The School
I’m Anna and it was with great pleasure that I created That's Italia Language School, combining my passion for teaching together with my love and knowledge of Ragusa in Sicily where I was born and raised.
I graduated in Foreign Languages and Cultures at the University of Catania. During my time there I took part in two study-abroad experiences in England and Germany where I developed my English language skills.
I achieved a Master's degree in Didactics and Promotion of the Italian Language and Culture to foreigners at the Ca' Foscari University of Venice. Venice still represents the heart of my professional training and also the place where I love to revisit. For me it's a fascinating melting pot of cultures and it's also the place where you can find new ideas, inspiration and where you can meet other professionals who teach Italian all over the world. I am now a qualified, experienced and enthusiastic teacher of Italian and have also studied the Ragusa area from a linguistic and intercultural perspective.
When not in the classroom, you can find me strolling in the avenues and alleyways of my town, shopping in the local markets, having a coffee in the sunshine and reading. I am very interested in TV and film and can easily be persuaded to have a night at the cinema!
I look forward to welcoming you to Ragusa and to That’s Italian Language School. The fulfilment of That's Italia represents the successful completion of an intense and important apprenticeship but also the beginning of an extraordinary professional and personal "travel" that I hope will never end!
Anna Occhipinti
That's Italia Language School is a project which aims to promote the Italian language and culture through courses, excursions and get-togethers
Our aim is to develop your communication skills as quickly as possible so lessons will be in Italian! Of course we will revert to English whenever we need to clarify or explain in detail.
The teachers are all native Italian speakers with a great command of the English language. They are skilled and experienced in this educational field. They create and modify the programme of the language courses according to the learner's interests and needs. In this way the main communication skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing will be enhanced.
Carefully chosen teaching materials support our method which alternates individual tasks with pair work and group activities.
The courses take place at the Antico Convento (Old Convent), in the gardens of Ragusa Ibla. This charming and relaxed location gives the learners an opportunity to immerse themselves in an atmosphere they won't find anywhere else. Built high above the green Irminio valley, this place was chosen by the Capuchin priests for its beauty and evocative stillness and for the contact with nature. Tastefully restored in 2013, today it is also the centre for the Mediterranean School for Wine and Food (NOSCO), the exquisite Cenobio restaurant and the hotel Antico Convento.
