• Upcoming Classes – September 2025

    All upcoming classes will be listed here with all the details currently available. Often future classes will not be available to book until closer to the start date. If you would like to be updated on a class, please enter your email and the level you are interested in on the blue bar at the top of this page and we will let you know when that class is ready to book.

    CourseWhereStartingClassesPlaces leftCostBook
    Beginners Online Italian ClassItalianCorkWed. 10th September 7:30-9 pm12€170Book Now
    Continuation Online Italian ClassItalianCorkMon. 8th September 7:30-9 pm12€170Book Now
    Intermediate I Online Italian ClassItalianCorkMon. 8th September 6-7:30 pm12€170Book Now
    Intermediate II Online Italian ClassItalianCorkWed. 10th September 6-7.30 pm12€170Book Now
    Upper intermediate Fluency (Plus Grammar Highlights) Online ClassItalianCorkThurs. 11th September 6:30-8 pm12€170Book Now
    Advanced Fluency (Plus Grammar highlights) Online ClassItalianCorkThurs. 11th September 8:15 – 9:30 pm12€140Book Now
    Gruppo Lettura – for children age 6-11ItalianCorkMondays 5:00-6:00 pmCall to Enquire
    Gruppo Studio – for children age 10-15ItalianCorkFridays 4:30-5:30 pmCall to Enquire

    More info?

    Email Carolina at carolina@italiancork.com or phone on 0879588375 if you have questions.

  • Buongiorno or Buonasera, the Italian greeting dilemma!

    Ciao, ragazzi (lads)! 

    When do you say Buongiorno? And when do you switch to Buonasera? My students in Ireland (and curious minds everywhere) ask me this all the time—and trust me, it’s a classic Italian puzzle!

    Buongiorno translates to “Good morning” in English, but literally, it’s Buon (good) giorno (day). So, when does the “morning” end and Buonasera (our “Good evening” vibe) take over?

    Back when I was a kid, running around under the Italian sun, the nonni (grandparents) had a rule: after 1 or 2 PM, you’d switch to Buonasera. But let’s be real—when it’s summer, and the sun’s still splitting stones at 4 PM, saying “Good evening” doesn’t feel right at all. Some Italian people would look up at the sun and back at you and say ‘Buonasera? Veramente?’ (really;-)

    So, here’s the modern Italian secret: there’s no strict rule! Buongiorno works as long as the sun’s still shining bright. Think of it as saying “Good day” to celebrate that glorious daylight.

    Bonus tip: Buongiorno (and Buonasera) is your go-to for everyone—fancy strangers, your barista, your bestie, or even your nosy neighbor. It’s the Swiss Army knife of Italian greetings!

    Allora, go spread some Buongiorno cheer while the sun’s out, and stay tuned for our next post to unravel more Italian magic (like what Buona giornata really means 😉

    Buona giornata a tutti!

  • Prego: The Italian Word That Does It All!

    Italian Conversation

    My students often look puzzled when they hear Italians toss around the word Prego in all sorts of situations. “What does Prego even mean?!” they ask, as if it’s some secret code. So, let’s clear up the mystery of this super versatile Italian word!

    1. The Polite “You’re Welcome”

    First things first: Prego is what you say when someone thanks you with Grazie. It’s like a friendly handshake that says, “No problem, happy to help!” You’ll hear it all the time after a quick “Thank you!”

    2. The “Here You Are” Moment

    But wait, there’s more! When the barista hands you that steaming espresso or the waiter passes you the menu with a smile, they might say Prego. It’s their way of saying, “Here’s what you asked for!” Same goes for the taxi driver who opens the trunk for your luggage and drops a cheerful Prego—it’s like a little “Ta-da!” for their service.

    3. The “Go Ahead” Nudge

    Sometimes, Prego is a polite way to say, “Your turn!” Picture a shop clerk saying Prego to invite you to order or step forward. It’s a gentle nudge with a side of Italian charm.

    So, Prego is like the Swiss Army knife of Italian words—polite, handy, and ready for any situation.

    Allora… Prego, enjoy this post and have fun mastering Italian!

  • ‘Il treno dei bambini’ Leaving Cert’s New Book

    Il Treno dei Bambini is a captivating story, brought to life as a beautiful movie on Netflix, but this isn’t all! It’s also a remarkable book by Viola Ardone, published in 2019 and a finalist for the prestigious Premio Strega award in 2020. This bestseller has chugged its way into hearts worldwide and, hold onto your tickets, it’s one of the two prescribed novels for the Italian Leaving Cert in 2026 and 2027!

    This is exciting news for my students, especially because I’ve organized a Book Club where 5th and 6th year students can climb aboard and explore this novel, decoding its quirky characters and those difficult idiomatic expressions that might try to derail them during the book comprehension part of the exam paper. Our work will ensure the best outcome for this section of the exam paper (60 marks out of 220) in the shortest possible time. This will also give them more time to tackle the other parts of the paper and the confidence they need to do it as they will feel in control of their time. 

    The Book Club welcomes a small group of 5th and 6th year students, and since the book’s the same for both years, it’s a smooth ride for study time and parents’ wallets. Missed a stop? No problem! Recordings and notes  keep everyone on track, ensuring no one’s left behind and we all steam toward our best Italian Leaving Cert results!

  • Italian Beginners, Online

    Whether you are planning a trip to Italy or you have decided to learn this beautiful, musical and colorful language for fun, let’s start with our Beginners course

    Italian Beginners will be held online (Zoom) 7.30-9.00 pm on Wednesday, starting on the 10th of September.

    Places are limited, therefore I would recommend that you book your place as soon as possible in order to avoid disappointment. 

    Practical conversation is included from our first class and, during our lessons, we will learn how to introduce ourselves, order our breakfast at the café, ask for information and so much more. Grammar is immediately implemented in practical and useful conversational tasks, but it will also give you good foundations if you decide to progress with your Italian and join our next course. Many of my students started with this class and they are now fluent!

    At the end of each class, you will receive an email with notes from that day’s lesson, materials used, pdf pages and (optional) homework. And if you have to miss a class for any reason, just let us know and don’t worry, you will receive the video recording of any new grammar we worked on so you won’t fall behind. All the equipment needed to keep up your Italian during the week!

    Booking your place is essential as places are limited in order to allow students to fully participate and get the best learning experience.

    Course details

    Starting date: Wednesday 10th of September

    Number of lessons: 12

    Time: 7.30-9.00 pm (1.5 hours)

    Cost: €170

    Therefore, I would recommend that you book as soon as possible to avoid disappointment https://www.italiancork.com/italian-beginners-italiancork/

  • Blame the Romans!

    The Romans invented gender fluid nouns.

    Often students are perplexed about nouns that are masculine in the singular and feminine in the plural. These ‘transgender nouns’ can be blamed on the Romans. Because they had neuter nouns in Latin and these neuter nouns are the roots of the Italian transgender nouns.

    Many neuter nouns are from the third declension but some are from other declensions, such as the second or the fourth (my son is studying Latin, grazie Kevin).

    Many of these nouns are parts of our body.

    As you can see all these nouns are not only masculine in the singular and feminine in the plural but they all finish in a

    The reason for this is because they were neuter in the second or third declensions in Latin and, so, they used to finish with a in the nominative, the accusative and vocative cases (grazie Kevin). 

    Nowadays, there is still a place in Calabria called ‘Le Castella’. In Italian, it should be i castelli, the castles, but castellum used to be neuter in Latin and the plural castella is the version we are still using, we just added Le to sound really Italian!

    Italian Beginners conversation
  • New Italian Beginners Online!

    Italian Leaving Cert

    I’m very happy to tell you that, due to great demand, we are starting soon a new class online for Beginners!

    Whether you are planning a trip to Italy or you have decided to learn this beautiful, musical and colorful language for fun, let’s start with our Beginners course

    Italian Beginners will be held online (Zoom) 7.30-9.00 pm on Wednesday, starting on the 26th of March.

    Places are limited, therefore I would recommend that you book your place as soon as possible in order to avoid disappointment. 

    Practical conversation is included from our first class and, during our lessons, we will learn how to introduce ourselves, place an order at the restaurant, ask for information and so much more. Grammar is immediately implemented in practical and useful conversational tasks, but it will also give you good foundations if you decide to progress with your Italian and join our next course. Many of my students started with this class and they are now fluent!

    At the end of each class, you will receive an email with notes from that day’s lesson, materials used, pdf pages and (optional) homework. And if you have to miss a class for any reason, just let us know and don’t worry, you will receive the video recording of any new grammar we worked on so you won’t fall behind. All the equipment needed to keep up your Italian during the week!

    Booking your place is essential as places are limited in order to allow students to fully participate and get the best learning experience.

    Course details

    Starting date: Wednesday 26th of March

    Number of lessons: 10

    Time: 7.30-9.00 pm (1.5 hours)

    Cost: €140

    Therefore, I would recommend that you book as soon as possible to avoid disappointment https://www.italiancork.com/italian-beginners-italiancork/

  • Happy New Italian Beginners Online!

    Italian Beginners classes have been running online for several years and have been very successful: small groups, a conversational approach in a fun and relax environment are the keys for this success. Finally you can learn and enjoy our classes from everywhere in the world from the comfort of your home!

    Full course description:

    Fancy learning Italian? Whether you are planning a trip to Italy or you have decided to learn this beautiful, musical and colorful language for fun, let’s start with our Beginners course. In fact, we will learn how to introduce ourselves, to talk about ourselves, to order our breakfast in a café, and so much more. Grammar is immediately implemented in practical and useful conversational tasks, such as booking a table at a restaurant, placing an order and talking about likes and dislikes. It will also give you good foundations if you decide to progress with your Italian and join our next course.

    At the end of each class, students will receive an email with notes from that day’s lesson, materials used, pdf pages and (optional) homework. And if you have to miss a class for any reason, don’t worry, you will also receive the video recording of any new grammar we worked on so you won’t fall behind. All the equipment needed to keep up their Italian during the week.

    Booking your place is essential, and remember that this course is for a small group in order to allow students to fully participate and get the best learning experience.

    Therefore, I would recommend that you book as soon as possible to avoid disappointment https://www.italiancork.com/italian-beginners-italiancork/

    Details

    Beginning January 8th
    Wednesday from 7.30 – 9.00 pm (Irish time)
    Online classes (ZOOM)
    A 10 lesson course €140

  • Si chiude una porta e si apre un portone

    Si chiude una porta e si apre un portone! You have almost the same saying in English, but, ours is more drammatic, obviously: as a door closes, the entrance door (portone) opens. This was my answer when the lovely girl at the beach bar told me that she broke up with her boyfriend… si chiude una porta e si apre un portone → meaning→ a better boyfriend or ‘The one’ is on the way;-)

  • Italian Beginners, Andiamo!

    Italian Beginners Online Conversation

    Italian Beginners classes have been running online for over a year and have been very successful: small groups, a conversational approach in a fun and relax environment are the keys for this success. Finally you can learn and enjoy our classes from everywhere in the world from the comfort of your home!

    Full course description:

    Fancy learning Italian? Whether you are planning a trip to Italy or you have decided to learn this beautiful, musical and colorful language for fun, let’s start with our Beginners course. In fact, we will learn how to introduce ourselves, to talk about ourselves, to order our breakfast in a café, and so much more. Grammar is immediately implemented in practical and useful conversational tasks, such as booking a table at a restaurant, placing an order and talking about likes and dislikes. It will also give you good foundations if you decide to progress with your Italian and join our next course. Booking your place is essential, and remember that this course is for a small group in order to allow students to fully participate and get the best learning experience.

    Therefore, I would recommend that you book as soon as possible to avoid disappointment https://www.italiancork.com/italian-beginners-italiancork/

    Details

    Beginning August 28th
    Wednesday from 7.30 – 9.00 pm (Irish time)
    Online classes (ZOOM)
    A 14 lesson course + 1 session about Natale (Italian Christmas traditions): €175