learn me online language tutors

We homeschool, and my oldest (10) wants to start learning Italian. Is there a decent online tutoring program to help? There are hundreds of choices.

Thanks

When I was trying to leverage my Spanish into Portuguese i watched a lot of cartoons in Portuguese. It did not hurt that the Brazilian version of captain Kangaro was a bit curvier. Anyone remember Xuxa?

I listen to a lot of French Radio ( its a  thing in Canada) to keep my ear attuned. You already know the news, so it helps fill in the gaps when you don't have the vocabulary. You don't have to know what they are saying, just developing the ear until you recognize the flow of the language.

My choice of a first second language would be either Russian or Spanish. Much better chance of being able to use it without leaving the country.

Memorize the phrases for "I want....X" and " I need...X"  in any language, and you can pretty much get around the world with your cell phone providing the required  "X" word. Great way to build useful vocabulary and it gets to be a game of what can be communicated with the two phrases. Babies learn to communicate using this principle and they seem to get pretty good at getting what they want.

Pete

Some online resources I use for my Netherlands learning:

www.50languages.com  Free.  You pick your From language and your To language and download the set.  A lot of people resell this on ebay by burning out the set to a CD, but it's free here.

dutchpod101.com  Pay.  However, full access is free for a couple weeks when you sign up, so if you sign up and download like crazy, you can have a good block of lessons to go through.  This is part of a whole set of "pod" languages.  They have

https://www.italianpod101.com/

as well, so you can use that.  I think they are based out of Singapore, actually.  I also like the Word of the Day thing, which you sign up for (free.)  They email you a link and there is a new word plus some sentences and phrases using it.

How much does it help to have "Italian" in the background,

find an Italian internet radio station  just so you hear the words in use....

Boom you have learned Italian

Online tools/tutors will only help you learn the strict structure of the language, not the actual use. 

For instance, "I'm gonna drop the engine in, dial the front camber, then take it for a spin" and "I will install the engine, adjust the camber settings of the front wheels, and perform a test drive" has the same meaning, but one is more likely to be said than the other. If the object of learning the language is to have that skill, then online tools/tutors are useful for that. If the intent is to "go native" or otherwise understand the language as it's spoken, you'll need to immerse yourself in the language through media as is recommended by language tutors across the board. 

With that being said Duolingo is by far the best tool I've used to learn Japanese with. It plays a lot like a game, with achievements that you can acquire, leaderboards that you can top, badges to earn, etc. I've used other language learning apps but they're incredibly sterile and make learning boring for me. Duolingo is certainly not the best tool overall, but it's the one that's kept my attention the best.

In addition to Duolingo, because the intent is to "go native", I've consumed a lot of Best Motoring and Hot Version videos on youtube with subtitles off to avoid overreliance to understand. I can understand based on body language and phrases what the intent of their phrasing is and I can understand maybe 25% of it without subs so far, the speed at which they talk makes it harder to parse. 

I would do Duolingo and then maybe include some Italian cartoons/kids media in with it. Make it fun. I'm a little too old to be watching whatever Japan's Sesame Street equivalent is, but kids media is typically made to be easy to consume and at least mildly educational. 

I second Duolingo. It gives you a good foundation. Duolingo  plays like a game, like Hunter47 said. It also provides an explanation of rules before starting a lesson.

To reinforce your learning, find children's books or cartoons in that language. I find that helps, too.

I speak Spanish like a toddler, but I haven't interacted with many in the language. I found my language skills boosted when I traveled to areas that speak it alone, which for me was Spain and Mexico. My grandma told me her language skills grew exponentially this way, too - she spoke three languages fluently. Your oldest's passion for Italian might be a good reason for a vacation to Italy when they get a good understanding of it!

Duolingo has taken me petty far in Brazilian Portugese. Easy to remember to do it and fun. 

It also helps I'm dating a nice Brazilian lady who also tutors me. :) 

Starting with useful, "everyday" phrases has also helped a lot.