The latest tragedy in Brazil Posted by Ester on Nov 17, 2015
On 6th November 2015 11 people lost their lives, 12 are desaparecidos (missing) and another 600 were left sem casa (homeless) after a barragem (dam) holding waste from an iron ore mine rompeu (collapsed) in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. At 60km/h, rivers of thick mud are flowing down valleys, and have already completely…
Augmentative e diminutive in Portuguese Posted by carol on Nov 12, 2015
Olá, galerinha. Tudo certinho? (Hey, you guys, everything all right?) You may have noticed while trying to learn Portuguese or chatting with Brazilians that we really enjoy using the augmentative and the diminutive forms. It’s very common and we use it on a regular basis, so it’s important to learn how it works. The augmentative…
Acentuação gráfica – accents em Português Posted by Ester on Nov 10, 2015
Acento agudo (acute accent): It is always used above any vowel to indicate this vowel is part of the stressed syllable. It also indicates that the vowel sound is an open sound. Exemplos: Ela é uma menina amável. (She is a lovely girl) Esse não é um assunto típico da aula de física. (This…
Brazilian Literature Posted by carol on Nov 5, 2015
Oi, gente! (Hey guys!) Reading texts in a foreign language is a great exercise for achieving fluency. Literature then, has a significant role on that regard, because it helps on the process of enriching vocabulary and developing reading comprehension skills. Today’s post will talk about Brazilian literature or, more specifically, about the prize-winning escritora (writer)…
8 expressions that use parts of the body in Portuguese Posted by Ester on Nov 3, 2015
Olá amigos! When you are practicing Portuguese, are you one of those people who speak through their elbows? If you do not know what that means, check out these expressions that use parts of the body. Now, I’m giving you the heads up, in the beginning it could be hard to remember all the expressions…
Folk Tales Posted by carol on Oct 30, 2015
Olá a todos! (Hello, all!) Since Halloween está chegando (is coming), this week’s posts have been all about showing you the scary side of our culture. Last post was about some sinister children’s songs and lullabies. Hoje (Today) we will delve even deeper into the macabre and aprender sobre (learn about) some traditional folk tales…
Scary children’s songs em Português Posted by Ester on Oct 26, 2015
Feliz Halloween, gente! Yay, it is Halloween again! With the amazing colours in nature that you can only get this time of the year, in outono (Autumn), when we celebrate the end of harvest. However, in this time of the year it is primavera (Spring) in Brazil. This is probably one of the reasons why…