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UCL Centre for Languages & International Education (CLIE)

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Portuguese Level 3+

Prerequisite for entry

Successful completion of Portuguese syllabus level 3 (part 1) at UCL Language Centre or a high O-level grade (or equivalent).

Term duration

10 x 2-hour classes.

Aims and objectives

The aim of the course is to enable students with a good basic knowledge of basic Portuguese to converse reasonable fluently with native speakers and discuss personal, social and current issues using appropriate structures. Cultural awareness will be further developed through an extended use of authentic material. Some transferable skills will also be covered.

Functions

Giving opinion; expressing indifference, distrust, promising, justifying, asking for something, making assumptions

Giving advices, arguing, explaining, narrating

Expressing moods through interjections; asking, giving, refusing, taking the floor, interrupting, expressing possible and impossible conditions; familiarize students with a certain level of popular language

Transmitting and repeating statements, orders or questions made by others; encouraging the continuation of a conversation

Course content

Main topics/themes to be covered: 

  • Commerce and services; possibilities and problems; consumer’s protection
  • Urban traffic; behaviour in the traffic; means of transport; cars; insurance
  • Leisure activities, Brazilian and Portuguese popular music; the football; Brazilian and Portuguese personalities in the world of arts and sports; the TV; social media
  • The Portuguese language spoken in Brazil and Portugal

Phonetics

More difficult sounds in Portuguese

Grammar and linguistic structures

  • Future of subjunctive (1): certain conjunctions (quando, enquanto, logo que, etc...); future of subjunctive (2): with relative clauses; compound tenses of subjunctive (tenha feito, tivesse feito, tiver feito)
  • Personal infinitive; verb: to exist in impersonal form (time and existence)
  • The conditional tense with “se” + imperfect of the compound subjunctive; relative pronouns: que, quem, o qual, cujo, etc.
  • Indirect speech – immediate reproduction: statements and questions, orders; posterior reproduction; table of verb tenses in the transition from direct to indirect speech

Learning resources

Books

  • Main textbook: Novo Avenida Brasil 3 Curso Básico de Português para Estrangeiros
  • The tutor will be using different books and handouts for extra exercises.