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Learning Portuguese in Brazil
08-28-2012, 11:38 AM
Hello all,
I have been living in asia the last 3 years but got kind of fed up with whole Asia.
I'm a Euro guy, and i'm looking into Brazil, but don't speak Portuguese although I speak fluent French so I think the language might be easy to pick up (?)
I'm not sure how I should plan my trip there, I would like to stay 6 months or 1 year.
Should I attend a private school? What city should I go to learn Portuguese?
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Learning Portuguese in Brazil
08-28-2012, 04:03 PM
Good questions. I'm brazillian, but I can't think of any clue to learn Portuguese easier than the regular one.
Unfortunately, French and Spanish don't help much in verbal Portuguese. Pronunciation is totally different. Grammar and vocabulary have a good deal of similarities.
In big cities people have better diction.
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Learning Portuguese in Brazil
08-31-2012, 12:45 AM
The going rate for private lessons pretty much anywhere in Brazil is R$50 an hour. You can find university students who will do it for cheaper by posting an ad on campus. Stay away from the language institutes, they will rip you off and you wont learn anything.
Most major cities have a Portugues para Estrangeiros program which can help you get a student visa. I wouldn't expect to get much more than that from the class. I find most Brazilian teachers to be too mechanical and focus on grammar instead of developing real conversation skills.
Its really hard to find a good language teacher because most will drown you with useless worksheets and grammar drills, or they will talk to you in Portuguese with no structure which you can get from any of your Brazilian friends.
The best way to learn would be to move in with Brazilians who don't speak any English, study on your own 2 hours a day, have an active social life with Brazilians who don't speak English or who are on your team and won't speak English with you, and have a few hours a week of 1 on 1 tutoring to iron out any errors you have.
A good teacher is more like a coach who keeps you motivated and makes sure you're following the right path. They really cant teach you anything, you have to learn everything by yourself.
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Learning Portuguese in Brazil
08-31-2012, 10:50 AM
Quote: (08-31-2012 12:45 AM)Safado Wrote:
The going rate for private lessons pretty much anywhere in Brazil is R$50 an hour. You can find university students who will do it for cheaper by posting an ad on campus. Stay away from the language institutes, they will rip you off and you wont learn anything.
Most major cities have a Portugues para Estrangeiros program which can help you get a student visa. I wouldn't expect to get much more than that from the class. I find most Brazilian teachers to be too mechanical and focus on grammar instead of developing real conversation skills.
Its really hard to find a good language teacher because most will drown you with useless worksheets and grammar drills, or they will talk to you in Portuguese with no structure which you can get from any of your Brazilian friends.
The best way to learn would be to move in with Brazilians who don't speak any English, study on your own 2 hours a day, have an active social life with Brazilians who don't speak English or who are on your team and won't speak English with you, and have a few hours a week of 1 on 1 tutoring to iron out any errors you have.
A good teacher is more like a coach who keeps you motivated and makes sure you're following the right path. They really cant teach you anything, you have to learn everything by yourself.
Second this, I learned Spanish by training in a tennis academy with all colombian coaches. Only spanish was spoken, and the only time I spoke English was at home with my brother. Same when I was in Belgium training at a tennis academy there, I told everyone, coaches, players to only speak French with me. Picked it up in a little less than a Month.
