Here is some advice and suggested material - all available online - to help you prepare for the III year lettorato exam .
Paper 1 - Grammar
1) Get the Past Exam handout available at the photocopy service in Villa Mirafiori and compete Paper 1 IN EXAM CONDITIONS : In ONE hour without the use of a dictionary.
2) See http://www.corriere.it/english/ . This is the section of Corriere della Sera with selected articles in English with their Italian translation ( Italian Translation is at bottom of page). First of all, translate the article from English into Italian . This will increase your knowledge of the language of Italian newspapers and should improve your vocabulary. Please check that your translation is correct by reading the Italian version. Remember that there are many correct versions of the same translation. You need to make sure that your version has the same MEANING as the one provided.
You can alternate translating from English to Italian and vice versa. Remember that working on each piece means learning all new vocabulary in context , analyzing grammar and learning any new sentence patterns and doing the same with verb patterns. It is not enough to know what a word means, you need to know what can precede or follow it etc..
3) See http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/topic-group/writing . This is a site for adult learning. In a very basic way it explains the fundamental rules of grammar and writing. Start at level 1 and complete all levels.
4) See http://www.flo-joe.co.uk/cae/students/index.htm . This is a free site with excellent material for preparation for Cambridge exams. The exit level for III year students is C1 which is CAE. The link is for this exam
5) See http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/. I presume you all know this site already. Do Six minute English as this is a quick way to learn new words in context. There are lots of different sections so have a look and see which ones best suit your needs.
Paper 2 – Essay
i. Content – Remember that the most important part of your analysis should focus on the language used although you can comment on other elements. Here are some links to sites that give advice on how to approach your analysis:
http://www.theguardian.com/media/advertising - This is the link for the media section of The Guardian newspaper. Even if it is not an academic site on critical analysis, the content should provide useful and interesting information on the world of current advertising.
ii. The process of writing
Seehttp://www.essex.ac.uk/myskills/How_to_improve_your_academic_writing.pdf- a booklet that explains all aspects of academic essay writing.
