MODERN LANGUAGE CENTRE

MODULE SYLLABUS

Title and code number: INTRODUCTORY PORTUGUESE

4AALPN22

Credit/Value: Credit Levels 4, 30 credits

Prerequisite for entry: none

Course delivery A 5-hour class (4 contact hours and one

hour of compulsory task-based e-learning
component) weekly x 20 weeks (two
semesters)

Students are expected to spend approx. 8-

10 hours per week in self study, including
homework, speaking practice, and
interactive exercises.

See website for semester dates, timetable

and teachers surgery hours:
www.kcl.ac.uk/mlc
EDUCATIONAL AIMS OF THE MODULE
This course is broadly equivalent to A2 Basic User level of the Common European
Framework and aims to enable the students to:

develop the skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing in areas of most
immediate relevance such as basic and personal information, shopping, local
geography, etc.
interact in simple and routine tasks requiring a direct exchange of information
on familiar matters, in structured situations and short conversations with the
help of the interlocutor.
develop strategies for coping with unfamiliar language or unexpected
responses, such as asking for repetition, rephrasing or clarification, listening or
looking for key words.
acquire linguistics skills, tools and knowledge to become independent life-long
learners by using the language for target academic activities and personal
enrichment.
work towards the acquisition of a fifth language skill, which will enable
students to reflect on different cultural values and behaviours to help them
develop intercultural sensitivity.
act with limited autonomy, under direction or supervision, within defined
guidelines.
take responsibility for the nature and quality of their learning.

LEARNING OUTCOMES OF THE MODULE

The students will be able to demonstrate intellectual, transferable and practical skills
appropriate to a Credit Level 4 module and in particular will demonstrate the ability
to:
understand and use a restricted factual knowledge base and range of
vocabulary, and frequently used expressions in areas of most immediate
relevance and immediate priority such as basic and personal information,
shopping, local geography, social interaction, etc.
participate in short conversations in routine contexts on topics of interest
describe in simple terms aspects of students background, immediate
environment and matters in areas of immediate need.
write short simple notes, messages and personal letters (e.g. thanking
someone for something, apologizing, confirming an arrangement).
read and assess fairly short, straightforward texts with assistance, and engage
in evaluative thinking using given criteria.
reflect on own capabilities in key areas and engage in development activities
through guided self-direction such as exposure to authentic material such as
news items, advertising, job advertisements, etc.
use TEL as a mean of communication, as an aid to learning generally and as
an aid to collaborative and individual learning.
develop knowledge and understanding of aspects of the societies of the
countries where the language is spoken.

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CLASS DELIVERY AND TEACHING METHODS
Although every class is designed taking into consideration the above objectives, the
structure of particular sessions may vary. The general approach to all Modern
Language Centre classes is communicative - the language is dealt with in social
situations and students are encouraged to participate as much as possible.

Portuguese will be used for communication in class and students will be asked
to participate in classroom activities and to contribute to short role-plays,
games and other language-centred activities.

TOPICS LEXICAL CONTENT

Numbers, calendar, time, expressions of time, dates
Nationalities, countries, and languages
Daily routines, timetable
Personal and social life (family and friends)
Work and ones professional life and career
Travel, transport and directions
Leisure time and hobbies
Accommodation
Shopping
Holidays
Eating and drinking, restaurants, food and culinary habits
Health and body
Description of people
City life: buildings, streets, directions
The weather
Feelings
Telephone conversations
Introduction to television, press and media
Introduction to notions of Portuguese history and traditions
Introduction to notions of Portuguese culture
Exchanging Written correspondence

LANGUAGE FUNCTIONS - PRAGMATICS

Greetings and introductions, spelling names
Formal and informal functions
Saying and understanding numbers
Exchanging information regarding about nationality
Exchanging personal information
Talking about everyday life
Expressing agreement/disagreement
Asking for and giving directions
Asking for and giving the time/date

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 Making, accepting and refusing offers
Giving and accepting apologies
Organizing meetings and appointments
Communicating by phone
Describing people and places
Describing and comparing objects and events
Going shopping
Buying, asking for prices and quantities
Ordering in a bar/restaurant
Making a booking and expressing preferences, or complaints
Talking about ones daily routine and leisure time
Making arrangements: suggesting, accepting, refusing
Asking for explanation, clarification, permission
Asking for information and speaking about professional life
Asking more complex questions in a formal/informal way
Making comparisons
Talking about feelings and opinions
Understanding simple letters, emails, memos
Writing simple personal letters
Expressing opinions and ideas at a higher level
Giving instructions and advice
Speaking about projects and plans
Telling stories, narrating events in the past tense
Talking about the future / speaking about future events
Understanding simple information on the media

GRAMMAR AND USE OF LANGUAGE

Gender and number of nouns and adjectives
Verbs to be and to have
Definite and indefinite articles
Negatives
Subject pronouns
Present tense of regular and some irregular verbs
Present tense of reflexive verbs
Prepositions of time and place
Imperative
Interrogative, demonstrative and indefinite pronouns
Possessive adjectives and pronouns
Adverbs of time and frequency
Demonstrative adjectives
Irregular verbs in the present tense
Comparatives and superlatives
Verbs ver, ter que/de, sair
Personal pronoun: lhe - lhes

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 Adjectives
Superlative
Ordinal numbers
Plurals
Imperfect past (pretrito imperfeito)
Contrasting perfect past and imperfect past (pretrito perfeito pretrito
imperfeito)
Verbs por, vestir-se, ir/vir, levar/trazer, dizer, saber
Future tenses (futuro do presente)
Conditional
Past compound tenses (ter + participle)
Present compound tenses (ter + participle)
Regular and irregular adverbs
Use of algum, algum, algo, ningum, nenhum, nada
Augmentatives and diminutives
Passive voice
Use of todo, toda, todos os, todas as, tudo, cada

E-LEARNING COMPONENT
The ePortfolio is a task-based component and fully integrated into the
module. Tasks are set weekly by the teacher and include students
blogs, wikis, audio recording, video interviews, chats, discussion
forums and online grammar exercises. To encourage student-centred
learning the course participants will collaborate on various projects
while practising their reading, writing, listening and speaking skills. The
ePortfolio is monitored but not formally assessed.

COURSE BOOK(S)
Eberlein, E., Rohrmman, L. and Ishihara, T., (2009) Novo Avenida Brasil 1
Lima, E. E. O. F., Rohrmann, L., Ishihara, L., (2009) Novo Avenida Brasil 2

Relevant materials taken from a variety of sources will be provided by the teacher.

RECOMMENDED MATERIAL FOR SELF-STUDY

Coimbra, I, Coimbra, O. M., (2012) Gramtica Ativa 1 (Brazilian version)
Whitlam, J., (2010) Modern Brazilian Portuguese Grammar: A Practical Guide
Reis, J., de Oliveira, Daniele., Stichini, Catarina., Os Destinos de Gabriel 1
www.conjuga-me.net/
www.infopedia.pt/
www.aulete.com.br
www.oglobo.com.br/videos
https://en.duolingo.com/course/pt/en/Learn-Portuguese-Online
www.youtube.com/user/jhallthird

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IT resources for independent learning:
KEATS material + MLC resources on-line

LANGUAGE RESOURCES CENTRE

In order to support you with your independent learning and be in contact with the
culture of the language(s) you are learning, you are encouraged to use the resources
in the Language Resources Centre LRC (K-1.072, first basement) which provides a
friendly learning environment with state of the art facilities.

During the first few weeks of the course, your teacher will arrange an induction
session for the class in the LRC so that you can familiarize yourself with the facilities.
During Term one and Term two the LRC will facilitate free speaking practice sessions
as well as workshops on How to get the most of your language classes. For a list of
topics and all dates and times, including the opening hours of the LRC, please go to
the website: http://www.kcl.ac.uk/artshums/depts/mlc/olc/index.aspx

ATTENDANCE
Attendance is compulsory for all language modules. If a students attendance falls to
unsatisfactory levels s/he may be removed from the module or prevented from taking
the assessment. For further information on the attendance requirements of the
module please see the student handbook. If students miss a class because of illness
or urgent personal matters, it is their responsibility to catch up on the contents of the
missed class by checking the KEATS module and/or contacting the teacher.

ASSESSMENT
For all details regarding deadlines, dates of assessment, and past papers (where
applicable) see KEATS.

Formative Assessment:
Formative assessment takes place during Reading Week in Semester 1 and 2. This
does not count towards your final mark, but failure to submit the work may result in
you being withdrawn from the module or prevented from sitting the examinations. It is
strongly recommended that you complete the formative assessment as it will provide
you with feedback on your progress.

2 Tests: 2 hours each 0%

Feedback
All pieces of formative assessment are normally returned to students within 2 weeks,
and the teacher will provide feedback in groups and/or individually. In addition
students can book themselves for individual feedback during surgery hours. Contact
details and applicable surgery hours can be found on KEATS.

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Final (summative) assessment

Written Exam 1: 2 hours 20%

Exam period: 1 (January)
Written Exam 2: 2 hours 40%
Exam period: 2 (May)
Listening Exam: 30 minutes 20%
Exam period: 2 (May)
Oral exam: 15-20 min 20%
Exam period: During Revision week, immediately
before the start of Exam Period 3 (May)

Please see the Student Handbook for further information.

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 WEEK BY WEEK SYLLABUS

SEMESTER 1

WEEK LEARNING CONTENT/TOPICS GRAMMAR E-LEARNING

RESOURCES COMPONENT
Book Unit 1 - Introducing yourself - Introducing - Verb ser After this class:
1st week KEATS online a friend - Expressing likes and - Gender and number
platform dislikes agreement - E-portfolio (profile + a
- Giving and asking for personal - Use of do(s),da(s),de chosen city): Do TASK 1
information (name, nationality and - Personal pronouns (find it on KEATS under e-
occupation) - Positive and negative portfolio).
- Countries sentence structures
- Telling where you come from - Use of gostar de (1) - Listen to the basic
vocabulary under
Audio/Video on KEATS.

Book Unit 1 and 2 - Telling and asking for a - Demonstrative pronouns - After this class:
2nd week KEATS online telephone number Possessive pronouns
platform - Spelling your name and email; - Regular verbs ending in -ar - Do TASK 2 on your e-
exchanging emails - Introducing - Use of no(s), na(s), em portfolio
people at work and in personal life - Definite and indefinite
- Talking about possessions articles - Do interactive exercises
- Borrowing something Unit 1 on KEATS
- Telling where you live (country
and city)
Book Unit 1 and 2 - Telling the time - Verbs poder and ter After this class:
3rd week KEATS online - Arranging a meeting - Combination of ir + a
platform - Inviting/Suggesting (include day - Merging article and - Do TASK 3 on your e-
of the week and time) preposition (a + o, a + a) portfolio.

- Do interactive exercises
Unit 2 on KEATS

Book Unit 1 and 2 - Daily routine - Regular verbs ending in -ar After this class:
4th week KEATS online - Telling what you are doing on - Prepositions: a vs para
platform your holidays/weekend - Future (futuro imediato) - Do TASK 4 on your e-
- Writing an email to a friend (1) - Use of gostar de (2) portfolio.
- Expressing likes and dislikes
(topic: leisure) - Do interactive exercises
Unit 3 on KEATS.

- Under grammar with slides

presentation on KEATS:
Futuro Imediato

Book Unit 3 - Brazilian food - Verbs preferir and After this class:
5th week KEATS online - Ordering at the restaurant querer
platform - Interacting with the waiter - Regular verbs ending in -er - Do TASK 5 on your e-
- Expressing likes, dislikes and and -ir portfolio.
preferences (topic: food and
drinks) - Do interactive exercises
- Expressing feelings Unit 4 on KEATS.

- Watch the Grammar

presentation on KEATS:
Presente do Indicativo

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 Complete formative
6th week READING WEEK assessment
Do interactive exercises
Unit 5 on KEATS
Book Unit 4 - Brazil in numbers - Present continuous After this class:
7th week KEATS online according to its last tenses
platform census - Use of mais do que, - Do TASK 6 on your e-
- Traveling in Brazil; menos do que (1) portfolio.
tourist places - Superlatives
- Regions in Brazil - Verb fazer - Do interactive exercises
- Interacting at the hotel - Adjectives (1) Unit 6 on KEATS.
- Asking for information
- Comparing regions and - Watch the grammar
countries presentation on KEATS:
Presente Contnuo.

Book Unit 4 and 5 - Describing an ongoing action - Use of mais do que, After this class:
8th week KEATS online - Describing and comparing menos do que (2), to...
platform people quanto - Do TASK 7 on your e-
- Giving opinions - Possessives: dele(s), portfolio.
- Understanding advertisements delas(s)
- Adjectives (2) - Do interactive exercises
Unit 7 on KEATS

Book Unit 5 - Describing accommodation and
9th week KEATS online furniture
platform - Indicating where something is
(object, address, building etc.)
- Describing the places you
travelled to and what you did
- Past tense (regular verbs)
- Prepositions of place
- Adjectives (3)
After this class:
- Do TASK 8 on your e-
portfolio.
- Do interactive exercises
Unit 8 on KEATS

Book Unit 5 and 6 - Describing what you did - Past tenses (regular and After this class:
10th week KEATS online in your previous day of Irregular verbs)
platform work/as a student - Direct object pronouns - Do TASK 9 on your e-
- Writing an email to a portfolio.
friend (2)
- Telling a story (real - Do interactive exercises
and/or fictional) Unit 9 on KEATS.

- Watch the grammar

presentation on KEATS:
Pretrito Perfeito

Book Unit 6 - Talking about Brazilian culture - Mixing verb tenses After this class:
11th week KEATS online - Recap - Recap
platform - Do TASK 10 on your e-
portfolio.

- Do interactive exercises
Unit 10 on KEATS

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 SEMESTER 2

WEEK LEARNING CONTENT/TOPICS GRAMMAR E-LEARNING COMPONENT

RESOURCES Tasks will be updated by Dec
2017 and will be found directly
on the e-portfolio template
Book Unit 1 - - The body - Adjectives After the 1st class:
1st week KEATS online - Describing a person - Superlatives - Expand your personal profile
platform (physical appearance and - Verb ver (30-60 words). Include why you
personality traits) are learning Portuguese. Hobbies,
- Talking about people interests etc.
portrayed in Brazilian - Upload an audio-profile, which
painting/sculpture will be similar to your text above.
- Upload a picture/video in your
profile which represents an
element of Brazilian culture, e.g. a
painting, a music video, an item of
food etc. Describe what the
picture is about (10-30 words)
Book Unit 1 - Talking Sports -Superlatives After the 2nd class, start writing
2nd week KEATS online - Giving advice on how to - Indirect object pronouns a travel story on your e-
platform be healthy - Use of andar vs estar portfolio with a character of
- Plurals your choice. It is 2016 and s/he
- Use of ter que/de will travel for a year in Brazil.
S/he will narrate the story in the
first person. Throughout the
course, leave at least 3
comments on a classmates
story.
- It is August 2016 and your
character has travelled to Rio de
Janeiro for the Olympic Games.
Use present tense to say how
excited s/he is to be in Rio. Say
what sports s/he wants to follow
and why (30-70 words).
- Include a link of a video about
the Olympic Games in Brazil and
upload a comment about what
s/he finds interesting in it (20s
1min).
- Describe the moment in which
s/he saw a famous sports person
at the Olympic park in Rio de
Janeiro. What did they talk about?
Was the athlete nice/polite? Was
s/he allowed to take a selfie? (30-
60 words)
Do interactive exercises Unit 1
on KEATS.
Book Unit 2 - Working policies in Brazil - Ordinal numbers After 3rd class:
3rd week KEATS online - Agreeing and Disagreeing - Imperfect past - It is late August and s/he is in
platform - Giving opinions Curitiba. S/he visits the Oscar
- Life in the past and in the Niemeyer Museum and learns
present for women in Brazil about this famous architect.
Describe some of his habits and
work he did when he was alive.
Use imperfect past and perfect
past tenses (20-50 words)

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 - Include a picture of this museum
and upload an audio with his/her
opinion about its look/architecture
(30s1min).
- S/he went out with friends to a
music concert of a local band. Tell
us how it was and how difficult it
was to interact in Portuguese (30-
60 words).
Do interactive exercises Unit 2
on KEATS.
Book Unit 3 - Clothes - Verb pr and its After the 4th class:
4th week KEATS online - Telling what one is alternatives - It is early September and s/he is
platform wearing - Simple future in Florianpolis to enjoy the
- Telling what one wears - Reflexive verbs beaches. S/he did not realize it
for specific occasions could be cold at this time of the
year. List the few pieces of
clothes s/he brought from his/her
home country and what s/he
bought in Curitiba to cope with the
cold there and now in
Florianpolis.(30-70 words)
- S/he has been to the beaches
Praia Mole and Praia do Rosa.
Upload a picture of each of these
beaches and write his/her
impressions about them and/or
what s/he did (10-30 words for
one picture; 30s- 1min-audio for
the other picture)
- S/he is staying at an
international hostel. His/her
mobile phone was stolen. Tell us
how it happened and if s/he got it
back. (30-70 words)
Do interactive exercises Unit 3
on KEATS.
Book Unit 3 - Habits and behaviour on - Conditional After the 5th class:
5th week KEATS online the beach in Brazil - Ir vs vir - It is October and s/he is in So
platform - Describing cultural Paulo capital where s/he is
misunderstandings one renting a flat with other students.
has experienced S/he decides to invite Brazilian
friends for a barbecue at the
communal terrace. To his/her
surprise, every guest brought
friends and s/he was not happy
with that. But it turns out people
brought more drinks and food and
it was a fun evening. Describe
how the barbecue went. (50-100
words)
- Having had this experience,
write some advice to a traveller
who decides to do the same thing.
Use conditional tenses (10-30
words).
- At the barbecue friends told you
about a cultural misunderstanding
they had when they travelled.
Describe one that s/he had in
Brazil (audio 30s-1min).

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 Do interactive exercises Unit 4
on KEATS.
READING WEEK Complete formative
6th week assessment
Do interactive exercises Unit 5
on KEATS.
Book Unit 4 - Past and current - Pluperfect tenses After the 6th class:
7th week KEATS online immigration to Brazil - Conhecer vs saber - It is January and s/he is in the
platform - Talking about the family - Levar vs trazer countryside of Sao Paulo, staying
at her friends who is the third
generation of Japanese
immigrants. Write a conversation
with her friend about how the
large Japanese immigration to
Brazil happened and what life was
like then and what it is now. Add
at least 6 questions in this
conversation (100-150 words).
Use mais-que-perfeito composto
tenses.
- S/he decides to backpack for the
next 5 months in South America.
Upload an audio in which s/he
describes the route s/he is taking
from where s/he is. Use future do
presente tenses (30s-1min)
Do interactive exercises Unit 6 on
KEATS.
Book Unit 5 - Holidays - Compound tenses After the 7th class
8th week KEATS online - Discussing Bumba Meu - Adverbs - It is June 2017 and after
platform Boi festival in Brazil backpacking in South America
-Discussing Brazilian music s/he is in Parintins to enjoy the
styles Bumba Meu Boi festival. Describe
what the festival was like (50-90)
words.
- Include a video about the
Parintins festival. Leave an audio
comment on what can be seen in
the video (30s-1min).
Do interactive exercises Unit 7
on KEATS.
Book Unit 6 - Ecology - Augmentatives After the 8th class:
9th week KEATS online -Describing types of - Diminutives - S/he is now in Manaus, a city in
platform pollution - Indefinite pronouns the middle of the Amazon Forest.
- Discussing the Amazon Describe some of the exotic/local
Forest food that s/he has tried (20-60
words)
- S/he wants to experience life
with a secluded indigenous
community called Piraha. S/he will
have to travel hours by boat on
the Amazon River. Describe the
travel from Manaus to the Piraha
community and the experience of
living with the community for 2
weeks. Use present tenses and
perfeito composto do indicativo.
Do interactive exercises Unit 8 on
KEATS.
Book Unit 6 - Talking about stereotypes - Passive voice with ser + After the 9th class:
10th week in Brazil participle

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 KEATS online - Describing economic - Passive voice - S/he is in Bahia in July 2017
platform industries - Mixing verb tenses where s/he learns how to dance
- Discussing economic forr. Describe what the
regions in Brazil experience of dancing forr is like.
(30-50 words)
- S/he went to a forr party and
had a good time. However, had
too much to drink and after the
party had some heavy local food.
As a result s/he woke up feeling
very unwell. Narrate this with the
help of an audio (50s-2min)
Do interactive exercises Unit 9
on KEATS.
Book Unit 6 - Shopping for food - Indefinite pronouns After the 10th class:
11th week KEATS online - Recap - Recap - It is August 2017. It has been 1
platform year. S/he is in Rio at the airport
ready to go back home. There
s/he evaluates her/his trip. S/he
will depart in a couple of hours.
Describe these last hours in Brazil
and list 3 things one should and
should not do during a long trip
(use passive voice with se for this
list). Write 80-100 words.
- S/he decides to send a voice
message to a friend to say thank
you and to keep in touch. (20s-1
min)
Do interactive exercises Unit 10
on KEATS.
12th week
Revision/catch-up classes or one-to-one tutorial support as agreed with the teacher.

The syllabus may vary according to students needs.

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