With Italian now part of Shanghai French School’s expanding language offer, students have the chance to dive into one of the world’s most expressive and cultural languages. Our Italian teacher Anna, originally from Rome, brings over 35 years of teaching experience, and a contagious passion for Italian life, art, and language. Today, we spoke with her to hear more about Italian at LFS, a program that already counts over 100 students this year.
This year again, we have the incredible opportunity to work with Anna Cicalese at Shanghai French School in a truly unique way, it’s the first time such an arrangement has been made in a French school abroad outside of Italy. Anna is directly appointed by the Italian Ministry of Education, and seconded to our school with the support of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Consulate General of Italy in Shanghai.
Hi Anna, can you introduce yourself?
Hi, I’m Anna, I’m an Italian teacher coming from Rome who has been teaching her entire life (laughs), for around 35 years! I started my career teaching Italian kids from public schools in Italy, and later I took a specialization to teach kids with special needs and disabilities. For 3 years, I taught blind children how to read. It was an amazing experience; for me, teaching is a very emotional vocation.
I usually love to take on the next challenge and improve my teaching skills by learning new methods. I’m a teacher, but I really love to study! Eight years ago, I did a competition for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Italy and became a teacher qualified to teach the Italian language to foreign kids.
What brought you to China?
I came to Shanghai because I wanted to discover something else and work in an international school. I’m very attracted by China, its ancient culture, its language. My goal is to visit as many places as possible in China and other countries in Asia. Through the Italian Consulate, I arrived at Shanghai French School around a year ago, and I’m really happy to be here.
How is Italian taught at LFS?
Italian is included at school in 3 main ways:
Italian as an Extra-Curricular Activity
It’s now completely integrated in the ASC program, for all levels in Elementary School: beginners who start from scratch or with very minimal exposure and intermediate to build on existing skills. Parents can choose between 1 hour and 4 hours of Italian per week. Classes are available on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays after school, or Saturday mornings, so it fits easily in the children’s schedule.
In-Class Cultural Projects
Across our primary school classes, students explore a variety of projects developed together with their teachers, focusing on Italian history, art, cuisine, and cultural traditions. Last year, I did several workshops in all the elementary classrooms on both campuses.
Baccalaureate Italian Preparation
For students aiming to take Italian at the baccalaureate level as second/third language or an additional option, we offer focused, one-on-one support to ensure success on the exam. It’s for the students who take Italian via the CNED center. The CNED is the French National Center for Distance Education, allowing students to follow any subjects from the French curriculum from anywhere.
What kind of students typically takes Italian classes at LFS?
Some children have an Italian parent; many also don’t have specific links to Italy. But the majority anyway, no matter their background, for now don’t speak Italian at all. Even some Italian-Chinese families, the little kids don’t speak Italian yet, because it’s very difficult to add the Italian language, especially when the Italian parent does not have enough time to teach it at home.
Overall the diversity of profiles I have in my classroom is what makes me really happy. All students are very motivated, I really love teaching them.
Do you already see progress with the students you’ve been having for several months?
Yes, I do! Even the students who only choose to have one hour per week, I already see some progress in their accent and pronunciation. I have a specific student in mind who only has 1 hour per week and has made huge progress. She’s from an Italian dad and a Chinese mom, and last week, for the first time, she started to finally open up and speak Italian to me! Her father told me that she had started speaking Italian to him every day at home. I think that’s a beautiful moment of success!
Italian is not only a language;it’s a link to a culture, and for Italian families or mixed families, it’s an emotional tie to one part of their culture. This little girl I have in class, now when she goes to Italy, she can play with other kids, she can communicate with her grandparents. That’s so important.
Why is learning Italian valuable, even for students without any Italian background?
I think it’s amazing to add an additional language for a child. We may think it’s too much, especially here where most kids already speak three languages, but actually I can see that they all manage. For the children who are already comfortable in these languages, who can switch very easily from one to another during recess, it’s a great opportunity to open up to another culture.
I see students here who speak three languages during recess with ten friends from around the world and, five minutes later, they enter my classroom with “Buongiorno” and start to create sentences in Italian with me, and everything in a very happy atmosphere. So it’s totally possible, and it’s amazing to see! You really have to see it to understand it.
And more generally, I can really feel that even for children who don’t have specific ties to Italy, they have some love for Italy. When I talk about the country, the culture, the history, I can see a spark in their eyes! Especially when I talk about food, they’re super knowledgeable about gelato, pizza, pasta, lasagna (laughs).
As interest in Italian keeps growing at Shanghai French School, we’re thrilled to expand our offering. The goal is simple: to give every student the chance to discover new languages and cultures, and maybe, fall in love with one along the way.