Portuguese courses outline
The Cactus Course Outlines provide a learning framework for the Cactus Foreign Language Evening Courses. They are designed to provide you with a good idea of what you might cover over a 10-week period, and include typical themes, grammar and vocabulary fields. They are flexible rather than prescriptive, in that our teachers may decide to adapt their learning plans to the specific level, aims and interests of their classes. Use the tabs below to view the relevant Portuguese course outline for your level. If you want to cover the same course outline in a shorter period of time, we also offer One-Week Online Courses and 5-week Courses.
Beginner 1
Topics & Vocabulary
- Introductions and greetings: olá, como estás~como está, Chamo-me Manuela~Me chamo Manuela, Bom dia, Tudo bem?
- Names, nationalities
- Professions, colleagues, relatives…
- Please & thank you
- Likes & dislikes: Gosto de feijoada mas gosto muito mais de caipirinha.
- Eating & drinking: Vamos comer uma feijoada no domingo?
- Numbers
- Alphabet
- Directions
- Hotels and Travel
- Making phone calls (ex: to book a hotel)
- Time – hours, days, months, time phrases (today, tomorrow… )
- Daily life – routines, free time
- Making arrangements
- Home – rooms, house accessories
- Places – shops, important buildings and celebrations: O Carnaval do Rio de Janeiro e muito bonito e famoso.
- The weather
Grammar
- Pronouns – subject, possessive + the form a gente
- To be (ser versus estar)
- Masculine and feminine with nouns
- Articles + junction with prepositions de (da, do…) and em (no, na…)
- Present – simple (1st, 2nd and 3rd conjugations) /continuous
- Definite Future : ir + infinitive (“going to”)
- Singular vs. Plural
- Demonstrative pronouns
- Question words – who, what, how, how much
- Verb gostar (de) – affirmative, negative and interrogative
- Verbos morar, ficar, ter…
Cultural Content
- Basic notions of culture and celebrations
- Interesting sites
Skills Work
- Lots of speaking/active practice
- Role-plays
- Lots of listening
- Pronunciation – key sounds
Beginner 2
Topics & Vocabulary
- Likes & dislikes: Gosto de feijoada mas gosto muito mais de caipirinha.
- Talking about self & others: O Roberto viajou para os Estados Unidos e comprou muitos presentes para toda a familia.
- Restaurants, bars, food & drink, eating & drinking
- Asking for things and information
- Giving instructions/ directions
- Showing appreciation, giving opinions & advice
- Invitations/arrangements : Vamos comer uma feijoada no domingo?
- Holidays, festivals, work and free time: leisure activities and cultural habits
- Everyday life
- Booking hotel, restaurants, etc.
- Making phones calls & meetings
- Expressing wishes & preferences
- Clothing and accessories
- Problems with service
- Numbers to 1 billion
- Family
- Describing people
- Health & illness
Grammar
- Review & practice previous level grammar (eg. through mixed tense work – present/past/future “going to”)
- Who/which/what/how/when/where/how much/many
- Main link words: but, and, then…
- Prepositions (de, em + articles)
- Articles
- Main verbs, ir, fazer, preferir, ficar, ver, pôr, vestir, trazer ….
- Possessives
- Object pronouns: o, a, lo, la, lhe, lhes
- Comparisons, comparatives & superlatives
- Demonstratives (na, da, naquela…)
- Imperatives
- Past (perfeito) explore in depth
- Past – perfeito (irregular verbs from beginner: ser, estar, poder, ir, querer, fazer, ter, dar…)
- Verb ter de (have to)
Cultural Content
- Lots of speaking/active practice
- Role-plays
- Lots of listening
- Pronunciation – key sounds
Skills Work
- Lots of speaking/active practice
- Role-plays
- Lots of listening
- Pronunciation – key sounds
Beginner 3
Topics & Vocabulary
- Review & practice previous level vocab
- Home – rooms, house accessories: Minha casa tem duas salas, dois quartos de casal, dois banheiros e, claro, uma churrasqueira no jardim!
- Places – shops, important buildings and celebrations: O Carnaval do Rio de Janeiro e muito bonito e famoso.
- Daily life – routines, free time, every day activities
- Talking about self & others
- Talk about the past and experiences
- Jobs, working, professional qualities
- The weather
- Planning a party
- Giving instructions
- Invitation, offer, suggestion, requests, informal advice
Grammar
- Review & practice previous level grammar
- Simple Past (passado perfeito):more verbs
- Past (Preterito perfeito): explore through exercises and dialogue creation
- More irregular verbs (suggestion: trazer, saber, dizer…)
- Past (perfeito)
- Passive particle se
- Indefinite pronouns (alguém, ninguém, algo, todo…)
- Augmentative & diminutive
Cultural Content
- Society
- Daily life routine
Skills Work
- Lots of speaking/active practice
- Lots of listening
- Pronunciation – key sounds
Elementary 1
Topics & Vocabulary
- Review & practice previous level vocab
- Leisure activities
- Entertainment: TV, cinema, music
- Future predictions
- Superstitions
- Weather, nature
Grammar
- Review & practice previous level grammar (eg. through mixed tense/aspect work – present/past/future – simple/continuous)
- Past Perfect (Preterito Imperfeito)
- Irregular verbs (review from previous levels + new ones)
- Past participle
- Verb haver (impersonal form)
- Personal & impersonal infinitive
- Indefinite pronouns
Cultural Content
- Weather in different regions
Skills Work
- Lots of speaking/active practice
- Role-plays
- Lots of listening
- Lots of writing
- Pronunciation – key sounds
Elementary 2
Topics & Vocabulary
- Restaurants, eating out
- Food & drink
- Identifying different types of written text
- Learning and understanding press articles
- Expressing basic information about health problems
- Making appointments to be checked by a doctor
- Sport
- National traditions/ customs & culture, superstitions
- Literature (inc. reading a short tale)
- Common similes (Feio como o diabo…)
Grammar
- Review & practice previous level grammar (eg. through mixed tense/ aspect work – present/past/future simple/ continuous/ compound)
- Compound Past (perfeito composto do indicative)
- Passive (with ser and with se)
- Double negative (review)
- Double past participles
- Main relative pronouns, Reduced clauses – from infinitive, gerund and participle
- Reported speech – and main verbs that introduce it
Cultural content
- Portuguese society and social classes
Skills Work
- Lots of speaking/active practice
- Role-plays
- Lots of listening
- Lots of writing
- Pronunciation – key sounds
Elementary 3
Topics & Vocabulary
- Buying and shopping
- Commercial goods and services
- Professions
- Countries where Portuguese European is spoken (e.g. Rio de Janeiro, Cabo Verde, comparisons)
- The use of Brazilian voce contrasted with formal and informal use in Portugal
- Structural differences between Portuguese Brasilian and Portuguese European
- Cultural differences and similarities
Grammar
- Complex sentence structures
- Personal Infinitive (Ele nos convidou para nós conhecermos sua casa.)
- Passive voice and active voice
- Gerund versus Past participle: Ele estava a trabalhar vs Ele estava trabalhando.
- Ir + gerund
- Complex relative pronouns
- Collective nouns: a manada, o exercito…
Cultural Content
- Basic notions of Portuguese language literature
- Christmas season and consumerism
- Open air traditional markets and tropical fruits
- Brazilian natural resources and richness: pau-brasil, cafe and açucar
- Traffic Laws
Skills Work
- Lots of speaking/active practice
- Role-plays
- Lots of listening
- Lots of writing
- Pronunciation – key sounds
Intermediate 1
Topics & Vocabulary
- Education (school, university, examinations)
- Education (school, university, examinations)
- Professions and Careers
- Expressing wishes, doubts and feeling (Tomara que…; Talvez…; Que pena que…)
- Weather, nature, natural disasters
Grammar
- Present of Subjunctive
- Impersonal Expression (é melhor que; é bom que; é necessário que; Basta que…)
- Demonstrative Pronouns + aqui, aí, ali, lá
Cultural Content
- Educational Systems
- History of Portuguese language and countries where it is spoken
- Music & Film
Skills Work
- Lots of speaking/active practice
- Role-plays
- Lots of listening
- Lots of writing
- Pronunciation – key sounds
Intermediate 2
Topics & Vocabulary
- Consumerism, globalization, Finance, Banking, Administration
- Healthy & unhealthy lifestyles
- Expressing opinions about stress
- Giving advice: Porque e que não vais fazer exercicio fisico num ginasio?
- Finance
- Banking
- Administration
- Brazil and its culture
- Superstition
Grammar
- Present of Subjunctive + Linking words (Para que, embora, até que, antes que, contanto que, a não ser que, sem que, caso, mesmo que)
- Present of Subjunctive + (alguém que, alguma coisa que)
- Imperfect of Subjunctive
- If-clauses
Cultural Content
- Folkore
Skills Work
- Lots of speaking/active practice
- Role-plays
- Lots of listening
- Lots of writing
- Pronunciation – key sounds
Intermediate 3
Topics & Vocabulary
- Commercial (goods and services)
- Technical Assistance
- Repairs and services in general
- Letters (asking for a refund, warranty, complaints)
- SAC (Serviço de atendimento ao cliente)
- Procom (Proteção ao consumidor)
- Generation gap and modern technology
- Means of transportation, traffic, cars, insurance
Grammar
- Future of Subjunctive + Linking words (quando, enquanto, logo que, assim que, depois que, se, como, à medida que)
- Future of Subjunctive + Relative clauses (Receberemos quem chegar)
- Compound Subjunctive (1. Que pena que ontem ela não tenha visto o que eu vi. 2. Se você tivesse telefonado, eu teria esperado. 3. Só vá para casa depois que tiver terminado o seu trabalho)
- Word formation Word formation, word-building (prefix and suffix patterns): more composed words – italiano, ilegivel…
- Personal Infinitive (Ele nos convidou para nós conhecermos sua casa.)
- Verb haver related to time (Estive na Argentina há cinco meses.)
- Verb haver related to existence (Houve um acidente na esquina.)
Cultural Content
- Community services and service culture
Skills Work
- Lots of speaking/active practice
- Role-plays
- Lots of listening
- Lots of writing
- Pronunciation – key sounds
Upper Intermediate Lower
Topics & Vocabulary
- Getting know yourself better
- Be Portuguese
- Portuguese language in the world
- Free time
- Health
- Gastronomy
- Society
- Environment
Grammar
- Lacunar text – vocabulary
- Lexicalized expressions
- Expressions with the word ‘time’
- Family of words
- Past perfect subjunctive
- Condition expression
- Past perfect tense of the subjunctive
- To be
- Homophone words
- Verb/noun and noun/adjective
- Prepositions and verbs + preposition
- Personal infinitive (simple and compound)
- Passive voice
- Plural of compound word
- Homonymous words and antonyms
Cultural Content
- Identification
- Countries with Portuguese as Official Language
- Holidays
- Free time and quality of life
- Healthy meals
- Be optimistic
- Ecological footprint
- Environmental preservation and globalization
- Consumption habits and consumer rights
Skills Work
- Focus on listening, speaking and communication
- High level reading
- Development of writing style and tone
- Pronunciation/accent work to achieve reduced L1 interference
Upper Intermediate Higher
Topics & Vocabulary
- Reality or utopia
- Media
- Interpersonal relationships
- Interculturality
- Studies
- At work
Grammar
- Antonyms with prefix
- Variable relative pronouns
- Conjugations and conjunction phrases
- Periphrastic
- Verbs with preposition
- Lexicalized expressions with the word leg
- Por e para
- Future perfect subjunctive
- Expression of the future
- Substantive
- Paronymous words
- Suffixes and prepositions
- Concessive, final, and causal constructions
- Simple and compound gerund
- Loanwords
- Vocabulary of the verbal world
Cultural Content
- Politics in the 21st century
- Volunteering
- Technological evolution
- Utopias
- Evolution of the media
- Paper vs digital
- Reading habits
- Living online
- The importance of mobile phone
- Erasmus generation
- Learning languages
- Linguistic diversity
Skills Work
- Professions
- Life changes
- Job ads and interviews
Advanced
Functional Language
- Developing an argument and defending a point of view
- Challenging arguments and opinions
- Expressing beliefs and expressing opinions tentatively
- Summarising information, ideas and arguments
- Deducing and inferring
- Justifying an argument
- Expressing caution and expressing reservation
- Expressing empathy and sympathy
- Evaluating different standpoints
Lexis
- Vocabulary specific to the topic and subject areas
- Phrases and expressions relating to the language functions listed above
Topics u0026 Culture
- International events, current political and economic issues
- The internet, global communication, social media
- Diversity, equal opportunity, social injustice, human rights
- The future of the planet, climate change, global warming
- Well-being, mental health, stress management
Grammar
- Past perfect tense composed of the subjunctive
- Some aspects of prosody: recognizing feelings; distinguish exclamatory, interrogative and declarative sentences
- Review of the placement of clitic pronouns
- Pluperfect-compound past tense of the subjunctive
- Placement of the subject after the verb
- Future composed of the subjunctive and indicative
- Compound conditional
- Use and omission of the definite and indefinite article
- Simple and compound gerund
- Use of the gerund to express: time, cause, mode, condition, concession
- Inflected/Uninflected infinitive and the participle
- Conditional, temporal, causal, and concessive clauses
Pronuntiation
- The clear pronunciation of topic and subject-area specific vocabulary
- Sounds with minimal interference from the first language
- Various features of pronunciation which only occasionally deviate from an internationally intelligible model
- A range of stress and intonation patterns, pitch and volume to convey subtle shifts in meaning and attitude
Proficiency
Topics & Vocabulary
- Literal vs Figurative meaning
- Superstitions
- Human Evolution
- Expressions with colours
- Employment: nowadays and in the past
- Paintings and arts
- Proverbs
- How to avoid stress
Grammar
- Fixed expressions
- Impersonal verb: fazer
- Time expressions: há – daqui a
- Adverbs
- Indirect Speech
- Grave accent: à
- Verbs ended in -dizer, -pedir, -ear, -uir, -iar
- Tu vs você
- Para mim vs para eu…
- Para vs por
- Meio vs metade
- Tornar vs tornar-se
- Different meaning of the words: já and mesmo
Cultural Content
- Tourism
- A journey through historic cities
- How the state of Santa Catarina was formed
- New Year’s celebrations
Skills Work
- Lots of speaking/active practice
- Role-plays
- Lots of listening
Understanding Language Levels
If you are taking a language course with Cactus you can find out more about our language levels and how you can track your progress using the ‘can do statements’ below. These statements outline the key things that you should be able to say and understand once you have completed each level. Can do statements are officially recognised as a set of performance-related scales describing what a learner is able to do in a foreign language, in accordance with the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) and the CEFR defined levels.
CEFR Levels
If you are taking a language course with Cactus you can find out more about our language levels and how you can track your progress using the ‘can do statements’. These statements outline the key things that you should be able to say and understand once you have completed each level. Can do statements are officially recognised as a set of performance-related scales describing what a learner is able to do in a foreign language, in accordance with the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) and the CEFR defined levels.
Beginner (A1)
- You can understand and use familiar everyday expressions and basic phrases aimed at the satisfaction of needs of a concrete type
- You can introduce yourself and others
- You can ask and answer questions about personal details such as where you live, what you do, people you know and things you have
- You can ask and give directions
- You can order food and drink
- You can make very basic travel and accommodation arrangements
- You can have a basic conversation, provided the other person talks slowly and clearly and is prepared to help.
Elementary (A2)
- You can understand sentences and frequently used expressions related to areas including basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography and employment
- You can communicate in simple and routine tasks, requiring a simple and direct exchange of information on familiar and routine matters
- You can describe, in simple terms, aspects of your background, immediate environment and matters in areas of immediate need
- You can comfortably ‘get by’ when visiting the country, albeit with some difficulty.
Intermediate (B1)
- You can understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc.
- You can deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area where the language is spoken
- You can produce simple connected text on topics which are familiar or of personal interest
- You can describe experiences and events
- You can talk about dreams, hopes and ambitions
- You can briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans
- You could consider working in the country using the language (e.g. bar/counter work, waiting service in cafes or basic office work).
Upper Intermediate (B2)
- You can understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in your field of specialisation.
- You can interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible, without strain for either party.
- You can produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain a viewpoint on a topical issue, giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.
- You can do business with speakers of the language in most run-of-the-mill situations.
Advanced (C1)
- You can understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts, and recognise implicit meaning
- You can express yourself fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions
- You can use the language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes
- You can produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, showing controlled use of organisational patterns, logical flow of text, and clear awareness of the audience.
Proficient (C2)
- You can understand with ease virtually everything heard or read
- You can summarise information from different spoken and written sources
- You can reconstruct arguments and accounts in a coherent presentation
- You can express yourself spontaneously, very fluently and precisely
- You can differentiate finer shades of meaning, even in the most complex situations.
How to book with Cactus
Select language
Simply select which language you would like to learn and from the box below and click lets go.
Take level test
This is a quick test to help you find the right course for your current level of knowledge.
Book your course
Use our simple online booking system to select your course.
Frequently asked questions
What will I learn?
Our Course Outlines give an overview of the content and learning framework of Cactus courses. Includes themes, grammar and vocabulary you can typically expect to cover. These are intended as a guide only. Language teachers may at times adapt the course content to suit the specific level, aims and interests of the class.
How do I know what level I am?
Are you unsure where to start or progress to? Then take our level test and read our level descriptions for guidance.
Do I receive a qualification or certificate?
At the end of your course you receive a certificate of participation. You will be able to be download it from your MyCactus account. This confirms the language and level of course you have taken. Our course levels are based on two internationally recognised systems. You will have a universally accepted reference for your studies. (Important: Please note that you must complete the end of course questionnaire sent to you to be able to get your certificate! You will receive the course questionnaire by e-mail at the end of your course.)
Do I need a course book?
You will need a course book to attend your course. Course books are not included in the course fees. We recommend that you buy your own course book separately before your course starts. We will let you know which course book you will require and advise where you can purchase this. Please note that a course book often covers more than one level. So if you progress to the next course, you may not necessarily need to buy a new book. Again, we will advise you of this at the time. The course book is chosen by our teachers and academic team. This is based on which book is most suitable for the level of the class whilst offering the most communicative approach.