Can you learn Italian online by playing games?
Of course you can, and it is amazing!
Whether you believe you are too old or maybe there is no more time for playing, this post will change your mind. Evidence-based study methods applying playful activities allow you to learn Italian effectively. And it is easier and fun.
Maybe you have already tried an Italian language course online, or you are using an app to learn Italian, but you are not pleased with the result.
As finding apps and online courses to learn a language online is easy, if you are hunting for Italian lessons online to enjoy and learn effectively, it is not exactly a piece of cake.
I am quite sure you heard about game-based learning, but maybe you do not expect it to be a relevant approach to adulthood learning.
You will find out why playing is extremely effective for learning a new language, focusing on 3 neuroscience-based issues:
- how relevant stimuli are for learning Italian
- the role memory plays in this cognitive process
- how developing and applying problem solving skills actively contributes to improve education.
Finally, I will tell you about some effective learning strategies applied by LearnFor Academy, in compliance with human cognitive processes occurring when you learn something new.
Well, why to learn Italian online playing is incredibly successful?
Game-based Italian language learning: 3 reasons why it works
The main reason why game-based Italian language learning is so impactful dwells in psychology theories by outstanding experts such as Jean Piaget, Swiss psychologist or the Russian psychologist Lev Semënovič Vygotskij, and many others.
First of all, the Russian psychologist left a valuable contribution concerning the importance of stimuli for an effective learning process.
Stimuli for learn Italian effectively
Why are stimuli so relevant in the Italian language learning process?
Maybe you already know education occurs thanks to the communication among neuronal connections, the so-called brain synapses.
Do you remember the tv-series Once upon a time… Life!? Every single element of the human body was the character of the amazing adventure life is.
Well, just imagine your neural cells like little animated puppets in your brain, holding their hands to stay connected.
Their hands are your synapses sharing information (especially due to nervous stimuli) and allowing neural cells development.
That is what allows you to do anything you do in your life.
How do neural connections work?
They turn on just by stimuli they receive from everything around you.
When you play a game, the materials you use acquire new meanings, they do not suggest already existing behaviours (as it usually happens when you do grammar exercises).
Learning Italian online playing games increases the amount of stimuli your brain receives.
Playing games allows you to separate rational thinking from objects (or anything you are using) and, as by Vygotskij,
“an object is assigned a representational function whereby a piece of wood functions as a doll and a stick as a horse.”
So a playful activity gets into a transitional stage in language development.
Arousing mind playground games allows you to set your mind in favour of problem solving, according to what the US psychologist Jerome Bruner said.
When you learn through playing you actually do it in a protected context without the risks you run in everyday life. I mean, you could feel embarrassed or worried about making mistakes or generating a misunderstanding with your talker, for example.
When playing, you do not have to be scared: no preoccupations about what other people could think about your level of competence and no worries about any misinterpretation.
That’s why playing is an engaging and rich in stimuli activity. It catches your attention, by arousing your motivation, consequently enabling your mind to acquire new information, thus developing new competences and building new memory.
Building memory while learning Italian
As an Italian language learner or just a curious person, it is possible you are interested in how to memorise new words and phrases in Italian.
However, maybe you do not know how memory works when learning a new tongue.
It is not only to recall something like
how to say cheers in Italian.
As a matter of fact, if you look for how to say good morning in Italian, you are working on translation and I am quite sure you did not learn your native language by doing translations. Translating is indeed counterproductive to learning.
Maybe now you are just thinking
Oh, so you mean all the time spent doing translation-based exercises has been useless?
Well, maybe not if it made you discover translating is an activity you like doing!
I am a professional translator, and when learning this profession, I studied it requires a remarkable cognitive effort, whereas learning does not imply so much energy.
As translating activates both the brain hemispheres, learning engages only one, so saving a huge quantity of energy, you can invest on something else.
So how does human memory work?
Building memory means creating learning.
Education takes place due to real experiences stored and visualised in the engram, a sort of memory trace.
It is interesting to be aware of the way new information gets stored and processed, to use a method of learning in compliance with human mind nature.
As a result, you will be able to choose an Italian language course offering you a method of learning that respects your nature and allows you to reach successful goals, with less effort.
Last but not least, developing problem solving skills is significant when learning Italian.
Let’s see why.
Improve your problem solving to learn Italian
Problem solving is an essential skill to improve Italian learning, as it allows you to actually solve issues.
For instance, if you need to find a way to express your thoughts without counting on your native tongue, you really have to solve a problem. And the solution cannot be just translate it, as even though AI is increasingly helping this issue, joining a real conversation with Italian native speakers during your journey to Italy means experiencing it.
So if you want to speak Italian using an app for translation, you do not really need to attend any course.
But if your dream is to visit Italy and taste its culture, its essence and enjoy people, learning Italian online playing games will make you an expert speaker.
You will do it by effective strategies asking your mind a little but focused effort to deal with the situation.
Asking your mind an effort means to trigger the action potential in your neurons.
Picture this: you are a tourist in Italy, sitting at a charming local restaurant. The menu is full of dishes you have never heard of, with ingredients you can’t even pronounce. You want to order something delicious, but suddenly you panic—how do you choose the right dish?
In that situation, having developed problem-solving skills in the context of the Italian language will allow you to use linguistic strategies to communicate, instead of giving up and just ordering a pizza because it is the only dish on the menu you know.
BOOK YOUR FREE TRIAL LESSON TO LEARN ITALIAN BY PLAYING GAMES
Moreover, working on the competences I told you about, you also develop metacognition, that is, your awareness of cognitive processes and your ability to use them according to your needs.
Now that you have a clearer idea of the advantages of learning Italian through play, let me give you some practical examples of how you will do it with LearnFor Academy.
How to improve Italian language playing online with LearnFor Academy
I do want to tell you how to improve Italian language playing with LearnFor Academy and what it actually means to us.
I will stress on 3 main features:
- the necessity of experiencing Italian language context
- the importance of being able to facilitate the acquisition of new words in memory
- the immense value of knowing how to learn.
The first question people ask themselves when yearning for learning Italian often is
“Do I need to move there to learn Italian?”
as there’s one thing most people agree on: to truly learn a language, you need to be immersed in the context.
Yes, let’s see how it can happen.
Italian language courses abroad: how to immerse yourself in the language from home
You really think you need to move to Italy to effectively learn Italian?
Well, maybe you do not know you can simulate the same conditions just comfortably sitting on your sofa.
I am talking about just one of the advantages of learning a language by applying mental coaching with LearnFor Academy.
Have you ever heard about the states of consciousness and their importance in the cognitive process of learning?
By using effective state-management techniques in our Italian language lessons, you can tap into the Alpha state, giving you a real boost in your language learning.
Total immersion in the learning environment is absolutely key. Applying the right coaching techniques, you do not have to be in the country where the language is spoken to make real progress.
And I am not just talking about listening exercises or watching videos. I mean experiences that let you completely step out of your usual mother tongue context and dive into a full multisensory journey—like when children play and lose themselves in another world.
This immersive, sensory approach helps your brain absorb new language skills more effectively. Here’s how you can experience it yourself.
How to memorise new words playing games
If you are wondering whether it is possible to memorise new words through play even as an adult, science provides the answer.
According to neurolinguistic studies on bilingualism, when you learn your mother tongue, the brain forms neural circuits that are specialised for languages.
Each of them governs a different dimension:
- linguistic, supporting the development of language skills.
- metalinguistic, linked to the awareness and development of those skills.
- pragmatic, responsible for managing general aspects of communication, shaped by the socio-cultural context.
- emotional, concerning the emotional impact of the input you receive.
Emotion is the one that allows all the others to work effectively. Without positive emotional input, your memory cannot reach its full potential.
That’s why you can memorise new words through play: LearnFor Academy offers activities designed to match your age and interests, giving you positive emotional experiences that boost learning.
I want you to truly understand what happens in your mind when you study a new language. It will help you develop a crucial skill for enhancing your learning: metacognition.
Improve metacognition to learn Italian by playful activities
You choose to learn Italian with me through playful activities; however, this does not exclude a mature approach to learning.
All of our students, in fact, discover and learn how their minds work and which techniques to apply to facilitate the acquisition of knowledge.
In other words, I will allow you to develop metacognition—the awareness of your own cognitive processes and the study methods that work best for you.
During each meeting, you will learn Italian and you will discover:
- how you are learning,
- why you are doing that way,
- how you can enhance your learning after the lesson.
And you will do all of this just increasing your awareness of how your mind works and the biochemical processes occurring in your brain while studying.
Learning Italian by playful activities with me means
- to take advantage of and leverage the stimuli to enhance your learning process.
- engage the neural circuits linked to the emotional dimension, allowing your memory to activate effectively
- develop metacognition, becoming aware of what you know, how you learn, and how to maximize your language acquisition.