The Italian Academy School
Description of The Italian Academy School
- Location: Syracuse, Italy
- Founded: 1984
- Students age: from 18 years
- Type of education: mixed
- Accommodation type: apartments, family accommodation (partial board)
- Language of instruction: Italian.
The Italian Academy, founded in 1984, is accredited by the Italian Ministry of Education and specializes in teaching Italian. The educational institution is located in the city center near the archaeological park and the museum, within walking distance from the main shopping streets, the Old Town on the island of Ortigia, the beach.
The main campus building is a historic villa with a lush botanical garden with citrus trees, Mediterranean flora, centuries-old palm trees, magnolias and other exotic trees, plants of 2 acres. The charming atmosphere is conducive to outdoor activities: Italian classes, cooking, seminars, other events. Nearby is the Church of St. John (Chiesa di San Giovanni), which has access to the catacombs, the crypt of St. Martian: it is considered one of the places of origin of the Christian cult in the West - according to one version, the apostle Paul himself preached here.
Programs and prices, tuition fees in The Italian Academy School
General italian
20 lessons of general Italian per week.
Intensive / Exam Preparation Course
20 group lessons + 5 individual lessons + online training platform.
Italian + History, Myths and Culture
This exciting course offers an in-depth study of the history of Syracuse and Sicily: it is built on a combination of history lessons, archeology conducted by native speakers of the Italian language, afternoon activities and weekend excursions.
Programs include visiting attractions (depending on duration):
- Greek theater
- Archaeological park
- Temple of Athena
- Manyache Castle in Ortigia
- Crypt and catacombs of St. John
- Interactive Museum of Archimedes
- Roman Villa del Tellaro
- City of Noto
- Valley of the Temples of Agrigento
- Roman town of Taormina.
Syracuse, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is an ideal place to study Roman history. This magical city, known to the whole world for its natives, for example, Archimedes, became an inspiration for countless myths and legends, such as the romantic story of Alpheus and Arethusa or the burning of invading Roman ships by Archimedes, witty using huge mirrors in the castle on the hill.
Italian + Sicilian Adventure
The course combines learning the Italian language with exciting afternoon activities: an underwater trip through the Plemirio marine reserve to explore the rich underwater world, horseback riding along the river along the ancient valley of the Ibleyan mountains, kayaking on the Chane River, a boat trip around Ortigia island, visiting places of volcanic eruptions on the slopes Mount Etna.
All events are coordinated by professional guides and instructors. Depending on the duration of the chosen course, the daily program and the weekend program will include:
- Trekking on Mount Etna
- Horse ride on the river
- Kayaking
- Archaeological diving with mask and snorkel
- Sailing
- Beach reserve of sea turtles.
Italian + Food & Wine
The Italian + Food & Wine program is an offer for gourmets who want to learn the secrets of cooking dishes from real masters of Italian cuisine, to appreciate the unique taste of local Sicilian cuisine, which has no analogues in Italy. The program includes tastings that will allow each of the participants to learn how to choose the freshest products on the traditional street market, prepare seafood delicacies, unique pasta dishes, fill the famous Sicilian cannoli with ricotta filling, and discern countless varieties of Sicilian wine.
List of events:
- Shopping at Ortigia Street Market
- Cooking Classes
- Wine tasting
- Culinary laboratory at Villa Tellaro
- Confectionery demonstration.
Language lessons are closely related to visiting local wineries and pastry shops, where specially selected experts in the field of food, winemaking share valuable culinary tips, love of traditional Sicilian cuisine.
Italian + Photography
The program is designed to meet the needs of professional photographers, enthusiasts, as well as those who simply intend to explore the world of photography through an innovative and exciting journey.
Classes are held by a professional native Italian photographer. The program is focused on creating amazing landscapes in the best Sicilian traditions. Education goes beyond the basic principles of photography: the camera will become a tool for participants to use it to establish new relationships with people and places.
List of events:
- Photojournalism
- Photo on smartphone
- Street photography
- Food photo
- Fishing photography (on a fishing boat!)
- Trips around the island.
The teacher is a professional photographer Roberto Zampino.
Long-term courses
Long-term Italian courses are designed for students who wish to devote more than 8 weeks to studying the Italian language.
Students enrolled in long-term courses will be able to take advantage of special reduced prices. Programs include group classes - 20 lessons per week (3 hours / d.) And are accompanied by an additional program of cultural events, excursions. Students, depending on the initial level, will be aimed at obtaining basic knowledge of the Italian language or improving existing ones.
Long-term courses are ideal for those who wish to learn Italian throughout their long stays in Syracuse, enjoying all that this vibrant Sicilian city has to offer.
The Academy offers a wide range of elective courses covering specific areas of study: Greek and Roman history, Italian literature, archeology, architecture, art history. All optional subjects are taught in Italian, English by experienced teachers.
Long-term programs allow you to use the free language exchange service according to the tandem principle, which will be especially useful for consolidating the knowledge gained in the classroom, and also will allow you to get acquainted with people of similar age and interests.
Individual courses - 10 hours / week.
Personal lessons.
Lessons in the format 2 to 1 - 10 hours / week.
Classes on topics of interest to students. One teacher conducts classes for 2 students, which allows you to pay maximum attention to each.
Skype lessons
Individual lessons on topics for students to choose from.
Online course - 1 month.
- Unlimited access
- General, business Italian
- Construction vocabulary
- Grammar
- Trivia
- Mobile support.
Distance learning program - 1 month.
Online + 4 Skype lessons.
Discussion lessons - 4 hours / month.
Accommodation, meals, prices
Italian Academy offers exclusive accommodation: fully renovated authentic villas, modern boutique apartments within walking distance of the school, beach. The school has the opportunity to make the best deals in Syracuse.
Terms of placement:
- Spacious, comfortable rooms
- Fully equipped kitchen
- Call Service
- Welcome pack
- Outdoor recreation areas
- WIFI - Fast Reliable Wireless Internet
- Traditional sicilian design
- Air conditioning, heating
- Central Safe Areas
- Parking
- Washing machine, bed linen, towels.
|
Type of accommodation |
May-October (€ per week) |
November-April (€ per week) |
|
Separate apartment |
||
|
Premium |
350 |
280 |
|
2 weeks |
330 |
260 |
|
3 weeks |
320 |
250 |
|
4 or more weeks |
300 |
230 |
|
Shared apartment |
||
|
Separate room |
190 |
170 |
|
4 or more weeks |
170 |
150 |
|
Host family |
||
|
Breakfast only |
250 |
250 |
|
Half board |
320 |
320 |
|
Extra guest fee |
70 |
70 |
All accommodation options are regularly checked by the staff of the linguistic center. Accommodation is usually booked from Saturday to Saturday, but it is possible to choose any time interval. Students can choose to stay in any of the partner B&B hotels.
Activities The Italian Academy School
Students attending a general Italian course can choose from a wide range of afternoon and evening activities.
Advantages
- Teachers of the Italian Academy are native speakers with a narrow specialization and extensive experience in teaching Italian for foreigners: these are highly qualified native speakers who strive to make learning Italian pleasant and productive.
- The basis of education is a communicative method that pays special attention to the development of the ability to speak and understand others, to study grammar, which is fundamental for the correct mastery of the language. Each lesson has a special time for developing four basic language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing.
- The materials are carefully selected, allowing the presentation of modern Italian in accordance with the pan-European classification.
- The courses provide the opportunity to attend Italian language classes, while enjoying everything that the fascinating city of Syracuse offers.
- Each course is developed according to the classification CEFR - Common European Framework of Reference for languages (A1 - A2 - B1 - B2 - C1 - C2).
- Regardless of the starting level of language proficiency, participants will be selected a course that will meet their personal needs. Programs are based on a communicative technique and provide the opportunity to practice spoken Italian, develop an understanding of the language, expand vocabulary, and improve understanding of the grammatical structure.
- The school offers long-term courses (up to a year) that allow you to prepare for the CILS exams (certification of the University of Siena), which allows you to acquire a prestigious certificate confirming a high degree of language competence.
- The average class size is 6-8 students, the maximum occupancy is 12 people.
Facilities and equipment at The Italian Academy School
Italian Academy has all the necessary resources, amenities:
- Wi-Fi, air conditioning in all rooms
- Permanent access to all enclosed study areas
- Media center, computer lab
- Cozy, fully equipped classrooms
- Outdoor patio with cafe
- Movie evenings, socializing (weekly)
- Student Support 24/7
- Additional language exchange programs with local students (tandem lessons)
- CILS & DITALS Exam Center
- Certificate of Italian language of the University of Siena.
Admission dates and extra charges
- The minimum course duration is 1 week. There is no maximum term.
- Classes start every Monday.
- Students can join summer courses every Monday from mid-June to mid-September.
- Class schedule: Monday to Friday from 9.00 to 12.30 (3 hours of classes).
Entry requirements, how to apply, what is required to enrol
- The minimum age is 18 liters.
- Level of language proficiency - there are no minimum requirements.
Institution on the map
Residence permits, citizenship and other services
- Guardianship services during the studies
- Student supervision
Review about The Italian Academy School
Recommendations on when to apply
| Language courses, schools and children's language camps | Primary and secondary education - private schools | Preparation programmes for entering universities - higher education | Higher education (after completing accredited programs A-level, IB, High School) - Bachelor, Master, MBA |
| - we recommend to apply 6-9 months before the start of the course (some camps and schools offer discounts for early booking or for lengthy study programs) - there are some very popular and high demand children's camps, where the applications need to be submitted 1 year in advance (in particular Switzerland , Great Britain , USA , Canada , Austria) | - we recommend to apply one year before the start of the training program, - some schools have a specific time frame (September-November - please specify an individual school) - some schools require tests in several stages (UKISET, internal tests of the school: English, mathematics, logics, subjects, interview, some require a personal visit) | - we recommend to apply one year before the start of the program, - for Foundation and Pathway programs, IELTS and TOEFL certificates are usually required, respectively | - recommended submission one year before the start of the program, - the deadline normally closes in January, for TOP HEIs and, as a rule, in March in other universities - for a bachelor, a Foundation or Pathway preparatory program a completed A-level, IB, High School + IELTS / TOEFL are required - for Masters you need a graduated higher education, in some cases you need a pre-Masters program - MBA requires completed higher education, work experience preferably at least 2-3 years, etc. |
