Buongiorno!
Article/Blog by Jodina Hahn
This is Part I of a 5-part series on ideas and ways to amp up your speed of learning. (Aumentare la tua velocità di apprendimento)
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People often ask me for advice on learning a foreign language. And it’s often after they’ve been trying to learn it completely on their own, using books, CDs, etc. And very often they’re at a point where they’ve hit a wall… that is, they’re not making the progress they’d hoped for, or it’s become stale.
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I’ve not only spent many years teaching languages to adults, I’ve also spent many years as a (successsful) language learner… so I know a thing or two… 
For starters, I say make it as real as possible, immerse yourself in your language of choice as much as you can. There are many ways you can do this… even though you don’t live in Italy!
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Most importantly, consider that language is a tool of communication… and get yourself into a situation where you are practicing speaking it as soon as possible. Enroll in a class, join a study group, or get a tutor. It’s hard and unnatural to learn a language in a void alone with just you and your books, etc. It would be like reading and studying about working out, getting in shape, and eating healthy, but never actually going to a gym, going for a run, or joining a team.
And you need to do it regularly… getting a workout once a month is not going to make you buffed or fluent!
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And like getting in shape, you do need to make a commitment and keep at it, which is why it’s so important to find a sport/gym or language/learning methods you really like. Fall in love with your language of choice, because in order to become fluent, you’ll need to spend a lot of time together! 
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The approach I suggest is multi-pronged:
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Enroll in a class, join a group that meets regularly, or get a regular tutor — this gets you speaking and processing the language (even if you’re just a beginner — you gotta start somewhere!), keeps you accountable, and motivates you to study between ‘live’ sessions, so that each time you have a little more to bring to the table and can get more out of the encounter.
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Once you’re in a situation using the language for what it was actually intended –speaking– other aspects of study take on a different perspective, and all those study tools (I think of them as language toys) start to look all shiny and fun again. Now it’s just a question of trying on/out the many different ways to get more of the language into your regular life between ‘live’ practice sessions. There are many different styles… experiment with all the different ways to learn (many of them non-traditional) and find out which ones work for you.
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Here, the first TEN of “50 Ways to Accelerate Your Learning Curve”:
- Rent and watch Italian movies. (Click here for a few I like.)
- Hang out in little Italy.
- Find Italians to befriend on Facebook.
- Check out/Participate in Facebook pages dedicated to learning Italian (Two to start: (1) ItalianoWithJodina Facebook page and (2) Italian Talk–Another I visit regularly.)
- While driving in your car, or anywhere you’re completely alone, talk to yourself–pretend to be Italian, unable to speak English.
- Increase vocabulary by learning new words for everyday household items. Paste Italian words around the house, on sticky notes.
- Read books set in and about Italy–for example… La Bella Lingua by Dianne Hales, Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes, Living in a Foreign Language by Michael Tucker, Too Much Tuscan Sun by Dario Castagno, La Bella Figura, Beppe Severgnini
- Cook Italian food — find recipes on the internet.
- Check out other blogs/websites dedicated to things Italian, including: www.BecomingItalian.com, Diario di una studentessa matta, Bleeding Espresso
- Listen to and sing along with Italian music CDs. (YouTube is a great source, as is my Links Page.)