ESL Questions Brazil
Brazil
Explore Brazil through conversation with 75 discussion questions covering carnival, the Amazon, football, food, and daily life in one of the world's most diverse countries.
Beginner
Have you ever heard of Brazil? What do you know about it?
What is the capital city of Brazil?
Do you know what language people speak in Brazil?
Have you ever seen a Brazilian carnival on TV or in photos?
What Brazilian foods have you tried or heard of?
Do you know who Pele is? Why is he famous?
Have you ever seen the Amazon rainforest in a movie or documentary?
What colors are on the Brazilian flag?
Do you think Brazil is a hot or cold country? Why?
Have you ever watched Brazilian football? Did you enjoy it?
What animal do you think of when you hear 'Brazil'?
Do you know what the Rio Carnival is? Would you like to go?
What kind of music do you think comes from Brazil?
Is Brazil a big or small country? How do you know?
Would you like to visit Brazil one day? Why or why not?
What do you think the weather is like in Brazil?
Have you ever seen a photo of the Christ the Redeemer statue?
Do you know any famous Brazilian people besides football players?
What do you think people in Brazil do for fun?
Have you ever tried to dance samba? Would you like to?
What do you think Brazilian school is like?
Do you know what the Amazon River is famous for?
What would you eat for breakfast if you were in Brazil?
Have you ever seen photos of Rio de Janeiro? What did it look like?
If you could ask a Brazilian person one question, what would it be?
Intermediate
What do you think daily life is like for a teenager in Sao Paulo?
Why do you think football is so important to Brazilian culture?
What do you know about the Amazon rainforest and why it matters?
How do you think carnival affects Brazilian identity and national pride?
Have you ever tried caipirinha or acai? What did you think of them?
Why do you think Brazil has such extreme inequality between rich and poor?
What challenges do you think come with living in a city like Rio de Janeiro?
How has deforestation in the Amazon affected Brazil's reputation globally?
What do you think makes Brazilian music like samba and bossa nova so popular worldwide?
Do you think hosting the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics was good for Brazil? Why?
What aspects of Brazilian culture would you most want to experience?
How do you think Brazil's mix of African, Indigenous, and European influences shaped its culture?
What do you know about Brazil's political history? Does anything surprise you?
Why do you think Brazil is sometimes called 'the country of the future'?
How do you think life in the Amazon region differs from life in big Brazilian cities?
What role do you think religion plays in Brazilian society?
What environmental problems does Brazil face and who is responsible for solving them?
How do you think Brazilian food reflects the country's cultural diversity?
Would you prefer to visit Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, or the Amazon? Why?
What do you think Brazil could teach other countries about multiculturalism?
How do you think social media has changed Brazilian politics?
What challenges do indigenous communities in Brazil face today?
Do you think eco-tourism in Brazil is mostly positive or negative? Why?
How has Brazil's economy changed over the past few decades?
What do you think the future holds for Brazil as a country?
Advanced
Brazil has massive natural resources but persistent poverty. Who bears responsibility for that gap?
Some argue that Brazilian carnival glorifies inequality by making poverty look festive. Do you buy that?
Bolsonaro vs. Lula was described as a battle for Brazil's soul. What was actually at stake?
Is deforestation in the Amazon primarily a Brazilian problem, or does the global economy share the blame?
Brazil abolished slavery in 1888 but racial inequality persists. What does that tell us about how societies change?
The 2016 Olympics left Rio with abandoned stadiums and debt. Was hosting worth it?
How much of Brazil's global image is accurate, and how much is a tourist fantasy?
Brazil has one of the world's most biodiverse ecosystems. Should other nations have a say in how it's managed?
Favelas are often romanticized in film. What does that romanticization miss about the reality of living there?
Some economists argue Brazil's growth potential has been squandered by corruption and policy instability. Agree?
Is it possible to sustainably develop the Amazon, or is 'sustainable development' a contradiction there?
Brazil's legal system is notoriously slow. What happens to a society when justice is perpetually delayed?
How should Brazil handle the tension between indigenous land rights and agricultural expansion?
Is Brazilian football still the world standard, or has Europe taken over? What changed?
Brazil absorbs enormous immigration from countries like Venezuela and Haiti. What obligations come with that?
How has evangelical Christianity changed Brazilian politics and culture in the past 30 years?
Is Brazil's federal structure a strength for managing its size, or a source of dysfunction?
What can other developing nations actually learn from Brazil's success with biofuels?
How do you think Brazil's young population will reshape the country's politics over the next 20 years?
Brazil was once considered a BRIC miracle. What happened to that optimism, and was it ever justified?
Should the international community fund Amazon preservation, or is that a form of neocolonialism?
How does corruption become normalized in a society, and what would it take to reverse it in Brazil?
Brazil has significant soft power through music, sport, and culture. How effectively does it use it?
What responsibilities do large corporations operating in Brazil have toward the communities they affect?
If you were redesigning Brazil's education system, what would you prioritize and why?