Caleidoscopio offers a highly innovative and interactive review of Italian grammar at the intermediate level combined with a “kaleidoscope” of content, spanning diverse genres and aspects of Italian culture.  The programwas conceived and developed based on three major principles: (1) successful programs in Italian and Italian Studies place a strong emphasis on culture and exposing students to contemporary and non contemporary history, art, literature, cinema, popular culture, to name a few; (2) students are most engaged in coursework that integrates the study of culture with the study of language in  a rich variety of ways; (3) student-centered learning and proficiency-based practice across a variety of content areas results in achieving extraordinary communicative outcomes.

 

Rich in its array of reading selections, each chapter contains three carefully selected authentic readings.  Authors represent different time periods (some are very young and recently published, others are well-known writers from the 20^th-century “canon”) and offer a unique point of view on different socio-cultural aspects of that region’s life.  Readings vary greatly in difficulty and length as well as in style and tone; they include unabridged and abridged short stories, excerpts from novels or plays, interviews, and newspaper articles.   Male and female writers are equally represented.