Customer Reviews

Italian for Kids: Learn Italian Beginner Level 1 Vol. 1

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I bought this video (and the first part, too) for my 2 year old son to strengthen his emerging Italian. My husband is American and we live in the States, but I am Italian, so I speak only Italian to him. He enjoys watching the video over and over again and repeats sentences and songs. Yes, the video is short and easy, however it is for children not for adults, and I think it has just the perfect duration to keep their attention high.
The story line is nice. The songs in the video are catchy and stick in the mind for the longest time. The themes are basic: telling time, recognizing objects, expressing likes and dislikes,... At the end of each unit there are a review and a quiz.
Overall I like this course. The only criticism I have is the choice of the actors. Some you can hear are native speakers, but others like Nonna Romano or some of the children have a good pronounciation of the single words but a terrible intonation of the sentence.
For the price I would certainly suggest you buy this video. If you just want something for your kids to watch to learn a couple of structures, this is a very good product.

Definitely do not recommend if you are looking to teach proper Italian cadence to your kids, which is something I believe in being native Italian and having founded my own company ([...]) as a result of the fact that real Itlian words are very often americanized or mispronounced.The actress is definitely not Italian and has an extremely poor pronounciation.

The Learning tree italian for kids is leaps and bounds ahead of the few learning dvds out there for italian. It is so much better than standard deviants. The cadence, pronunciation and accent are all very good. The only con is it leaves you wanting more. Hopefully the learning tree will produce more italian language dvds. It could also use more indept review of lessons, but still the best product currently in the market. Great for adults too.

this dvd is great. my 3 kids love watching it and actually ask to put it on instead of there other shows. i have a 4 1/2, 3 and 2 year old. the songs keep them interested the vibrant colors and mommo the dog is great. my son (2) already has been repeating the colors and body parts in italian. and my oldest daughter(4 1/2) is really saying the phrases and sentences that they teach. It really is a great learning tool for young children.

This is a good, fun, Italian course for kids - even if it only focuses on common phrases and vocabulary and doesn't address grammar, etc. The main problem is that it is extremely short - about 45 minutes. I can't imagine my 5-year-old daughter watching this more than a couple of times (she already knows most, if not all, of the material, which is very basic beginner level). That translates to a rather expensive and abbreviated language learning system. Even if one chooses to shell out the cash for volume II, you then come to a dead end in this study course (i.e., there don't seem to be any subsequent volumes). Useful, perhaps, if you just want some initial exposure. If your aim is fluency, however, this is certainly not the way to go. Instead, think about one of the full learning systems (we use Rosetta Stone). On the other hand, if your kid is just starting out, and you can afford it, you might use this DVD to supplement some other (better) language study course.

I was glad to have found such a simple, yet educational dvd that teaches the Italian language! I'm studying abroad in Italy this summer, and this dvd was very helpful to me. Italain for kids vol. 1 teaches basic Italian words and phrases in simple methods. In this volume you learn several categories of Italian, such as colors, greetings, members of the family, body parts, counting from 1 - 10, and names of items, with games in between to test your knowledge. The dvd story and languages also presented as every day situations. In this volume, the main character, Marina, is celebrating her birthday. From then on, you learn various Italian words/phrases as the party is celebrated.

I loved learning Italian form this dvd. Despite that it was on a kid-level, I was able to learn at a pace in which I understood everything presented. If you are looking to learn Italian on a basic level, then this dvd is definetly for you. Chao!

I thought the video was good for a small child to watch, but is not for an adult. I didn't like the creepy looking dog that changed voices throughout the video. I didn't like that each time the video was watched you had to play "pick which one is correct" games, it would be better to be able to opt out of them. Some of the kids were not Italian speakers, and struggled through the words they had to speak. I got a kick out of the grandmother in the video who is not a trained actress, and at one point had to speak to the cartoon dog. She gives this shrug and a chin lift like a typical Italian who is asked to do something stupid, the look on her face as she tells the dog that his answer is correct is worth the money spent for this video. This short video covers colors, numbers, and family members. The songs are simple enough that a child will quickly memorize them and sing along, and that's and important plus. It also has vibrant colors and a quick moving story that keeps a child interested, for the price it's worth it. I hope they use the grandmother in the next video, but not the dog.

I purchased this DVD based on positive reviews. I think that the quality standards of this supposed educational tool are embarrassing- the graphics are rudimentary and there is very little useful content. My son scorned it. I found it painful to watch.

I asked and received this DVD for my 3 year old daughter for her birthday. She absolutely loves it. She has picked up so many words and phrases. I hope there are plans to come out with more versions so that she can expand her Italian even more.

My children are 4 years old and are learning Italian. If the dvd were longer, I would have given it more stars. I was trying to rate it with 3 stars, but the system wouldn't let me change from 4 to 3 stars. 3 stars because it is so short. Still, it is a good, basic dvd for learning Italian. The kids like it, so they are willing to watch it regularly. There are some interactive games to help teach the words, the actors speak pretty clearly, and the animated dog is fun for the kids. With a book, you could teach the same words on your own, even if you don't speak Italian, because the dvd does not deal with an abundance of words/phrases. But, if you want a little break from teaching, this dvd works well and is not overly expensive.