Teach English in a Public School in Italy for 3 Months

I have now completed 3 months teaching English abroad in Italy. Overall, this has been a great experience and I am extremely happy I did it! However, I would not recommend this particular program. There were some concerning aspects of this trip.
Number 1. The LACK OF COMMUNICATION. Communication from Greenheart was absolutely terrible. I would send emails and would no get a response until 2-3 weeks later (if any). They did not tell me where I was being placed until the end of November (I left end of January) and booking airplane tickets was expensive that late. They also did not tell me which grades/ages I would be working with until a few weeks before I left and still expected me to pack materials.
I often wondered if this program was a scam. I did not hear from them other than when they reminded me that I needed to pay the rest of the fee. When I had to pay the last large sum, I almost decided this company was a scam and didn't go, but decided to try it.
They also did not tell me about important holidays in Italy (when the school would be closed) so I could not plan anything until last minute. The last week of school was a half week due to a national holiday and therefore the program ended three days earlier than they had told me.
Overall, everything was very unorganized and everything was a surprise.

2. Host family.
Although I had a lovely host family that were very nice people, I do not believe that they were in a place in life to be hosting someone at this time (as they told me many times). I strongly believe that the program should have looked into this more. My family said that they applied 2 year earlier but did not get anyone placed with them. This year they were asked to host me and accepted, although this was not a good time for them. They were almost never home, and if they were they were very busy with their own lives (understandably). Often I would only see them for about 30 minutes at dinner, where they often fought and screamed at each other. There was also often no food in the house and I went many times without lunch or dinner. It was not much of a cultural exchange: my family almost never asked about me or my country and I was made to feel stupid if I asked about Italian culture.

3.Orientation
Orientation was pointless. It occurred a week after I had already been living in Italy. I do believe it would have been helpful it it occurred before I left home. However, everything they talked about I had found out for myself after I had arrived. All of the information would have been extremely helpful beforehand.
They also sent out a handbook that stated that orientation would take place over the first weekend in Turin with a group of people completing the program. Henceforth I booked my ticket to Turin expecting this to take place. Eventually I started asking questions and found out that was indeed not happening and that orientation would be online ( again, lack of communication).

Something good that came out of the program was the Facebook group. Although no one uses it, I was lucky that another girl completing the same program as me posted in it looking for connections. Luckily we started chatting and met up while in Italy. It was so nice to be able to chat with someone going through the same experience as you. Italy is extremely different from North America and had extremely challenging moments. I am extremely grateful that I met her and we were able to travel together on some weekends. We visited AMAZING places like Rome, Venice, Florence, Pisa, Milan, and Turin and truly had the best time. Without her, I would have been extremely bored and depressed on the weekends. My family often did nothing with me and I would sit at home looking for something to do. There is much more free time here than in North America and without having something to look forward to on the weekends I do not think I would have been able to stay the entire 3 months.

My experience at the schools was overall great. At the secondary school (elementary level in North America) I was extremely welcomed by both staff and students. Most students were so excited to have me there and always waved and said hi to me. They treated me like a celebrity. I really enjoyed teaching my lessons each week and interacting with the students. Although, the language barrier was challenging and students in Italy have way less respect for their teachers compared to Canada. The school system is also completely different and old school compared to North America. Which was very challenging sometimes.
The primary school was very difficult to attend. They did not give me a schedule, and other classes from other schools would also show up and demand a lesson from me. Teacher did not speak English and they would all fight over my time and often were too aggressive towards me. I frankly hated going to the primary school, because of the teachers. However, the students were amazing and very interested and happy to have me. Somedays I was treated poorly by those teachers, and I paid A LOT of money to do this program which is why I am writing this review.

Overall, I am glad I did this experience. I love teaching and have enjoyed working with the students. I have enjoyed traveling on weekends and being in the country that is full of history. However, It is an expensive program where you work FOR FREE. There is a lot expected of you, even though you are the one paying to be here. So I believe that there must be a program out there that either is cheaper or pays you that may be a better option. Or simply just travel around Italy first before committing to living here. I do not think that I would do this program now knowing what I know. But I know everyone's experience is different.

I am writing this while still in Italy, having just completed my 10 weeks of teaching in Verbania, Italy. I could not recommend this program enough.

Greenheart provides incredible support and preparation, and the orientation we received was thorough. Orientation was also a blast because I was able to meet the other 20 teachers also being placed in the Piedmont region (most of them near Turin). Everyone was instant, effortless friends and all of my trips around Italy on the weekends involved at least one of these new friends, sometimes more (like the 10 of us who took on Florence for a weekend---such a blast).

I had 2 host families during my stay, and each one was fantastic. I consider them close friends now and living in their homes meant traveling with them to their favorite local spots, eating incredible meals together, and sharing our worldly perspectives around the dinner table over local wine. Staying with host families was certainly the most rewarding part of this adventure as I feel I got a very deep sense of Italy culture.

Teaching at the local middle school was a really great experience. It boosted my future teaching career so much. And, be warned, Italian school systems are very disorganized. If you can go with the flow, you'll be okay. That being said, be prepared to run an entire class by yourself because the teacher usually with you took the day off to go skiing. Be prepared for teachers who harshly yell at students and students who yell right back. It's a different system in a different culture so be prepared for it to take a lot of time and energy.

During my time, I've been able to travel to Florence, Venice (for Carnival no less), Naples, Rome, Genoa, Turin, Milan, and even into the Swiss Alps. Every day is an adventure and a chance to eat the most incredible food you've ever had in your life. And the gelato is so good, you'll seek out the best places in every town and have it at least 3 times a week. Embrace it.

I highly recommend this program for anyone who wants to be immersed in a culture, work hard at school, eat amazing food, and travel around Italy/Europe. I never had any issues.

This was the best! I taught middle schoolers in Verbania, Italy for three months and four years later, I think about that time in my life every day. Greenheart transformed how I saw traveling by giving me a purpose in an amazing lakeside community with a terrific homestay family. My host teacher was lovely and spoke English very well. I did not choose where I would go, but was extremely happy with my placement in Verbania. Most of the program participants are placed in Torino, where there is a rich historical culture and nightlife. I was actually a bit closer to Milan, where I went for day trips on a couple of weekends.

I am still in touch with a couple of my fellow teachers in the Greenheart program and was so lucky to have made such great friends to travel with while I was in Europe and remain close to long after the program. The orientation before you go to your homestay town or city was very helpful in meeting folks to travel with or even to meet up and explore their temporary home for a bit!

I was able to teach on the North Eastern side of Italy, about 45 minutes from Venice, and it was amazing. The teachers I worked with were very excited to utilize the skills I have and I found that I ended up learning a lot more than I ever thought I would! I taught primary, middle and high school Science, English, Media, and History 18 hours a week. The students were all very interested in learning English and it was a great opportunity to learn a lot about Italian culture. The host family I stayed with were incredibly welcoming, encouraged me to travel by train on my days off, took me to see different cities and famous sights around that area, and I was able to try numerous delicious dishes from all over Italy.

As someone who has traveled a fair amount, I felt prepared to step out of my comfort zone and really embrace Italian life, and my host family encouraged me to cook American meals and share American culture with them. The weekend before halloween, we carved pumpkins, had an American dinner, and also made pumpkin gnocchi!

SavannahMcDermott was an incredible asset for this program and was always timely in responding to emails and answering any questions I had. She was a great person to work with and I felt very prepared once I arrived in Italy because of all the behind the scenes work Savannah did. Thanks Savannah!

My three months in Italy was one I will always remember. The thing that made the most impact on me in my time in Italy was the hospitality of the Italians. The families that I stayed with, the teachers in the school I taught in and especially my students all welcomed me as part of their own. This made transitioning into my daily Italian life easy and I was reassured that I was in good hands.

The teaching experience is something that I also enjoyed. Whether you come with years of experience or none at all, the support and content you are given is there to make your lessons fun and enjoyable.

I highly recommend this program to anyone that is even having the slightest urge or curiosity about taking part. Because after the three months, you will definitely come out feeling accomplished, content and feeling like you want to go back.

I learnt a lot during this experience. I had lovely host families, I especially bonded with the first family and I already miss them so much! I always felt very very welcome by the families, neighbors,teachers,students and everyone else in the small town I lived in. The English teachers at the schools took me under their wing and were almost like other host mothers . The children at the school were lovely to teach, always cheerful and lively. I loved living in the European culture and walking through the streets of the cozy town i lived in. The school timetable was also very flexible and I was also able to go to Rome, Venice and Germany during this trip.

The biggest challenge I faced was the language barrier. Sometimes it can be isolating not understanding what people are saying around you or not being able to have a hearty conversation with anymore for a few weeks. The other challenge is living with the host families. Don't get me wrong, I'm so so glad I stayed with the wonderful families I was placed with and got to experience the local Italian culture first hand, however if you're thinking about doing this program just consider that for 3 months you will be a guest in someone else's home and you have to *always* be polite,friendly and clean up after yourself. Lastly, another challenge I faced was preparing the lessons. I prepared all the lessons for the 3 different years each week myself. I enjoyed this freedom, however I sometimes wished I had more help as I was not always sure what level of understanding the different classes had and sometimes my lessons were too easy or too hard for the class.

Overall this was an unforgettable experience! I was overwhelmed with love and generosity. I got to live out my dream of living in Europe for a few months and being able to teach young children. I will hold on to the beautiful memories I made in Italy for all my life.

After graduating from college and working a job I didn't love, I knew I needed something different. I could go back to school, change careers, or get a new job....but then I remembered how much I wanted to travel, and how many times people have said to me "you're so young, now is the time!"

So I did a ton of research, and found Greenheart Travel - and I'm SO glad I did. I knew I wanted to go to Italy because I minored in Italian and wanted to work on my language skills, and I knew that I was a bit too nervous to do a full year somewhere, so this 3 month program was perfect for me. I also wanted something social, and after seeing the Facebook page full of interactions of people currently and previously on the program, I knew that would be the case.

The best part of the program for me is being around other teaching assistants. Almost everyone in the program is in the Piedmont region, with Turin being the central city. Although we are all spread out, most of us have no problem getting into Turin for drinks or a dinner, and many of us have done traveling together. It's so reassuring to know that there are others you can call on if you have questions or concerns, or just want to vent about the things you miss from home. We also all got to meet each other at orientation, so we all had friends going into our host stays.

I was most hesitant about not having any teaching experience, and I didn't have the money to spend on a TEFL certification, but turns out that is totally fine for this program! I feel comfortable in the classroom even without any experience, since I am always in the room with another teacher and am getting guidance on how to structure lessons and what to teach about. You also have other the other teachers to reach out to for suggestions on games to play or lessons to teach.

I was also hesitant about not making any money, however getting housing and meals makes it a lot more doable. There are some possibilities of making money on the side (tutoring or giving music/sports lessons), but if you want to travel while you're on this program, you'll need to have money saved up ahead of time.

Overall, I would highly recommend this program. Especially if you want to be in Italy, there aren't many other programs available. There are a few things to consider (see below), so definitely do your research about Italy, especially the Piedmont region, and make sure this program is right for you and your needs!

My time in Italy was awesome!
Before I begin… A fun fact! Italy is literally on the opposite side of the world from where I live (Hawaii). Okay, you must go a bit directly north on the map.

Location:
So, Piedmont has a lot of history behind it. Sure, you hear a lot about Rome, Venice, Florence, etc. but if you look up the location there is a lot to see and do within the region. I really recommend going to Langhe and to the mountains.

Communication:
With technology these days, Google Translate will be your best friend. Make sure to download the Italian language pack so you don’t have to rely on the internet connection. Also, Google Maps, make sure to download the Italy region into your offline maps. In the Piedmont region, there are less English speakers than if you go to the tourist regions so make sure to practice some basic Italian.

Driving:
The stereotype is that Italians are crazy drivers. This is true in some ways but in regions outside the city there were no problems. Thankfully, the family I stayed with had an automatic car! One important thing I should mention is that STOP signs do not really mean stop. It means slow down to check and just drive on through (almost like a rolling stop). So, proceed with caution. Oh, and you'll need an International Drivers License. Get one before you go to Italy.

School:
Italians are very expressive and vocal. So, do not be discouraged when they tend to talk a lot in your classroom. There was only one quiet/shy class that I had and that was when I was guest teaching in another school in the region. The organization in the school is rather poor and if a piece of equipment breaks (like the computer in the school) it may take a LONG time before it gets repaired. My advice is to try incorporate some fun English game days during the week (especially at the beginning). This allows you to gauge the students current understanding of the language.

Travel:
If you have access to a train station, you are pretty much set. The rail system runs on-time 80% of the time. I was not one of those who traveled every weekend to cities across Europe. I only traveled to Verona, Turin, Venice, Pisa, Florence, and Rome. I do recommend traveling and it is extremely easy with the rail system.

Family:
So, the reason I did not spend so much time traveling was that I wanted to feel like I wasn’t a tourist and live more like a local. This included going to the gym, helping the family, and meeting new people around the town. The family I stayed with had a maid that cleaned the house so I didn’t have to change my sheets or anything. The mother also offered to wash my clothes for me, but I wanted to do them myself which was no problem. All families are different, but always try do your best for them and help when you can. By spending a lot of time with the family I never had the difficulties of being homesick believe it or not.

Phone & Credit Card:
I have T-Mobile and it is fantastic. The cost to call to the US is relatively cheap. If your family and friends are also on T-Mobile then texting is free. (So, text more often than you call.) In Europe the use WhatsApp and since you have free 2G data you are always in constant contact with them. I have never had any connection issues unless I was underground. During my time abroad I used the VISA Bank of America Travel Rewards Credit Card. The USD to Euro rate is fair and I highly recommend it and no foreign transaction fees!

Hope this review has helped you. I really recommend this opportunity if you can meet the steep costs.