Leading people who are crazy about Italy, giving them insights into language and culture, and helping them overcome learning doldrums, and frustrations.
I’m Melissa, but people know me as Studentessa Matta – The crazy student – because every day I dive head first into the Italian language and use it wherever I am, whether in Italy or at home.
I want to show you how to improve your Italian and help you become more conversant.
My goal is to inspire you to learn the language and introduce you to a slice of Italy you might not know about by either traveling with me, conversing with me, or reading posts and novels in which I write about Italy.
Follow along with me, and let yourself go a little “matta” and find out how quickly you can overcome your anxiety and frustration with traditional methods as I help you to build your own unforgettable language learning experience.
Chat Italiano
I’ve heard it so many times before, “I can read and understand Italian, but when I try to speak, I become tongue-tied!” Sound familiar? Is this your problem too? With Chat Italiano, you can regularly practice your Italian with me. It is a perfect way to keep up your Italian conversation skills at home, supplementing on-line or evening language classes. It is also a great way to get your language in shape just in time for your next trip to Italy!
Price: $25 / 30 minutes.
Andiamo in Italia
Travel with me to Learn in Italy
Twice a year, I take small groups to Italy with me to learn the language and practice conversation skills. During the mornings, we study at a partner school in classes perfect for your language level. In the afternoons we go on adventures and excursions. We sink our hands into pasta dough, raise our wine glasses, laugh, dance, and chat the evenings away in Italian with teachers and Italian friends. You will travel with likeminded individuals and make memories and friends to last a lifetime. Andiamo in Italia!
Price: $3,850
At Home in Italy
Live in Italy in the Home of an Italian Teacher
Ready to take your language skills to Italy and live and study in the home of your Italian teacher? At Home in Italy is the perfect opportunity to immerse yourself in language and culture for one or two individuals in a city that interests you and at a time that fits your travel schedule. Homestays combine formal study with everyday family activities. Make new friends and experience a different side of Italy few tourists see, and return home closer to being bilingual than when you left.
Price: $1000 to $1,500 / week
Travel to Italy in the Pages of One of Melissa’s Books
It’s a fun way to immerse in Italian culture and learn the language too! Available on Amazon in Print & Digital.
Price: 16.99
Dive into the Matta Blog and read articles in Italian & English
Satisfy your passion for Italian language and culture while practicing your Italian language skills.
Experience Italy the Matta Way!
Andiamo In Italia!
I’m going back to Lucca in 2020!
You are invited to come for 10 days of Italian study (beginners to advance students welcome) and discovering all that Lucca has to offer. We will also enjoy excursions to Villa Reale, Volterra and Bolgheri.
Latest from the Blog – Dive into Italy and Italian
From the Multi-Award Winning Blog about Culture & Italian Language
SCiABALÓN – Live streaming Italian Facebook show hosted by Enzo Ferraro and Marcello Bernini.
SCiABALÓN Get with the program! Ogni giorno alle 17:15 in Italia puoi sintonizzarti su Sciabalón e ricevi la tua dose giornaliera di eventi attuali e divertimento! Every day at 5:15 pm in Italy you can tune in to Sciabalón and get a daily dose of current events and fun! Find the Show on Facebook È…
Help an Italian language Homestay Teacher: Schedule online tutoring sessions!
With the current global crisis, we are all on lockdown, and businesses are suffering. Small Italian enterprises, Italian teachers, and Homestays have been especially walloped by the shutdown of travel and tourism. Italian teachers are suffering in this epidemic crisis. But, YOU can help! You can support any one of my Italian language Homestay teachers…
Read More Help an Italian language Homestay Teacher: Schedule online tutoring sessions!
LyricsTraining: app to learn Italian through music videos
L’estate scorsa ho scoperto l’app LyricsTraining. Una delle studentesse che mi ha accompagnato in Italia per partecipare nel mio language program lì, me la ha mostrata. Che divertimento! Sedute sul retro del mini van, dopo una gita a Perugia, abbiamo giocato e abbiamo cantanto tutta la strada fino a casa a Montepulciano. Last summer, I…
Read More LyricsTraining: app to learn Italian through music videos
The origins of the word Quarantine and staying positive in trying times
Sapevi che la parola quarantena è una parola italiana? Did you know the word quarantine is an Italian word? La parola “quarantena” deriva da una variante veneziana del diciassettesimo secolo del termine italiano: quaranta giorni, che significa “quaranta giorni.” The origin of the word “quarantine” comes from a seventeenth-century Venetian variant of the Italian term:…
Read More The origins of the word Quarantine and staying positive in trying times
Living in the age of Coronavirus: Signs of hope and how to tell if you have the virus.
Il coronavirus può essere sconfitto se si rispettano le misure anti contagiono. The coronavirus can be defeated if anti-infection measures are followed. Lunedì 9 marzo l’Italia ha adottato misure proattive, conferendo un mandato a tutti I suoi cittadini affinché rimangano a casa per fermare il ciclo di contaminazione. L’Italia è una delle popolazione più antiche d’Europa e…
Read More Living in the age of Coronavirus: Signs of hope and how to tell if you have the virus.
Netflix: Watch movies with Italian audio and subtitles
Tira fuori il popcorn, è l’ora di guardare un film on Netflix. Get out the popcorn, it’s time to watch a movie on Netflix. A chi non piace un film divertente o uno che ci fa pensare? Ma ti sei reso conto che i film sono anche un modo fantastic per migliorare le tue abilità…
Read More Netflix: Watch movies with Italian audio and subtitles
Sto con l’Italia. Corona Virus will be contained.
15 minuti fa l’Italia ha esteso le severe misure di quarantena a livello nazionale. 15 minutes ago Italy extended strict quarantine measures nationwide. Il primo ministro Giuseppe Conte ha annunciato che a partire da martedì 10 marzo l’intero paese è bloccato. Le persone sono chieste a rimanere a casa e possono viaggiare solo per lavoro…
Italian prepositions: When to use “pensare a” or “pensare di”
Le preposizionipossono essere molto difficili! Prepositions can be so trying! “Pensare a…” or “Pensare di…”??? Quale preposizione dovresti usare con il verbo “pensare”? “Pensare a…” or “Pensare di…” ??? Which preposition should you use with the Italian verb: pensare – to think? La risposta… beh… dipende. (È molto noioso ricevere una risposta come quello!) Well,…
Read More Italian prepositions: When to use “pensare a” or “pensare di”
LingQ Online Italian language training
Non è necessario vivere in Italia tutto l’anno per imparare la lingua. You don’t have to live in Italy all year round to learn the language. È possible sviluppare un programma d’apprendimento a casa. Sono la prova vivente! Sono passata da zero a fluente partecipando attivamente ai siti di formazione online per migliorare le mie…
What They’re Saying
This was the best trip of my life! From the moment I heard Melissa’s podcast, I felt I found my kindred spirit. An incredible woman with infinite love for Italy and the Italian language. This program was worth every cent I spent and even more. Everything was so thoughtful, not only we had interesting excursions but also trips to bio farm, cooking lessons and wine tasting. The excursions, views, and dinners were fabulous! – Karina Kagramanova, Andiamo in Italia participant
I had a fabulous time staying with Cristina in Trento in September. The opportunity to be fully immersed in Italian from morning to night took my language abilities to an entirely new level. Cristina was wonderful to be with— very friendly, with a wide range of interests (from art to film to sports), and always helpful and supportive with my clumsy attempts to speak Italian. A bonus was that Trento is a great place to stay. It is a lively city in a beautiful location surrounded by mountains, not overwhelmed by tourists, and close to many attractions from Venice and Verona to the Dolomite mountains and Lake Garda. The experience couldn’t have been better. – Daniel Bayer, At Home in Italy participant
