Learn Italian with Paul Noble for Beginners – Complete Course: Italian Made Easy with Your Personal Language Coach

This has been a wonderful tool for me to learn Italian. I listened to discs 1-5 in the correct order, but since then, have kept all (12) discs on my shuffle playlist so listening and practising comes unexpectedly, regularly, without too much concentration and easily. The method is simple, at a good pace, is explained clearly at the start and remains consistent throughout the discs. Paul constantly jumps back to reminding things we learnt earlier, too reinforce them and support the learner to remember not only the word and its meaning, but why and how the sentence is structured this way, how the verb is structured and the grammatical rules. This in turn enables me to go away and create my own sentences as i learn more verbs. I'm sure there are cases where the reality of how something is said on the Italian streets is different to what is being taught here, but expecting dialect and slang from a language course is ridiculous. We should learn the correct way to speak, and then, once you have gained the skills to understand the grammar and sentence structure and are using the language, you will naturally learn where corners are cut and words dropped/modified etc. I would say that in 6 months, my Italian is now conversational, and I have learned more verbs that aren't in the course, to broaden my ability. It would be good to have something to follow on from this level, perhaps taking learners to intermediate level. I 100% recommend this, it is effective, clear and an absolute bargain. I wish I had found it a long time ago! I liked it enough that i have now bought the Spanish course too. Olé!

Bought this on the recommendation and it's a great learning tool. The narrator is very upbeat and patient in his teacher, gives you appropriate time to work out an answer and is overall very good at introducing the concepts of a new language. I would say this is a must when it comes to introducing yourself to a language. The approach used is definitely better than any school curriculum and actually makes you feel like you can do it!

I have waited until arriving at the end of the course before reviewing this item. Now it is clear that this is a very useful revision tool. True, like other reviewers have said, sometimes the repetition is tedious but by the end I will never ever forget the meaning of posso etc. Also the use of a native Italian speaker means pronunciation is always correct. (In comparison with the Michel Thomas approach with 2 bumbling English students). For the cost I do think there should have been more content. In the 12 discs there would be scope to go farther into the Italian language. Having said that Disc 11 introduces new tenses all of a rush and Disc 12 is just revision. The Kindle book 'Unlocking Italian with Paul Noble' probably taught me more than this course for a fraction of the price. But where do I go next? Is there a follow-up course? I'm beginning to realise just how little I know!

I have attempted many language courses on both cassette and CD over the years and this method by Paul Noble is by far and away the vey best I have ever used. It is so easy to follow and understand and almost without thinking I am now constructing sentences in Italian and understanding the spoken word very easily. I no longer translate from English to Italian but think in the language itself. To become fully fluent it would obviously be preferable to live or spend time in Italy but this course gives me the confidence to converse with the Italians themselves and I hope to go on to further my studies in this beautiful language. Absolutely recommended.

Having tried several other methods this is BY FAR the best. I listen in my car and have quickly picked up phrases and gained confidence. (I am on disk three but am so impressed that I wanted to come on and review- something I don't do very often.) His voice and tone are clear and reassuring and he uses a native language speaker to say the phrases and ensure pronunciation is correct. I love the way he explains things and makes them easy to apply more widely. I used to get stressed trying to learn but now I look forward to it, knowing that I will be given all the tools I need.

I have only listened to the first few CDs so far, but I already feel that I have learned a lot of Italian! This method is a terrific way to learn. I will say that at first listen I was a bit sceptical, but I kept it up and I'm glad that I did. Sticking with it is the way to go. You feel at the beginning that Paul is just rabbiting on, but he's sneaking in edumacational stuff when you're not lookin'! There is a lot of English spoken in this method, and at first that put me off, but I know realise that that's one of the tricks to this--you almost don't realise you're picking up another language! I am actually trying to learn German at the moment, but I bought the Italian course as Paul Noble hasn't created the German one yet-(HURRY UP!!) and I must say that I now have a better grasp of Italian than I do of German despite having spent a lot of time with German courses and even spending two weeks on an immersion course in Germany. My pals in Deutschland always have a go at me about how terrible I am at their language, but they'll be INTERDETTO when I show up and have somehow magically learned Italian since they last saw me in October! Thanks Paul!

I think Paul Noble needs to learn Italian himself before teaching to others, it's very easy to learn and I've bought it to improve my Italian, so it's a good job I already knew that 'suo' means his or her, not 'your' which is what's being taught!!

Very happy with this cd det so far but only just started. Came quickly, great price

This is similar to the Michel Thomas series, both of which cover some of the introductory level grammar of Italian as well as some vocabulary. Another product in the introductory language category is Pimsleur, but Pimsleur focuses more on learning phrases and doesn't have much explanation of grammar. Thomas and Noble, by contrast, focus on giving you the verbs, the backbone of beginning to speak a language and building a framework in your mind. I find Pimsleur and Noble complementary and have used both. One advantage of Noble over Thomas is that Noble uses a native speaker to say the Italian so you are hearing it pronounced correctly. Thomas has a thick German accent and the students are just learning (in the Thomas scenario you are the third learner is a class Thomas is teaching). Noble must think people have a fear of grammar. While he explains verb conjugations, turning singular into plural, etc. he almost never actually mentions the grammar by name. One thing I didn't like so much about the Noble course is that he over-prompts for an answer. Learning theory says that it is the attempt to recall something that leads to strengthening the memory; even if you try and fail, then get the answer, you become more likely to remember it in the future. Unfortunately at times Noble will ask a question but give so many hints you practically have the answer so you don't fully engage the effort to recall.

The best language course for me. I have learned more with this course then I could have imagined. I spent many months researching how an adult learns languages. I have read comprehensible input works. I have studied many of the easy learning course. I have been to blogs. Nothing worked for me until I discovered the master language teacher, Paul Noble. I am working through Italian now. I love Italian. Such a beautiful lilting expressive artist language. This course is not about memorization, conjugation, blah blah. It’s about learning a language as a way of communication, which is all a language is for my purposes. He has also masterfully decoded the language into Pareto principle patterns to make remembering easier. I think this is the best language learning system. Mind you, to learn a language you need more elements then just a course. You need a language parent. Comprehensible input. Etc. Good luck!

Almost new & almost satisfactory : disc two is missing. Any chance it could be sent to me? Your optimistic customer, EAV

Rosetta Stone, Living Language, Michel Thomas, Onlingo and now Paul Noble, Learn Italian...I have been at it for a long time. I am not language literate, having said that in the hour that I listened to Paul Noble's CD in my car I can already comprehend the difference in his approach to teaching and I was able to speak more freely and more confidently that I have with the other courses that I have listened to repeatedly for hours. I can't wait to continue Learning Italian with his CDs. Of all the self-teaching courses I have invested in I would rank Paul Noble as #1, Onlingo #2, Living Language #3, Rosetta Stone #4 and Michel Thomas #5.