Do you remember Pausa Caffè, the Italian-speaking challenge I used to run years ago?
The main goal of this program was (gently) forcing students to speak Italian every day for a month. It was for students who needed a schedule to practice Italian regularly or for those who wanted to speak but were too shy to do so in person.
In fact, Pausa Caffè was an asynchronous way of practicing the language. Using VideoAsk, a platform that enables asynchronous video conversations, I would send students a video with a question every weekday, asking them to answer in either video or audio form.
I ran the program for a few years, and participants always gave me amazing feedback. Students said that they felt more confident when speaking Italian, while others liked Pausa Caffè because it enriched their vocabulary. Other participants loved having a daily task to do to incorporate the Italian practice into their daily life. Others said that it was a great way to start speaking again after a long time of not using Italian.
For me, Pausa Caffè worked well because it was a fun challenge that encouraged participants to speak a bit of Italian every day, without taking up too much time. It would last for a month and only took ten minutes a day (which is the reason why I called it Pausa Caffè). I strongly believe that an effective language program doesn’t need to be overwhelming, and I wanted Pausa Caffè to be easy and fun to help students find the confidence to speak Italian or simply practice the language consistently for a period of time.
The last time I offered Pausa Caffè was in 2023, then I had to stop due to some personal problems. But thankfully, things are way better now, and I am ready to run Pausa Caffè again. However, I made some changes to the original program, so Pausa Caffè is a bit different (and hopefully even better) now!
The idea of changing Pausa Caffè comes from a student who, while giving me feedback about the program, said she would love to listen to other people’s answers as well. This is why I stopped using VideoAsk, which allowed only 1-on-1 asynchronous conversations, and introduced Telegram, where people can share their answers and listen to other participants’ as well.
But let me tell you how this new Pausa Caffè works.
Pausa Caffè begins on Monday, March 2, and ends on Friday, March 27. I will set up a Telegram group for all participants, where I’ll upload a video every morning with a question. Participants will be required to answer that question by recording an audio and posting it in the group.
This way, everybody will be able to listen to other people’s answers and eventually leave a written comment. I will give my feedback on each reply, and every weekend I’ll upload a summary video to help correct mistakes and reinforce grammar elements.
Here are the details, in short.
When: March 2 to March 27
Where: Telegram group
How: every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, I’ll upload a video with a question, which you need to reply to in audio form. I’ll give my feedback on each answer in written form. Over the weekend, I’ll upload a summary video to underline common mistakes and give some tips.
Let’s summarize:
– Pausa Caffè is a challenge to make you speak Italian daily, for a month
– It begins on Monday, March 2, and ends on Friday, March 27
– Every weekday (Monday through Thursday), I’ll post a video with a question you need to answer by recording an audio message (this way, you can also hear other people’s answers)
– I will give you written feedback plus a video every weekend to underline common mistakes and give some tips
If you have doubts or need more information, just leave a comment or send me an email! My address is cinzia@instantlyitaly.com
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