Portuguese 1

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This practical beginner's course (A1.1), designed by UW–Madison for adult language learners, explores the cultural richness of the Lusophone world while helping you master the basics of Brazilian Portuguese. Learn to talk about life, family and travel with this popular course.

Our proven communicative approach emphasizes speaking competency while also building skills in listening, reading and writing. Enhance your ability to have everyday conversations. Focus is on Brazilian Portuguese with some opportunities to listen to European Portuguese. Textbook purchase required (used for Portuguese 1, 2 and 3).

Course format:

You will practice speaking in weekly 30-minute online sessions led by an experienced instructor, with a maximum of 3-6 other participants. In order to get to know all of your classmates, your conversation time will vary between the first or second 30-minute time slot of the hour you registered for. You should be available for either.

The live online sessions begin one week after the scheduled course start date to allow time to work through the first unit of learning material in preparation for the live conversation practice.

Online course materials introduce new grammar and vocabulary and teach pronunciation, listening, and reading skills through videos, audio and interactive exercises. Budget 3-4 hours a week to work through the online asynchronous content.

Course materials become available online on the scheduled course start date and remain accessible for one month after the course ends.

Want to know more about learning a language online? Read Dr. Julie Dahl's blog post about our online course format.

The required textbook is sold by many online vendors. Make sure to look for ISBN number 9897520597.  It is generally available on Amazon and at MEP Education.

Sections anticipated for Spring 2025 (See Upcoming Dates for open sections and more detail):

Mondays, Feb. 17–April 28, 5:30–6:30 p.m. CT

Mondays, Feb. 17–April 28, 6:45–7:45 p.m. CT

Course outline:

Below are the major themes covered in each unit. In Portuguese 2 you will work through chapters 0-4 in the textbook, Nota 10.

Unidade 0:

• Introduce yourself
• Communicating in the classroom
• Alphabet
• Greetings
• Classroom vocabulary

Unidade 1:

• Country and nationality vocabulary
• Numbers
• Greet people
• Introduce others
• Question words
• Present tense verbs (1)
• Definite articles

Unidade 2: 

• City vocabulary
• Locate people, places, and things
• Exchange information about places
• Present tense verbs (2)
• Ser/estar (1)
• Prepositions of place

Unidade 3:

• Family vocabulary
• Talk about family and friends
• Describe people
• Express preferences
• Ser/estar (2)
• Adjective/noun agreement
• Possessive adjectives

Unidade 4:

• Daily routine vocabulary
• Talk about daily routines
• Ask and tell the time
• Exchange information about schedules
• Present tense verbs (3)
• Reflexive verbs

By participating in this class you will earn:

Explanation of Continuing Education Hours