1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:09,000 The European Union has 20 official languages. Italian, Lithuanian, all European languages are equal. 2 00:00:09,000 --> 00:00:12,000 Every European has the right to use them. 3 00:00:12,000 --> 00:00:18,000 Together they constitute an extraordinary source of richness and understanding between people 4 00:00:18,000 --> 00:00:21,000 and give the Union its unique character. 5 00:00:21,000 --> 00:00:25,000 But languages are also an economic advantage 6 00:00:25,000 --> 00:00:30,000 because they make it easier for people to move around and create new working opportunities. 7 00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:36,000 This is why knowledge of several languages benefits all Europeans, whatever their age or profession. 8 00:00:36,000 --> 00:00:43,000 These children are between 3 and 5 years old and go to a nursery school in Anzio, near Rome. 9 00:00:43,000 --> 00:00:47,000 The youngsters are learning English without a word of translation 10 00:00:47,000 --> 00:00:51,000 from stories about two little dinosaurs called Hocus and Lotus. 11 00:00:55,000 --> 00:01:00,000 Observing, repeating gestures and expressions, then associating them with words 12 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:03,000 is the basic principle of this original method. 13 00:01:26,000 --> 00:01:28,000 I'm a monkey. 14 00:01:28,000 --> 00:01:30,000 I'm a monkey. 15 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:32,000 Magic bird. 16 00:01:32,000 --> 00:01:35,000 I'm magic bird. 17 00:01:35,000 --> 00:01:39,000 Based on a mini-musical comedy with video and audio cassettes, 18 00:01:39,000 --> 00:01:44,000 this learning method, supported by the European Commission, is a great success. 19 00:01:46,000 --> 00:01:50,000 Currently the two little dinosaurs Hocus and Lotus speak eight languages 20 00:01:50,000 --> 00:01:54,000 and are widely used as a learning tool in various countries. 21 00:01:55,000 --> 00:01:59,000 The Commission has one main objective in supporting language learning, 22 00:01:59,000 --> 00:02:03,000 to make it possible for each individual European to acquire even partial knowledge 23 00:02:03,000 --> 00:02:06,000 of two other European languages. 24 00:02:09,000 --> 00:02:16,000 Today, multilingualism has become a real European policy, with well-defined priorities. 25 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:28,000 This is good. 26 00:02:28,000 --> 00:02:33,000 We want language competence, language learning, language expansion 27 00:02:33,000 --> 00:02:38,000 to become a horizontal importance in all kinds of programmes, 28 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:42,000 for education, for culture, for professional training. 29 00:02:56,000 --> 00:02:59,000 Kaja is partially sighted. 30 00:02:59,000 --> 00:03:03,000 She can't distinguish colours and has about 10% vision. 31 00:03:05,000 --> 00:03:07,000 Today she'll be giving an Italian lesson 32 00:03:07,000 --> 00:03:11,000 at the headquarters of an association for the blind and partially sighted. 33 00:03:13,000 --> 00:03:16,000 Because her pupils have difficulty reading and writing, 34 00:03:16,000 --> 00:03:21,000 Kaja is concentrating on sounds by studying a well-known Italian song, for example. 35 00:03:25,000 --> 00:03:36,000 Volare oh oh, cantare oh oh, nel blu, dipinto di blu, felice di stare lassù. 36 00:03:38,000 --> 00:03:41,000 But more serious matters are also on the programme. 37 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:47,000 She and her pupils find that knowing other languages is a real benefit. 38 00:03:55,000 --> 00:03:59,000 With the country, with the people. 39 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:03,000 That's it. 40 00:04:04,000 --> 00:04:07,000 But the partially sighted often have another motivation, too. 41 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:10,000 When we went to Italy, it was a big problem, 42 00:04:10,000 --> 00:04:14,000 because I didn't see, I didn't understand what it was like, 43 00:04:14,000 --> 00:04:17,000 and then I was like a moron there. 44 00:04:17,000 --> 00:04:19,000 I was always on my own. 45 00:04:19,000 --> 00:04:22,000 Then, when I know a little, I can make a cappuccino on my own, 46 00:04:22,000 --> 00:04:27,000 I can say, I'd like this shape, and people are dependent on me, not on them. 47 00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:32,000 This course of 30 lessons will soon end with a trip to Venice. 48 00:04:32,000 --> 00:04:36,000 And to get a flavour of the city, why not listen to a gondolier's song? 49 00:04:44,000 --> 00:04:47,000 The study groups in Slovenia are part of the Allegro project, 50 00:04:47,000 --> 00:04:49,000 supported by the European Commission. 51 00:04:49,000 --> 00:04:53,000 This initiative reflects the fact that language learning is accessible to everyone, 52 00:04:53,000 --> 00:04:55,000 including people with special needs. 53 00:04:59,000 --> 00:05:03,000 On the other side of Ljubljana, an English lesson is also beginning with a song. 54 00:05:04,000 --> 00:05:07,000 We are in an establishment for mentally handicapped people. 55 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:11,000 All these pupils are adults with a much reduced intellectual capacity. 56 00:05:12,000 --> 00:05:18,000 Hello, hello, my name is Dejan. 57 00:05:18,000 --> 00:05:23,000 Hello, hello, my name is Dejan. 58 00:05:29,000 --> 00:05:33,000 Their circumstances mean that a special approach to learning is required, 59 00:05:33,000 --> 00:05:35,000 which is both fun and explicit. 60 00:05:35,000 --> 00:05:39,000 Today, the English conversation lesson begins with the pupils themselves 61 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:42,000 preparing coffee and chocolate cookies. 62 00:05:44,000 --> 00:05:45,000 Chocolate. 63 00:05:45,000 --> 00:05:47,000 Chocolate, yeah? 64 00:05:47,000 --> 00:05:49,000 Chocolate, yeah? 65 00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:52,000 One, cookie. 66 00:05:52,000 --> 00:05:53,000 Cookie. 67 00:05:53,000 --> 00:05:54,000 Cookie. 68 00:05:54,000 --> 00:05:55,000 Cookie. 69 00:05:55,000 --> 00:05:56,000 Cookie. 70 00:05:56,000 --> 00:05:57,000 Cookie. 71 00:05:57,000 --> 00:05:58,000 Cookie. 72 00:05:58,000 --> 00:05:59,000 Cookie. 73 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:00,000 Cookie. 74 00:06:00,000 --> 00:06:01,000 Cookie. 75 00:06:01,000 --> 00:06:02,000 Cookie. 76 00:06:02,000 --> 00:06:03,000 Cookie. 77 00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:04,000 Cookie.