Aprendendo Portugues (Learning Portuguese)

Posted by Elena B. , Thursday, January 21, 2010 11:01 AM

Since, as I've mentioned before, dear boyfriend speaks pretty limited English, I figured I'd write a post about how I've been learning Portuguese and what resources have been useful. Maybe this one will actually be useful to all you readers *cough- all one of you- cough* out there!

Well, I guess I should give some background of how I'm able to even communicate with dear bf. Before I first went to Brazil, I was very interested in learning portuguese. English is my first language, but I'm completely fluent in Spanish and grew up hearing it spoken to me. So I decided to take a portuguese for spanish speakers class, but the class filled up quickly and I couldn't get into it. So instead I bought a ste of those 'learn portuguese!' CD's and listened to them (although not nearly as much as I had planned) before I left. But when I arrived in Brazil, I was totally lost! My first week I was glued to my phrasebook, and fumbled along. But slowly but surely, I began figuring out the key differences between portuguese and spanish and started feeling slightly more comfortable with it. And by the time I met dear bf, after being in the country for just a week and a half, I was able to get by (especially due to the help of my lovely host R, who spoke English and taught me so much portuguese). It probably sounds crazy, but I guess I should also give a little credit to my genes, because my mom is great with languages and speaks 5! Plus, having a significant other who speaks the language really is the best motivation! By the way, I've been teaching myself by practicing with friends (really the best way to learn) and doing stuff online, and I can hold a pretty good conversation now! I struggle a bit, and I'm sure I often sound silly, but I've made a lot of progress!

There are a lot of resources out there to help you learn another language, and portuguese in particular, but these are just a few of my favorite. Please feel free to comment with any that I've missed!
So, time to hit the books (or should I say pages?)!

Helpful FREE Language Learning Resources (for many languages):

  • Since we've spent most of our time apart, chatting online has been the easiest way to keep in touch. Wordreference.com is my best friend, and I keep it open all the time to look up words I don't know (but I'm needing it less and less these days!).
  • LiveMocha - Although I haven't used it steadily, this website is great! It basically has lessons that you sign up for on your level, then uses a flashcard/picture strategy to teach you words/phrases and then you can do speaking and writing excersizes to practice. But the coolest part of the website is the social aspect, where native speakers can review your submissions and you can chat with them as well, and you in turn pay it forward to others.
The following is a list of websites/blogs that I don't use as often, but still have a lot of great information! In no particular order:

Helpful FREE Language Learning Resources for BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE:
  • Street Smart Brazil - The website of a Portuguese language school in San Francisco, that also does skype classes, the blog has a lot of useful advice from native speakers! They also have forums which aren't super active yet, but have alot of potential.
  • Portuguese Blog - great blog with lots of different ways to learn, including news, music videos with lyrics, games, and more!
  • English this way! - just discovered this blog recently, and it's targeted more towards portuguese speakers learning english, but just as useful for learning portuguese. It covers phrases and sayings that are less common and can be difficult to find a translation for. Plus, Fabio is really nice!
  • Brazilian Portuguese Podcast - for practice listening, check these out!
  • Portuguese word of the day - just a quick, easy, word of the day!
  • Portuguese for Spanish Speakers - just what it says. lots of practice excersizes.
  • Ta Falado - another great site for spanish speakers, with podcasts
  • Terra brasilis - as the website says, language and culture resources. I haven't gone through it extensively, but it seems to have some good links!
  • Conjuga-me - conjugations galore!
  • Eyes on Brazil - this is a blog about all things Brazil, but there are several "Tricky Words & Verbs" entries that are super helpful!
Well, that's all folks! I think that should keep you (and me) occupied for a while! Going through my old bookmarks for this entry I found a bunch of sites I hadn't looked at in a long time! Boa Sorte!

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2 Response to "Aprendendo Portugues (Learning Portuguese)"

Anonymous Says:

Thanks for the compliments, Elena!

January 21, 2010 at 1:45 PM
letutor Says:

very impressive blog.
if any one want to learn Portuguese language. please visit www.letutor.com

-:
Le Tutor Language School teaches students how to succeed at speaking a foreign language. If you are tired of ineffective high school or college classes or self studying Call us at 480-626-5180 or visit our school. We offer Spanish classes, one on one Spanish lessons, Spanish tutoring. We also offer the same services in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, and Portuguese. Classes are available for Adults, Kids and Business training.

thanks
www.letutor.com

April 19, 2011 at 7:36 AM

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