» Portuguese (Brazilian) course outlines

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 during the course and include typical themes, vocabulary fields, grammar, cultural content and skills work for the language and the level. The Outlines are flexible rather than prescriptive, in that our teachers always plan their lessons with the specific abilities, aims and interests of the students in their classes in mind.

• Portuguese (Brazilian) Beginner 1
• Portuguese (Brazilian) Beginner 2
• Portuguese (Brazilian) Beginner 3
• Portuguese (Brazilian) Elementary 1
• Portuguese (Brazilian) Elementary 2
• Portuguese (Brazilian) Elementary 3

Topics & Vocabulary:

• Introductions and greetings: “Bom dia, tudo bem?”
• Names, nationalities
• Jobs, friends, colleagues
• Numbers to 100
• Please & thank you
• Making phone calls (ex: to book a hotel)
• Making arrangements
• Time – hours, days, months
• Time phrases: today, tomorrow…
• Alphabet

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
• Future (informal) going to + infinitive (as this is the most used) (ir + infinitive)
• Singular vs. Plural
• Demonstrative pronouns

Cultural content:

• Basic notions of Brazilian culture and celebrations

Skills Work:

• Lots of speaking/active practice
• Role-plays
• Lots of listening
• Pronunciation – key sounds

Topics & Vocabulary:

• Likes & dislikes: “Gosto de feijoada mas gosto muito mais de caipirinha.”
• Restaurants, bars, food & drink
• Eating & drinking
• Asking for things
• Showing appreciation
• Invitations/arrangements ”Vamos comer uma feijoada no domingo?”
• Holidays, free time
• Booking a hotel
• Expressing wishes & preferences
• Asking for information
• Problems with service
• Directions & travel
• Numbers to 1 billion

Grammar:

• Questions words - who, what, how, how much, … (main ones)
• Verb "Gostar (de)" - affirmative, negative and interrogative
• Verbos “gostar de”. “morar”, “ficar”, “ter”...
• Main link words: but, and, then…
• Prepositions
• Articles
• Main verbs, ir, fazer, preferir, ficar ….
• Possessive pronouns
• Comparisons

Cultural content:

• Eating & drinking, eating out – the feijoada
• Hotels
• Capital cities

Skills Work:

• Lots of speaking/active practice
• Role-plays
• Lots of listening
• Pronunciation – key sounds

Topics & Vocabulary:

• 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
• The weather: basic input
• Giving instructions
• Invitation, offer, suggestion, requests

Grammar:

• More irregular verbs (suggestion: ver, pôr, vir, vestir, trazer…)
• Junctions: prepositions de, em + articles
• Demonstratives (na, da, naquela…)
• Who/which/what/how/when/where/how much/many
• Possessives
• Object pronouns: o, a, lo, la, lhe, lhes
• Past (perfeito) explore in depth
• Past - perfeito (irregular verbs from beginner: ser, estar, poder, ir, querer, fazer, ter, dar…)
• Verb "ter que" (have to)

Cultural content:

• Brazilian society
• Daily life routine

Skills Work:

• Lots of speaking/active practice
• Lots of listening
• Pronunciation – key sounds

Topics & Vocabulary:

• Body & health/illness:”Hoje não me sinto muito bem, acho que estou com gripe.”
• Describing people & things
• Expressing pleasure
• Agreeing & disagreeing
• Work - (rights, timetable, jobs, applying for a job)
• Giving opinions
• Taking sides
• Confirming
• Contradicting

Grammar:

• More irregular verbs (ver, pôr, vir, vestir, trazer…)
• Conjunctions: prepositions de, em + articles
• Superlatives
• Plurals
• Past (perfeito) explore in depth
• Past - perfeito & imperfeito
• Verb "ter que" (have to)

Cultural content:

• Women’s & workers rights

Skills Work:

• Lots of speaking/active practice
• Lots of listening
• Pronunciation – key sounds

Topics & Vocabulary:

• Clothes and accessories
• Money & shopping
• Customs
• Family relationships
• Family life
• Special occasions
• Immigration

Grammar:

• Review & practice previous level grammar
• Simple Past (passado perfeito):more verbs
• Past (Preterito perfeito):
• More irregular verbs (suggestion: trazer, saber, dizer…)
• Comparative (superiority, equality and inferiority - both affirmative and negative)
• Superlative
• Object pronouns (review) plus “no”, “na... “
• Past (perfeito):more irregular verbs “trazer,” “saber,” “dizer…”)

Cultural content:

• Most common and traditional festivities in Brazil

Skills Work:

• Lots of speaking
• Lots of listening
• Pronunciation – key sounds

Topics & Vocabulary:

• Tourism & Ecology
• City, beach & mountain
• Travel & adventure
• Natural world
• Regions of Brazil
• Stereotypes
• Brazilian culture
• Cooking, measurements, quantities
• Express likes, preferences, routine, experiences
• Express certainty & uncertainty
• Express possibility, hope, worry, necessity,
• Give advice
• Describe, compare
• Agree & disagree

Grammar:

• Review & practice previous grammar
• Verbs
• Past (Preterito perfeito)
• Composto do ndicativo
• Adverbs –mente
• Pronouns
• Alguem, algum, algo, ninguem, nenhum. Nada
• Double negative
• Passives
• Doble participles
• Pronouns todo/a, todos/as, tudo, cada

Cultural content:

• Regions of Brazil
• Traditional Brazilian food and drinks

Skills Work:

• Lots of speaking/active practice
• Lots of listening
• Pronunciation – key sounds