EarthDiverse

• This is Part 1 of a four-part Introduction course taught over 4 successive school terms specifically designed for beginning Portuguese learners. All of our language courses focus on acquiring reading and conversational skills, and learning about local culture. Our courses are designed for busy people: we do not expect you to study outside of class, nor do we assign homework (unless you’d like some!). Come and spend 12 class hours per Term (eight 1.5 hour weekly classes) learning Portuguese and about Portuguese culture, and have some fun too!

• Our Introductory Portuguese 101 course begins with a practical explanation of the Portuguese language sound system to create a sense of assurance and confidence in learners right from the start. Basic everyday vocabulary and expressions are taught to empower learners to feel encouraged to build their sentences. Distinctive aspects of the Portuguese language, such as the two translations it offers for the verb ‘to be’ will also be addressed, along with simple present and past forms of essential verbs in short sentences. A good portion of the learning will happen through songs and selected poetry. Every class has its culture tip moment, in which the cultural differences between Portuguese-speaking countries and the Anglosphere are discussed.

• Subsequent Term courses continue with Introductory Portuguese (i.e. our Portuguese 102-104 courses) and continue to include additional reading and comprehension practice, introductory grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation practice and conversation and will continue in the same time slot for the duration of the full course.

• Our courses offer distance learning options for those unable to attend classes in-person. Live-streamed Hamilton classes are available via free Zoom software for those living outside the Waikato. Live-streaming allows you to participate fully in your own learning, ask questions of the instructor and participate fully in the same way as if you were in the physical classroom.

• Those unable to attend the scheduled date and time of the actual class sessions, or those who need to miss a class or two due to previous engagements or unexpected illness, can watch any or all of the live-recorded video sessions on their computers, laptops, tablets or mobile devices and study at their own pace and in their own time.

• Detailed instructions on how to access our distance learning components will be sent after completing your registration. There are no additional fees for this service. However, distance learners will need access to a desktop or laptop computer with a good quality web-camera (tablet devices and mobile phones can also access our live-streamed classes), a built-in microphone (most modern laptops have built-in microphones) or a headset with a microphone. You will also need to download and install the free Zoom software on your computer or device. Those accessing the video recordings will be able to do so with a simple web browser on any device.