Italian (Version 8.4)

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Context statement

The place of the Italian language and culture in Australia and the world
Italian, also known as Standard Italian or italiano standard, is the official language of Italy, the Vatican City, San Marino and parts of Switzerland.

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PDF documents

Resources and support materials for the Australian Curriculum: Languages - Italian are available as PDF documents. 
Languages - Italian: Sequence of content
Languages - Italian: Sequence of Achievement - F-10 Sequence
Languages - Italian: Sequence …

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Years 5 and 6

Years 5 and 6 Band Description

The nature of the learners

Students are expanding their social networks, experiences and communicative repertoires in both their first language and Italian. They continue to need guidance and participate in structured, collaborative tasks that both recycle and extend language. Students are gaining greater independence and becoming more conscious of their peers and social context. They are gaining awareness of the world around them and of the relationship of Australia with Italy and other Italian-speaking communities. They are noticing similarities and differences between Italian language and culture and their own.

Italian language learning and use

Students’ pronunciation, intonation and phrasing are more confident, and they access wider vocabulary resources and use non-verbal strategies appropriately to support communication. They participate in shared tasks and purposeful language experiences as well as focusing explicitly on language structures and systems, literacy skills and cultural elements of communication.

Oracy development at this level includes active listening to a range of input from different sources, and building interactional skills such as maintaining conversations, turn-taking, and contributing to discussions with observations and opinions. They learn skills in ‘reading’ language for cultural and contextual meaning. Individual and group oral-presentation and performance skills are developed through researching and organising information, rehearsing and resourcing the content of presentations, and selecting appropriate language to engage particular audiences.

Contexts of interaction

Learners use Italian with each other and the teacher for a range of purposes: exchanging information, expressing ideas and feelings, performing and responding to Italian texts and experiences. They use ICTs to interact with each other and with peers in Italian-speaking communities, exchanging resources and information, accessing music and media resources, and contributing to class activities such as a blog or webpage.

Texts and resources

Learners engage with a range of oral, written, multimodal and digital texts that are increasingly public in nature. They use cues and decoding strategies to assist comprehension and to make connections between contexts, ideas and language within and between texts. They create texts for a range of purposes and audiences, such as emails, dialogues, public signs, presentations and performances. With support, they build cohesion into their Italian production in terms of both content and expression.

Features of Italian language use

Students increase their range of Italian language vocabulary, grammatical knowledge and textual knowledge. They learn how to describe present and immediate future actions, situations and events using familiar verbs. They use adverbs, adjectives and prepositions to create more complex sentences. They develop a metalanguage to describe patterns, rules and variations in language structures.

Learners consider how language features and expressions reflect cultural values and experiences (for example, language variation relating to gender, generation, status or cultural context). This leads to considering their own ways of communicating and to thinking about personal and community identities, stereotypes and perspectives reflected in language.

Level of support

While learners work more independently at this level, ongoing support, including modelling and scaffolding, is incorporated into task activity. Ongoing feedback and review support the interactive process of learning. While first language capabilities are more developed than learners’ Italian language proficiency, learning tasks and experiences need to take account of both their second language linguistic level and their more general cognitive and social levels of development.

The role of English

The use of English, in conjunction with Italian, for discussion, reflection and explanation ensures the continued development of learners’ knowledge base and intercultural capability and provides opportunities for learners to share understanding and experiences.


Years 5 and 6 Content Descriptions

Socialising

Interact to share interests, leisure activities, feelings, opinions and preferences

[Key concepts: leisure, neighbourhood; Key processes: exchanging, corresponding] (ACLITC039 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • contributing ideas and opinions in interactions by acknowledging, replying, agreeing/disagreeing and concluding, for example, E tu? È vero. Davvero? Va bene. Non sono d’accordo. Mi dispiace ma non capisco. Allora ci vediamo dopo. Arrivederci, Giorgio, a domani! Ho dimenticato … Sei molto gentile. Penso di sì. Penso di no.
  • asking and responding to questions that elicit personal information about themselves and others, for example, Da dove vieni? Vengo da Melbourne. Sei australiana? No, non sono australiana, sono cinese. Sì, e sono di origine greca. Quanti siete in famiglia? In famiglia siamo in sei. È/non è interessante … Che bello!
  • writing short texts such as emails, letters and text messages to interact with others, for example, to invite, congratulate or thank someone
  • using formal and informal greetings and forms of address when opening and closing conversations and written correspondence, for example, Pronto, chi parla? Ciao mamma. ArrivederLa. Mio caro fratello/Carissima nonna/ Gentile signora. Bacioni/Distinti saluti
  • asking about personal preferences, for example, Quale materia ti piace? Mi piace … /Non mi piace …, È facile/È difficile. Quale sport fai? E tu? Bravissimo! Eccezionale!
  • expressing feelings, such as about a singer or sports figure, for example, È simpatico e bravo, mi piace tanto. Vorrei...Mi piacerebbe …
  • describing a person’s physical state, for example, Ha fame/sete/freddo/caldo; Ho mal di … Sono stanco/sono rilassato
  • expressing preferences, for example, Mi piace il caldo. Mi piace/non mi piace la musica rock/pop/classica …
  • talking about the local environment and expressing opinions, for example, Qui c’è molto verde. A/In … c’è tanto inquinamento
  • providing options and choices, inviting, accepting or refusing, for example, Vuoi venire a …? D’accordo/No, non posso … un’altra volta. Vuoi il CD di … o di …? Che buona idea!
Take action, make shared decisions and organise shared experiences

[Key concepts: environment, plan; Key processes: participating, reflecting] (ACLITC040 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Sustainability
  • participating in taking action in relation to care of the environment, or class rules and routines, for example, Butta la carta nel contenitore giallo. Aiuta i bambini della prima ad attraversare la strada. Voi due, create il poster
    • Sustainability
  • discussing projects as a whole class, for example, Cosa possiamo riciclare? Come possiamo diminuire l’inquinamento intorno alla scuola? Come possiamo rendere più sicura la strada da casa a scuola?
Participate in simple transactions such as purchasing and ordering goods and services

[Key concepts: service, transaction; Key processes: transacting, exchanging, planning] (ACLITC041 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Numeracy
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • visiting a café, deli or other store and participating in transactions, for example, Buongiorno, vorrei un etto di... per piacere. Quanto costa? È troppo caro/costoso
  • organising a swap of toys, magazines, stickers or posters, for example, Facciamo uno scambio di cartoline. Mi dai questo/questa …? Io ti offro....
  • participating in buying and selling, using Grazie, Prego, Quanto costa? Due euro
  • participating in role-plays that involve transactions and opinions (for example, È bellissimo. È di moda), asking the price (for example, Quanto viene? C’è lo sconto?) and requesting opinions, for example, Che cosa ne pensi? Secondo me, è … Trovo … un po’ …
Interact in classroom activities and create shared class routines

[Key concepts: routine, class culture; Key processes: explaining, participating, sharing] (ACLITC042 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Numeracy
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • interacting in small groups in class routines, for example, Come si scrive? Di chi è questo/questa? È mio/mia. È di mio fratello
  • asking to receive things, for example, Per favore, dammi una penna blu. Per piacere, mi porti …? Sì/D’accordo/Non posso
  • asking the time, for example, Che ora è? Sono le … Quanto manca? 10 minuti.
  • asking where an event is taking place, for example, Dove si fa la festa? Dove si trova …? Dov’è …? In Italia/vicino/lontano/ al numero 6
  • participating in a class dis cussion on a theme, activity or experience, for example, La musica di … è più interessante di … Secondo me …

Informing

Listen to, view and read texts and gather information from a range of sources, including concepts drawn from other learning areas

[Key concepts: lifestyle, leisure, health/wellbeing; Key processes: selecting, researching, comparing, synthesising] (ACLITC043 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Numeracy
  • Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • Sustainability
  • surveying classmates on specific topics and presenting the findings using tables, concept maps, graphs and digital presentations, making comparisons with children’s lifestyles in Italy, for example, Chi? Dove? Quando? Perché? Che cosa?
  • gathering information by interpreting a range of texts, including signs, instructions, directions and diagrams, and then participating in class discussions on this information or presenting information independently in a variety of forms, for example, using a flowcart to explain the life cycle of a butterfly, or reporting (Metà della classe … La maggior parte … Pochi …. Tanti …. Alcuni … quasi tutti …)
  • researching topics such as leisure, recycling, the water cycle, the solar system, or geographical features of Italy, in a range of sources, including magazine articles, books and websites, and ordering and sharing the information in print or digital format
    • Sustainability
  • reordering information, for example, using tables or concept maps and retrieval charts
  • viewing documentaries about Australian/Italian cities or the natural environment to complete a list of facts or to collect information to discuss and compare with peers
Represent information appropriately for different audiences, using a variety of modes

[Key concepts: learning area concepts; Key processes: connecting, informing] (ACLITC044 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Numeracy
  • Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • preparing and giving presentations on familiar, factual topics, incorporating material from print and multimedia texts and class discussion, for example, a summary structured according to a series of questions such as Chi …? Dove...? Cosa …? Perché?Quando?
  • creating a video to present ideas and information to others, using graphics to represent ideas, providing captions for images and labelling maps
  • conveying information to others through different text types, for example, an advertisement such as la festa della cioccolata di Perugia: Vuoi partecipare …? Ti piace …? Preferisci …? Allora vieni a …

Creating

Share and compare opinions about ideas in imaginative texts

[Key concepts: description, story, narrative; Key processes: comparing, reviewing; Key text types: recount, narrative, biographical description] (ACLITC045 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • comparing cultural concepts and messages expressed in stories and song lyrics, for example, La domenica mangiano la pizza. La famiglia fa la passeggiata in piazza; Le famiglie fanno molte cose insieme
  • exploring the sequence of events in texts by creating a storyboard
  • relating what they read or view to their own life experiences, for example, asking what the author means by writing: La mia squadra è ‘forte’ ma la tua è ‘finita’, and considering how important sport is in their own life for example, È motto importante, È importantissimo. Per me è/non è importante perché ….
  • noticing and describing commonalities and differences in experiences and ideas of particular characters and aspects of their own daily life, such as in the Bambini di tutti i colori story, for example, In Italia, il pranzo è più … Mi piace di più lo stile di vita … Anch’ io … Sono d‛accordo
Create imaginative texts for different audiences such as digital stories and raps using imaginary characters, places, ideas and events

[Key concepts: text, imagination; Key processes: exchanging, performing, creating; Key text types: narrative, description, song lyrics] (ACLITC046 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • producing songs or short scripted plays or video clips to perform to younger students
  • writing and performing own texts, adapting patterns from familiar stories, such as booklets, board games, or creating a different version based on the characters, settings and events of an Italian story, for example, Tante famiglie tutte speciali
  • completing the end of a story

Translating

Translate texts, recognising that words and meanings do not always correspond across languages, and expanding descriptions or giving examples where necessary to assist meaning

[Key concepts: alternative, equivalence; Key processes: translating, comparing] (ACLITC047 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • noticing that there is not always word-for-word equivalence when moving between English and Italian, for example, in advertisements, websites, shop signs (Tabacchi) and warning signs (Vietato entrare!, Ė Vietato, calpestare l’erba!)
  • applying intercultural awareness when explaining to others learnt words and expressions, for example, practices related to hospitality (Grazie per l’invito … Volentieri! Certo! Come no! …) or idioms such as Non vedo l’ora!
  • explaining in English the meaning of culturally significant phrases and concepts encountered in everyday interactions and in signs, for example, È vietato calpestare l’erba, È vietato attraversare i binari
  • interpreting the meaning of particular word choices and gestures made in conversations between speakers of Italian, for example, explaining the use of idioms such as Diamoci del tu! Dai! Via! Evviva!
  • observing and reporting on the Italian language present in the Australian community, for example, noticing public signs in Italian, texts such as magazines and television programs, and computer games
Create simple bilingual texts and discuss what translates easily or not

[Key concepts: translation, explanation; Key processes: identifying, selecting, modifying] (ACLITC048 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • creating bilingual texts such as invitations to class or school events, posters to advertise an upcoming event, charts and lists to inform a range of audiences

Reflecting

Compare everyday social experiences and related language use and consider own responses and reactions and those of others

[Key concept: intercultural understanding; Key processes: comparing, reflecting, connecting] (ACLITC049 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • comparing how Italian and English are used in learning to agree/disagree politely with others when questioning and evaluating, for example, (non) sono d’accordo. Anch’io. Secondo me non è vero/bello/giusto
  • exploring with the teacher aspects of Italian culture that may create comfort/discomfort with the ideas and language used by others, for example, fare il bidet
  • learning the appropriate phrases to mark respect for age, gender, or social authority
  • reflecting on experiences of the Italian language and culture being located in and intertwined with the language and culture of English speakers in Australia, for example, in shop signs (Barbiere, Panificio, Macelleria, Farmacia, Moda, Cibo, Fiori, Assaggio)
Share aspects of own identity such as appearance, character, background, family, preferences and experiences, including own role as a learner of Italian, and consider how these aspects contribute to identity formation

[Key concept: intracultural understanding; Key processes: sharing, connecting, reflecting] (ACLITC050 - Scootle )

  • Literacy
  • Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • connecting various experiences of learning Italian and describing how learning Italian has influenced own everyday behaviour and language use, for example, using Italian outside the Italian classroom, playing Italian games online, going to dinner at an Italian restaurant and being able to read some of the signs and/or the menu
  • connecting various experiences and reflecting on self in interaction with others and how each person is perceived by others, for example, Sono fiero perché … Gli italiani in Australia amano.. Mia nonna è contenta quando … lo sono contento di parlare … Sono timido … Non parlo … Ho imparato … Ho visto …. Sono sorpreso di scoprire...

Systems of language

Develop pronunciation and intonation of Italian-specific sounds (ACLITU051 - Scootle )
  • Literacy
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • learning to pronounce double consonants, for example, la mattina, il cappello, la piazza, fa freddo
  • learning to pronounce z and t sounds
  • understanding that there are both grave, for example è and acute for example, perché accents and learning to insert these into their work electronically
Use grammatical knowledge, to interpret and create meaning in Italian (ACLITU052 - Scootle )
  • Literacy
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • using both regular and irregular plural nouns, for example, un ginocchio/due ginocchia
  • using suffixes to modify Italian nouns and adjectives, for example, treno — trenino; casa — casetta; parola — parolaccia; bravo — bravissimo; fratello — fratellino; povero —poverino
  • recognising the imperative as a formulaic expression, for example, Dammi!
  • noticing adjective–noun agreement, for example, I bambini piccoli; Anna è alta ma Mario è basso
  • expressing positive and negative preferences using adverbs to intensify the meaning, for example, Mi piace molto la cioccolata; Non mi piace tanto ballare
  • expressing negation, for example, Non sono italiano. Non mi piace l’ insalata
  • formulating questions and requests, for example, Che ora è? Pronto, chi parla? Quando comincia la scuola? Dove andiamo stasera?
  • using ordinal numbers to sequence, for example, la seconda classe, la quinta, la terza aula
  • recognising the position of adverbs in sentences, for example, Non vado mai al cinema; Cammino lentamente
  • using present tense of regular, some irregular verbs, and immediate future tense to present situations and events for example, using avere, essere, stare, giocare, dormire, fare, leggere, scrivere, andare in sentences such as: Andrea va a casa alle sei. Anna ha due fratelli. Vado al cinema domani
  • using reflexive verbs and simple past tense as formulaic expressions, for example, Mi alzo alle sette. Sono andato/a al cinema
  • developing metalanguage to describe patterns, grammatical rules and variations in language structures
Notice and use distinctive features of text organisation in Italian (ACLITU053 - Scootle )
  • Literacy
  • Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • noticing and using the main features of familiar text types in Italian, for example, emails, text messages, letters and narratives
  • expanding the basic sentence structure by using simple conjunctions, for example, ma, e

Language variation and change

Recognise that language use varies according to the contexts of situation and culture (ACLITU054 - Scootle )
  • Literacy
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • discussing the differences in register when using language in different contexts, for example, when giving an oral presentation to the class, talking to friends in the schoolyard, going shopping, or visiting the doctor
  • observing that language changes depending on the age and gender of the participants
  • noticing that language varies depending on how people feel, who they are interacting with and their relationship with each other, for example, emotive language is used with friends and peers (Ma dai! Non ci credo! Che barba!), more formal language is used with unknown adults (Scusi? Per cortesia), and a range of salutations of varying degrees of formality are used in written communication (Tanti cari bacioni/Un grande abbraccio/Distinti saluti)
  • comparing language use in similar social situations in Italian and English
Recognise the dynamic nature of language and culture (ACLITU055 - Scootle )
  • Literacy
  • Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • investigating how media and digital technologies have changed the way Italian is used, for example, noticing the influence of English words in television programs, advertisements, and text messages
  • considering and explaining why word borrowing occurs in the Italian language, asking, for example, Why do you think Italian uses English words for sports like rugby, tennis, cricket and hockey? How would you explain netball or cricket to an Italian student? Why are there no separate Italian words for iPod, Nintendo DS, MP3 or email?
Understand the diversity of languages and cultures represented in the classroom, and the multilingual and multicultural character of Australian society (ACLITU056 - Scootle )
  • Literacy
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures
  • developing an awareness of the different dialects spoken in Italy and used in Italian-speaking communities in Italy and in the diaspora
  • comparing the words they have heard in their home and/or community to ones learnt in class and noticing that there are different dialects in Italian, for example, bambino in Italian is the equivalent to picciriddu in Sicilian dialect
  • discussing the local linguistic landscape, including the presence of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages
    • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures

Role of language and culture

Reflect on their own assumptions about the values, beliefs and cultural norms of Italians compared to their own (ACLITU057 - Scootle )
  • Literacy
  • Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Personal and Social Capability
  • Ethical Understanding
  • Intercultural Understanding
  • explaining to others the significance of some Italian cultural practices and events such as greetings, mealtimes, school or family routines, concepts and values, recognising cultural differences in their interpretation of meaning, for example, Qual è la differenza? Capisco ma non sono d’accordo
  • noticing similarities and differences between own personal experiences and people, places, events and ideas depicted in Italian print and digital texts, and sharing responses with others
  • discussing some generalisations and stereotypes about Italian people and reflecting on their own experiences

Years 5 and 6 Achievement Standards

By the end of Year 6, students interact using spoken and written Italian to describe and give information about themselves, family, friends, home and school routines, experiences, interests, preferences and choices. They share aspects of their environment, express opinions, for example, È buonissimo ...è molto bravo, mi piace di più ..., penso di sì/no, secondo me..., accept or reject ideas, agree and disagree, for example, No,non sono d’accordo! Hai ragione/torto. They ask simple questions, for example, Ti piace? Cosa prendi? Chi viene alla festa? Vieni anche tu? They understand the main points in spoken interactions consisting of familiar language in simple sentences. When speaking, they imitate pronunciation and intonation. They understand short written texts with some variation in sentence structures and some unfamiliar vocabulary. In reading independently, they begin to use context, questioning, and bilingual dictionaries to decode the meaning of unfamiliar language. They connect ideas in different informative and creative texts, expressing and extending personal meaning by giving reasons or drawing conclusions. Students create sentences with some elaboration, for example, using coordinating conjunctions and comparisons to build short coherent texts on familiar topics, for example, La musica di ... è bella, ma mi piace di più ... They write descriptions, letters, messages, summaries, invitations and narratives They use the present tense of verbs, noun and adjective agreements and some adverbs; they choose vocabulary appropriate to the purpose of the interaction, such as to describe, to plan or to invite.

Students use some metalanguage to talk about both linguistic and cultural features. They discern familiar patterns and features of written and spoken language and compare them with English, understanding that language, images and other features of texts reflect culture. They demonstrate an understanding of variation in language use, adapting language forms according to audience and context. They identify linguistic and cultural differences know that Australia is a multilingual and multicultural society, and that dialects are spoken both in Italy and in Italian-speaking communities around the world. Students compare, identify and discuss their responses and reactions in intercultural exchanges.


Years 5 and 6 Work Sample Portfolios