah by Danusha Laméris

A Good Day by Kait Rokowski

Invitation by Mary Oliver

Instructions on Not Giving Up by Ada Limón

Tommorow is a Place by Sanna Wani

The World Has Need of You by Ellen Bass

Let This Darkness Be a Bell Tower by Rainer Maria Rilke

To the Young Who Want to Die by Gwendolyn Brooks

Night Walk by Franz Wright

Sorrow is Not My Name by Ross Gay

Everything Is Waiting For You by David Whyte

The Letter by Linda Greg

Testify by Eve L. Ewing

Every Day as a Wide Field, Every Page by Naomi Shihab Nye