Italian for B1 Cittadinanza

This course teaches the Italian the B1 Cittadinanza exam actually asks for, and stops where that exam stops.

The exam is not ordinary B1. Siena publishes a syllabus for it, and that syllabus is shorter than the B1 in a textbook: three indicative tenses, the imperative, the present conditional and the infinitive, in the active and reflexive conjugations. No congiuntivo, no passato remoto, no passive. Nothing in this course models a form the exam does not name.

Work through A1 and A2 of the main Italian course first — that is where every structure the syllabus names is taught — and then this one. You do not need its B1 level before the exam: almost all of that grammar is off-syllabus, and the few points from it that the exam does want are taught here instead. What the main course cannot give you is here too: the vocabulary of the questura, the anagrafe and the permesso di soggiorno, the everyday domains the exam draws on, and a kit for each of the two production tasks.

After your exam, transfer your progress into the main Italian course and carry on at B1 — nothing you learn here is wasted. Do that after the exam, not before: transferring pauses this course, and you will want it until the day you sit.

To be straight about scope: nobody here marks your email or plays the examiner, and these exercises are not in the exam's formats. Siena publishes a full sample paper with the audio, the answer key and the marking criteria, for free. Work through that for the format. This course is for the part underneath it — a few thousand words and a short list of grammar, held in memory rather than revised once and forgotten.

Click on a lesson below to start learning

We recommend you to start with lesson 1, as lessons build on one another.
1. Every, each, none and whichognuno, ciascuno, il quale
2. Renting a place to livel'inquilino, la caparra
3. Repairs, utilities and the buildingla caldaia, il contatore
4. Bills, banking and payingil bonifico, la rata
5. The post office, counters and servicesla raccomandata, disdire
6. Symptoms, the doctor and prescriptionsil medico di base, l'impegnativa
7. Hospital and emergenciesil pronto soccorso, il reparto
8. School, enrolment and your childrenl'iscrizione, la giustificazione
9. Work, contracts and payla busta paga, il preavviso
10. Roles, duties and who is responsibleil ruolo, obbligare
11. Looking for workil colloquio di lavoro, il tirocinio
12. Study, training and qualificationsil titolo di studio, l'equipollenza
13. Getting around townla coincidenza, timbrare
14. Food, neighbours and daily lifeil coperto, la lite
15. Documents and identityla carta d'identità, lo stato civile
16. Certificates, declarations and checksla dichiarazione, verificare
17. Offices and who does whatla questura, l'anagrafe
18. Reporting a problemla denuncia, lo smarrimento
19. Residence and permitsil permesso di soggiorno, il domicilio
20. Filling in a formin stampatello, la marca da bollo
21. Fees, deadlines and following upil bollettino, il numero di protocollo
22. The citizenship applicationil requisito, la naturalizzazione
23. The oath, rights and belonginggiurare, il diritto
24. Rules and what is requiredla norma, occorrere
25. Conditions, limits and exceptionseventuale, la circostanza
26. Institutions and public lifel'ente, la provincia
27. Making a requestla richiesta, rivolgersi
28. Cause, condition and meanspoiché, salvo
29. How much and how manyil centinaio, il migliaio
30. Degree and emphasisaddirittura, talmente
31. Saying what you thinkil commento, la questione
32. Certainty, doubt and hedgingevidentemente, probabilmente
33. Reading the newsl'indagine, il reato
34. Public affairs and the mediaambientale, i media
35. Feelings, reactions and getting on with peoplela soddisfazione, sopportare
36. Explaining, comparing and telling a storyil dialogo, raccontare
37. The email: opening, register and what the examiner wants
38. The email: explaining a problem and asking for something
39. Speaking: the one-minute presentation
40. Speaking: the conversation — opinions, comparisons, disagreeing