Input Processing : Idiomatic expressions of the verb Avere

Introduction:
Many English learners of Italian have difficulties learning idiomatic expressions with the verb Avere (to
have) because they tend to translate from English. In Italian the verb Avere is used in many idiomatic
expressions that indicate people's feelings or convey physical sensations. Such expressions are formed
with Avere + noun. The equivalent English expressions are generally formed with to be + adjective.
Here are a few common ones:
Avere fame - To Be hungry
Avere sete - To Be thirsty
Avere sonno - To Be sleepy
Avere caldo - To Be warm (hot)
Avere freddo - To Be cold

The principles of Input Processing helps explain why such structure may be difficult for students to
process:

1) Learners process content words in the input before anything else.

2) Learners will tend to rely on lexical items as opposed to grammatical form to get meaning when
both encode the same semantic information.

The idiomatic expressions with the verb Avere are very low in communicative value: students can use
them incorrectly with the verb To Be and still get the meaning of the sentences.

Presentation of our modules:

In this lesson we are focusing on the idiomatic expressions of the verb Avere and its uses. The first five
activities will be Structured Input activities. In these activities the students will demonstrate their
comprehension of the Input. The students will not produce the target structure but they will be able to
recognize the meaning and select between two or more options, or match sentences that are logically
connected. The activities will be either affective or referential so that the meaning will be always in
focus.
The sixth activity will be a Structured Output Activity. The student will produce the target structure
keeping in focus the meaning. For these last activity we decided to focus on just the third person
singular. This activity will be an oral task and they will be able to demonstrate communicative skills.

Idiomatic expressions with Avere

Input activities:

Activity 1 . Match the sentences with the correct idiomatic expression with avere.

1. Maria si mette la maglia perche

ha sonno

2. Lei beve dellacqua perche

ha fame

3. Filippo mangia un panino perche

ha freddo

4. Corre a scuola perche

ha caldo

5. Lui porta una maglietta perche

ha fretta

6. Carlo va a letto perche

ha sete

Activity 2. Work in pairs and select the right alternatives.

1. Sofia ..

a) ha freddo
b) ha fame
c) ha sete

3. Sofia a) ha caldo
b) ha sonno
c) ha fame

2. Sofia .. a) ha sonno
b) ha sete
c) ha caldo

4. Sofia. a) ha freddo
b) ha caldo
c) ha sonno

Activity 3. Take turns asking your classmates when during the day they have this feelings.

Ha fame
Mattina

Mezzogiorno

Sera

Ha sete

Ha sonno

Ho freddo

Ha fretta

Activity 4. True or false

1)
T

Il Papa ha sonno:

2)

Joey ha fame:

3)

T F
Raul Bova ha fretta:

4)
T F
Al Pacino ha paura:

Output activity.
Step 1 Write 5 sentences describing your instructor using the avere expresssions and the idiomatic
expression.
e.g. Oggi la mia professoressa ha sonno.

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Step 2 Now write 5 sentences describing your classmate using avere expresssions and the idiomatic
expression.
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Step 3 Now compare your statements with your partner.

What do the instructor and your classmate have in common?
Now describe yourself to your partner using avere expresssions and the idiomatic expression.