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Elementary Persian I (the Alphabet & Discussion) requires no prior knowledge of Persian (Farsi) and enables students to acquire foundation in all five skills -listening, speaking, reading, writing, and cultural competence. Particular focus of this course is on the alphabet (Alefba) and basics of reading and writing. For heritage speakers proficient in spoken Persian, this course is a fast and efficient path to literacy in modern Persian, enabling them to read and write like educated native speakers. Instruction begins with the alphabet and number system and expands to include basic and functional topics of everyday use such as speaking about oneself, family and social life, study and work, daily activities, time and routine, likes and dislikes. Functional speaking proficiency in everyday colloquial Persian is integral to all our courses. Expect speaking activities in class on daily basis. The course guides the students towards Novice Low to Novice Mid proficiency levels, based on the ACTFL proficiency scale, depending on individual progress and skill development.

Intended for beginners and heritage speakers alike, this course is a quick and easy way to a popular worldly language in a modern day context (Farsi)! Students develop all four skills - speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Additional materials from authentic culture-focused readings and Persian poetry are an integral part of the curriculum. By the end of this course students will be able to actively participate in conversations centered around family and friends, hometown, country, studies and work, daily activities, modern Iran as well as write extensively on familiar topics. Students will acquire cultural competence and be able to function in authentic Persian cultural context using the taarof.

Intermediate Persian I (Reading & Discussion) builds on PERSN 1320 and PERSN 1321 and enables students to further expand their vocabulary as they actively develop more advanced comprehension, fluency, and communicative ability on more complex (compared to Elementary) topics pertaining to the modern world and life through the reading and discussion of engaging and diverse, authentic materials in modern Persian. Unlike the Elementary level, where students reproduce previously memorized words and phrases, Intermediate I aims to train more independent users of Persian as students learn to formulate their own, original, complex sentences and use more complex structures and phraseology closer to educated native speakers’ speech. To reflect the authentic use of Persian by native speakers, all speaking and listening activities are carried out in colloquial Persian, while the readings are presented in standard written Persian. In this course students speak, read and acquire about 300 vocabulary units and Persian phraseology while learning to understand and actively participate in conversations on a range of topics related to culture, society, storytelling, food, demography, the environment, and current events. The course guides students towards Intermediate Low to Intermediate Mid proficiency levels, based on the ACTFL proficiency scale, depending on individual progress and skill development.

The course is designed with strong integration of modern colloquial Persian (Farsi). Only colloquial Persian is used for all speaking and listening activities, while reading and writing tasks are performed in formal Persian. Authentic material drawn from Persian language TV, radio and movies is introduced regularly in accordance with the topic and vocabulary of given week. By the end of the semester students will be able to speak, read and comprehend material on a range of social, cultural, political and everyday topics. You'll learn how to write emails and notes as educated Persian speakers, read Persian newspapers and comprehend audio material intended for native speakers. We'll also delve into Persian folk tales, modern Persian rap and pop and Persian humor.

Topics vary by semester in relation to student needs.

Topics vary by semester in relation to student needs.