Courses

Italian language courses in small groups – Lingua A, B, C

The heart of Pintadera’s Italian program are the Lingua group language courses which generally presume a maximum enrolment of 8 students per class. The lessons are normally divided into two parts with a different teacher guiding each segment. The first part emphasizes Italian grammar and structure. The second part emphasizes the application and exercise of these linguistic rules in real life settings.

Pintadera offers three basic levels of Italian proficiency - elementary, intermediate and advanced (Lingua A, Lingua B, Lingua C). Elementary classes generally begin the first Monday of every month. Intermediate and advanced classes can be started on any Monday of the month, but enjoy too the liberty of beginning other days depending on student circumstances.

Pintadera does not employ standard Italian textbooks but instead produces its own class and take-home materials which are modified to the particular interests, abilities and needs of the group. This method has proven most effective in teaching adults who come to us from different backgrounds and who respond most favorably when treated in a way that is personally significant.

Pintadera carefully selects readings from Italy’s most celebrated poets, play-wrights, and novelists. Wide varieties of current-event materials such as newspapers, magazines, radio and TV broadcasts are used in the Pintadera learning experience. Together, the student is enlightened to valuable Italian cultural, historic and contemporary perspectives and supplemented with improved linguistic and communicative skills.

At Pintadera, we love to teach and we promise, you’ll love to learn. 

Levels

Lingua A - Elementary (A1 / A2) - "Contatto e Sopravivenza" - for those who have very little or no knowledge of the Italian language

Lingua B - Intermediate ( B1 / B2) - "Soglia & Progresso" - for those wishing to improve their existing knowledge of Italian grammar and vocabulary and to strengthen their speaking and comprehension skills

Lingua C - Advanced ( C1 / C2) - "Efficacia & Padronaza" - for those with a formidable grasp of Italian grammar who wish to refine their written and oral skills

We also offer private lessons upon request or you can book a combi course consisting of Lingua lessons in the morning and 1 hour of individual lessons each afternoon.

Cultura – Culture Courses

As a compliment to our Lingua group classes, we offer a two week Cultura course which is scheduled three times a week in the afternoon.

The first week of Cultura focuses on Alghero, examining its history, architecture, customs and traditions - both contemporary and ancestral - as well as an unique exploration of the Nuragic settlements in the vicinity.

The second week of Cultura focuses on Sardinia - the island with a myriad of facets, flashing the sacred, the profane and the beguiling gulf between.

One week may be booked by itself.

Below, please find an example of the topics covered in our two week Cultura course:

The 1^st Week - Alghero: The town with the Stone Bastions

• The History and Architecture of Alghero, with guided tours of our Historic Treasures
• The Traditions, Legends, Background, Costumes and Practices of the Churches and their Religions
• The Nuragic Civilization

The 2^nd Week - Sardinia: Between the Sacred and the Profane

• Folklore and Festivities - Carnivals in Sardinia from their archaic origins to today
• Rituals and Rites of the Holy Week before Easter
• The Dark Side - Bandits of a Many Color and Cause

In addition to the Cultura  course, Pintadera will provide you with a daily schedule of the afternoon activities, like lessons on Italian music,  guided tours of Alghero,  film projections with discussion afterwards. We also organize afternoon sailboat outings to remote coves, where, if you are lucky, you will swim with dolphins.

AllegraMente – A Vacationer's Delight

For shorter stays, we offer the weekly AllegraMente program, our special late afternoon/early evening course for holidaymakers who want to better know the people and town of Alghero. The course concentrates on acquiring basic notions of Italian to aid and enrichen communications with locals in restaraunts, bars and shops. AllegraMente offers insights into the Sardinian way of life and makes learning an active and edifying holiday joy.

AllegraMente is structured with the first 30-45 minutes staged in a classroom where the day's new vocabulary words and expressions are introduced. Thereafter, the class ventures forth into town and practices what it has learned. AllegraMente is a course in continual evolution, with a finger on the pulse of what is happening in Alghero. Upon request, the course may be tailored to your personal interests and needs.

You may begin this course any day of the week.

Buon Appetito – Italian cooking

Pintadera is proud to offer Italian cooking classes in collaboration with the young Master Chef: Cristiano Andreini whose restaraunt, Ristorante Andreini, located in the historic center of Alghero, has been selected by Moda Stile as, "…the best restaraunt in the city (Alghero)" and by La Stampa as "…one of the best (restaraunts) in Sardinia". It has recently been awarded a prestigious Michelin star. 

Time permitting, in the morning the participants of the afternoon's cooking session go to the market place together to do the shopping. In the afternoon, the cooking session  begins with a 30 minute classroom period where the menu of the day is studied with discussions of ingredients, cooking techniques, and kitchen strategies. Thereafter, the class proceeds to Trattoria Al Refettorio, a restaraunt immediately below the school, where the meals are cooked unders the Chef's careful eye and with his personable encouragement.

Traditional entree selections such as "Lasagna al Forno" and "Ossobuco con Risotto alla Milanese" with traditional desserts such as "Tiramisu", to name a distinct few, will be performed. Students will prepare a simple "Sugo al Pomodoro" or a "Pesto of  garlic and basil" where Chef Cristiano will demonstrate beforehand the importance and skill of selecting genuine fresh native products.

The class size of Buon Appetito is strictly limited to 8 students. Class menus are influenced according to student tastes and preferences.

After the meal is cooked, the students and Chef sit down at a single table and enjoy their dishes with animated reflection and delight.

Cucina Tradizionale - homecooking

As an alternative to Buon Appetito, for those who prefer a more informal approach,  we  propose a home cooking session with Angelina, an Italian signora who will cook with you on her rooftop terrace.  Her menus always include a handmade-homemade pasta like the Sardinian specialty "culurgiones" or "gnocchetti sardi", followed by a seafood dish and vegetables.  Classes are limited to 6 participants and  usually take place between 17.00 and 22.00. 

Cin Cin - wine tasting session

We hold our Cin Cin wine tasting sessions in the spectacular setting of the Ristorante Andreini in the old town.  Gian Luca Andreini, sommelier of the prestigious restaurant which he runs with his brother, Chef Cristiano, will introduce you to wines of the same grape which are produced in different areas of Sardinia with entirely different approaches.  Gianluca is constantly looking for new products and invests in the quality and uniqueness of types of wine.

Uno, Due, Tre – Italian for Children

During the summer months, Pintadera offers an Italian language course for children. One course is held in the late afternoon and is available to children between the ages of 6 and 14. This class is taught outdoors, whenever possible- most often in the courtyard of San Francesco, just below the school or in an quaint immediate park.

Simple vocabulary, notions and phrases are provided and practiced most often in the context of a game. Local Italian speaking children participate and are paired with a child student of approximately the same age so that the duo benefits both lingually and culturally.

Another course, a more traditional children's class, is held in the morning for those children whose parents are participating in a group language course at the same time. The minimum number of particpants for this class is 3 children.

Other Courses

Cued to temporal opportunities and current events in Alghero, an ambitious variety of educational activities and experiences are offfered Pintadera students while they are registered in school.

During the winter months, Pintadera organizes Italian language courses for foreign residents in Alghero. These usually meet twice or three times a week for two hours.

There is no additional enrolment fee.

Pintadera is closed on all national and local public holidays and the lessons missed will not be recuperated.