Smith College's Moodle

Sejam todes bem-vindes a POR 125!

Course Description: 

This course is an accelerated introduction to Brazilian Portuguese with the objective of creating a solid foundation in all four language modalities: listening, reading, writing, and speaking. The course will also introduce aspects of the cultures and societies of Brazil, Portugal and Lusophone (Portuguese-speaking) Africa, with presentation and discussion of audio-visual materials and short readings. Classes will be conducted in Portuguese, following a student-centered, communication-oriented approach and concentrating on activities to develop speaking and listening skills.

The accelerated pace of the course relies on students’ proficiency in Spanish.

While one of our objectives is an awareness of the principal differences and similarities between Spanish and Portuguese, do not always expect direct, systematic comparisons (of grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation). Our classroom methodology will focus more on practicing Portuguese, with students intuitively developing an awareness of similarities and distinctions between Spanish and Portuguese.

Course Materials:

Required Textbook: Ponto de Encontro: Portuguese as a World Language, Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2 nd edition, 2012. (E-book or physical book)

A/V Component: Free audio content corresponding with our text (link on Moodle course website)

Yellow notebook (caderninho amarelo) for compositions provided by the instructor in the first week of classes.