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Percorsi: l'Italia attraverso la lingua e la cultura
Francesca Italiano, University of Southern California
Irene Marchegiani, SUNY - Stony Brook

ISBN-10: 0131929690
ISBN-13: 9780131929692

Publisher: Prentice Hall
Copyright: 2008
Format: Cloth; 608 pp
Published: 11/01/2007

Suggested retail price: $124.00
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For courses in Elementary Italian: 

 

Percorsi is designed to provide beginning learners with a variety of tools to develop their communicative competence in the four major language skills —listening, speaking, reading, and writing–and to acquire familiarity with Italian culture.  All of the features in Percorsi have been carefully designed to support two key aspects of the language acquisition process:  language comprehension and language production.

Organization

  • The textbook consists of a preliminary chapter “Capitolo Preliminare”, 16 chapters, and an optional supplementary chapter with grammatical structures that can be taught for active or passive knowledge, depending upon the instructor's preference.  The text is designed to be covered in one academic year, either in two semesters or three quarters. 

 

  • One of the most innovative features of Percorsi is the fact that chapters are thematically organized. Each chapter presents a series of clearly stated communicative goals and the grammar structures are sequenced by communicative functions.  In fact, the structures stressed in each chapter are those necessary to communicate about the featured topics.

 

Grammar

  • Throughout the text, in each chapter there are Così si dice charts, used to explain, foreshadow and/or review grammar and linguistic structures necessary for communicating about given topics. Some key grammar points appearing in these charts are subsequently treated in depth in appropriate chapters.

 

  

Culture

  • All chapters include cultural notes (Lo sai che?) that expand on the themes covered in the chapter. In the first three chapters the cultural notes are in English, then, beginning with chapter 4, these readings are in Italian.  Culture, interpreted in a broad sense, is also presented more indirectly through various activities and the use of realia. 

 

  • Every chapter includes Attraverso, which focuses on a different part of Italy and provides students with key historical, geographic, cultural, and economic information on different Italian regions and cities.   

 

  • The Percorsi video, shot in Italy, includes interviews with numerous Italians who talk about their lives and ideas. Students hear authentic language as video helps them develop their listening skills, become aware of visual clues common to Italians when speaking, and expands their cultural awareness.

 

Vocabulary

  • Spiral presentation of vocabulary and themes throughout the text intends to help students master the material gradually and thoroughly.

 

Reading

  • All chapters contain at least one authentic reading related to the main themes.  These are preceded by a practical reading strategy, in English, and practice activities.  Several literary selections appear in the second half of the book. 

 

Writing

  • Writing skills are developed in a section that stresses process-writing strategies, which are accompanied by thematically-related writing activities. These appear in the odd-numbered chapters. Writing activities, however, are present throughout the chapters in the form of varied activities. 

Table of Contents

Capitolo Preliminare — La Lingua Italiana                  

Capitolo 1 — Chi Sei                                                    

Capitolo 2 — La Scuola

Capitolo 3 — La Descrizione e I Gusti della Persone

Capitolo 4 — La Routine Giornaliera

Capitolo 5 — La Famiglia

Capitolo 6 — La Casa

Capitolo 7 — Il Tempo Libero

Capitolo 8 — I Ricordi

Capitolo 9 — Le Feste

Capitolo 10 — I Ricordi: Avvenimenti importanti

Capitolo 11 — I Piani e Progetti per il Futuro

Capitolo 12 — Speranze e Desideri

Capitolo 13 — Viaggie Vacanze

Capitolo 14 — La Città

Capitolo 15 — La Salute e l’Ambiente

Capitolo 16 — L’Italia di Oggi

Reviewer Quotes

 

I thought the cultural presentations were very good.  They were far superior to most elementary texts… I am impressed by the quality of this text.  It has been well thought out, is up-to-date, and thorough in its presentation. 

~ Elissa Tognozzi, UCLA

 

I love the structure of the chapters.  It is very clear and progresses nicely, with an attractive blend of vocabulary, grammar, exercises, and explanations, that sustains the attention and keeps the chapter interesting and varied.  I am very impressed.

~ Cristina Mazzoni, University of Vermont

 

I find the many suggestions for practice very attractive, especially those for group work.  I also like that all practice is contextualized, and that the vocabulary is also pertinent to the topic.           

~ Cinzia Noble, Brigham Young University

 

One thing I continue to love is the deductive reasoning approach to Occhio alla lingua and having students think and find patterns.  I believe this kind of conscious awareness is particularly helpful for adult language learners. 

~ Colleen Ryan-Scheutz, University of Notre Dame

 

The well-conceived Strategie di lettura and Strategie per scrivere sections are another noteworthy feature of Percorsi.  No other beginning Italian textbook on the American market can match Percorsi with regard to the attention given to promote students reading and writing skills.  Percorsi is truly a superb textbook. 

~ Marina de Fazio, University of Kansas

 

Francesca Italiano is the Director of the Italian Language Program at the University of Southern California.  She has a Ph.D. from University of California, Los Angeles in Nineteenth Century Italian Literature and an M.S. from USC in Applied Linguistics. She is the coauthor of the literary reader Incontri Attuali and the author of the second edition of the intermediate Italian textbook, Crescendo!  She is currently working with the USC Language Center in the development of the VIE (Virtual Italian Experience) video game, which is based on Percorsi. The VIE project is being funded by a two-year NEH grant.  

 

Irene Marchegiani, Professor Emerita of Italian Language and Literature at California State University — Long Beach, is currently Coordinator of Student Teaching for European Languages at the State University of New York — Stony Brook, where she teaches second language acquisition methodology courses as well as courses in European Studies.  At CSULB, from 1985 to 1999 she was the Director of the Italian program. Professor Marchegiani has taught Italian language, literature, and culture at all levels.  She has written articles on Giacomo Leopardi and on contemporary Italian poetry, with a particular emphasis on women writers.  She edited the volume of poetry Land of Time (Chelsea Edition, 2006) by Luigi Fontanella and co-edited The Poetics of Place: Florence imagined (Olschki, 2001).  She has conducted research and published articles on Italian epic poems about Cristopher Columbus and on second language acquisition. In collaboration with Professor Charles Jernigan, she has translated Torquato Tasso’s Aminta (Italica Press, 2000), which was awarded the prestigious “Diego Valeri” Monselice prize in 2002. She has co-translated other volumes of poetry including The Star of Free Will by Maria Luisa Spaziani. Professor Marchegiani has published several of her poems in various poetry journals, in Italy and in the U.S.A., and in 2004 she published La vita in cerchio, her first collection of poetry. She is member of the editorial board of the literary journals Gradiva and Journal of Italian Translation. With Francesca Italiano, she published the literary reader Incontri Attuali and the intermediate Italian textbook Crescendo.

 

 

View a Sample Chapter PDF: /samplechapter/0131929690.pdf

Pearson Higher Education offers special pricing when you choose to package your text with other student resources. If you're interested in creating a cost-saving package for your students, contact your Pearson Higher Education representative for pricing and ordering information.

This title is a member of the MyItalianLab Series, which also contains the titles below . You can also visit the MyItalianLab Series page.

    MyItalianLab™ is a new, online learning system created specifically for students in college-level language courses. It brings together, in one convenient, easily navigable site, a wide array of language-learning tools and resources, including an interactive version of the Percorsi Student Activities Manual and all materials from the Percorsi audio and video programs. Readiness Checks and English Grammar tutorials personalize instruction to meet the unique needs of individual students. Instructors can use the system to make assignments, set grading parameters, listen to student-created audio recordings, and provide feedback on student work. Instructor access is provided at no charge. Students can purchase access codes online or at their local bookstore.

  • 0135035368MYITALIANLAB
    Pearson
    © 2008 | Prentice Hall | On-line Supplement | Instock
    ISBN-10: 0135035368 | ISBN-13: 9780135035368
    URL: http://www.myitalianlab.com
    Brief Description

    • For courses in Elementary Italian: 

     

    Percorsi is designed to provide beginning learners with a variety of tools to develop their communicative competence in the four major language skills —listening, speaking, reading, and writing–and to acquire familiarity with Italian culture.  All of the features in Percorsi have been carefully designed to support two key aspects of the language acquisition process:  language comprehension and language production.

  • 0131929690Percorsi: l'Italia attraverso la lingua e la cultura
    Italiano & Marchegiani
    © 2008 | Prentice Hall | Cloth; 608 pages | Instock
    ISBN-10: 0131929690 | ISBN-13: 9780131929692
    Brief Description | Buy from myPearsonStore

Pearson Higher Education offers special pricing when you choose to package your text with other student resources. If you're interested in creating a cost-saving package for your students, browse our available packages below, or contact your Pearson Higher Education representative to create your own package.



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