Course Details
Russian for Beginners
Academic Year 2026/27
VYR001 course is not part of any programme in the faculty
Topics: introducing yourself; meeting people; greetings; forms of address; countries, nationalities, and languages; birthdays; family.
The sound and writing system of Russian: the Cyrillic alphabet; stress; intonation; pronunciation; spelling.
Grammar: numbers; conjugation of basic verbs; personal and possessive pronouns; the construction у меня есть; nouns after the numbers 2, 3, and 4.
Credits
2 credits
Language of instruction
Czech
Semester
Course Guarantor
Institute
Forms and criteria of assessment
Entry Knowledge
None.
Aims
The aim of the course is to provide students with a foundation in Russian, including the Cyrillic alphabet in its written and spoken forms, basic vocabulary, and grammar. The course also develops the skills required to read, translate, and produce very simple texts in Russian.
Basic Literature
Prerequisites
None.
Offered to foreign students
Course on BUT site
Exercise
13 weeks, 2 hours/week, compulsory
Syllabus
1. Introduction: Getting to know each other; the Cyrillic alphabet – reading and writing (Part I)
2. Lesson 1: Stress; Russian consonants and vowels; pronunciation rules
3. Lesson 1: Forms of address; the handwritten Cyrillic alphabet (Part II)
4. Lesson 2: Greetings; intonation of statements and questions; the verb to be in the present tense; negation and contrast
5. Lesson 2: Meeting people; questions with где and откуда; numbers 1–10
6. Lesson 3: Countries, nationalities, and languages; intonation of yes/no questions; days of the week; numbers 11–20
7. Lesson 3: Present tense conjugation of the verbs жить, знать, and говорить; the handwritten Cyrillic alphabet (Part III)
8. Lesson 4: Birthdays; Russian–Czech homonyms; months of the year; numbers 30–90 and 100–900
9. Lesson 4: Expressing age; personal pronouns; present tense conjugation of the verbs звать, быть, учиться, and смотреть
10. Lesson 5: Family; family members; possessive pronouns; the construction у меня есть
11. Lesson 5: Nouns after the numbers 2, 3, and 4; present tense conjugation of the verbs работать and учиться; reading texts about family
12. Revision; supplementary activities
13. Revision and course summary