Study plan

B2 · Upper intermediate Dutch study plan

All 48 B2 lessons in order, with reading texts and grammar exercises after each unit.

Unit 1 · Advanced grammar (B2)

Participle phrases — Read and write compact formal phrases like gezien de situatie and thuisgekomen.
Advanced passive — Use the passive with modals and in every tense, master the krijgen-passive, and know when to avoid it.
Conditions & purpose — Express conditions, purpose and proportion with tenzij, mits, zodat, opdat, naarmate and more.
Er in complex sentences — Combine several functions of er in one sentence and split er/daar/waar + preposition across long sentences.

The economy — Talk about inflation, growth and unemployment, and explain causes and effects.
Science & technology — Discuss research, AI and innovation, and switch between verbal and nominal style.
Diplomatic language at work — Soften criticism, make suggestions and give feedback tactfully.
Media & misinformation — Judge sources, spot misleading news and report what others claim without taking sides.

The housing market — Discuss house prices, renting and the housing shortage, and say what can or can't be done with zijn + te.
Urban planning — Talk about new neighbourhoods, building plans and public consultation, and describe what is planned or expected.
Migration & integration — Talk factually about migration, asylum and civic integration, using advanced relative clauses.
An ageing population — Discuss life expectancy, pensions and care for the elderly, and express degree and consequence with zo … dat and te … om te.

The labour market — Discuss staff shortages, contracts and retraining, and link ideas with door, zonder and in plaats van + te.
Writing a motivation letter — Write a convincing motivation letter with formal phrases and varied word order.
Negotiating your salary — Discuss pay and employment conditions, and set conditions with mocht, stel dat and in ruil voor.
Resolving conflicts — Talk through disagreements at work or at home, and report what others said with reported speech.

Banking & personal finance — Talk about loans, savings and debt, and place separable verbs correctly in long verb clusters.
Consumer rights — Understand your basic rights as a consumer and talk about obligations with dienen te, hoeven and verplicht zijn.
The energy transition — Discuss emissions, renewable energy and the power grid, and talk about targets with the future perfect.
Living with water — Talk about dikes, polders and climate adaptation in the Netherlands, and read formal phrases like de te nemen maatregelen.

AI in the workplace — Discuss automation, chatbots and the future of work, and express how likely something is with modal verbs.
Public health — Discuss prevention, vaccination and health insurance, and understand instructions and advice in public texts.
Social media & democracy — Discuss polarisation, fake profiles and free speech online, and link events in time with nu, zodra and totdat.
The justice system — Understand the basics of Dutch courts and criminal cases, and say who had something done with laten.

Tourism & its effects — Discuss mass tourism, holiday rentals and liveability, and describe trends with steeds and hoe … hoe.
Sport & society — Discuss elite and grassroots sport, sponsorship and fan behaviour, using adjectives with fixed prepositions.
Reviewing films & art — Write and discuss reviews of films, books and exhibitions with precise degree words.
Formal phone calls — Make and take formal phone calls: introduce yourself, get put through, leave a message and sound polite.

Choosing a secondary school — Talk about school advice, the move to secondary school and fair chances in education, using complex relative clauses.
Student life — Talk about student grants, credits, resits and finding a room, using verbs with fixed prepositions together with er and waar.
Research & innovation — Talk about research funding, PhDs, patents and new discoveries, using the passive with modal verbs.
Start-ups & entrepreneurship — Talk about founding and growing a company, investors and failure, and discuss scenarios with mocht, stel dat and zou … hebben.

Marketing & branding — Talk about brands, campaigns and target groups, and write compact business Dutch with nominalisation.
The gig economy — Discuss platform work, freelancers and job security, and weigh up pros and cons with connectors of contrast.
Workplace wellbeing & burnout — Talk about pressure at work, sick leave and returning to work, and place several adverbials in the right order.
Remote & hybrid work — Talk about working from home, office days and staying connected, and handle verb clusters with modals and laten.

Transport & mobility policy — Discuss traffic, road pricing, shared cars and cycle highways, and compare policy options precisely.
Aviation & sustainable travel — Talk about flying, night trains and your travel footprint, and give advice or look back with zou moeten and had moeten.
Food waste — Talk about leftovers, best-before dates and wasted food, and use er in its different roles.
Biodiversity & nature conservation — Talk about endangered species, habitats and nature management, and read compact participle phrases before nouns.

Extreme weather — Talk about heatwaves, cloudbursts and storm damage, and explain causes and consequences precisely.
Local news & journalism — Talk about local reporters, sources and press freedom, and report what people said, asked and allegedly did.
European Union institutions — Understand how the EU makes laws — Commission, Parliament and Council — and use the fixed prepositions of institutional language.
Dutch history in context — Talk about key moments in Dutch history — from the Revolt to the post-war reconstruction — and narrate the past with the right tenses and time conjunctions.

Podcasts & new media — Talk about podcasts, content creators, subscribers and paywalls, and link ideas with om, zonder, door and in plaats van + te.
Theatre & performing arts — Talk about plays, premières, cabaret and touring companies, and react with adjectives that take fixed prepositions.
Customer service (company side) — Handle customer questions and complaints professionally: apologise, report what has been done and offer compensation.
Writing a formal request — Write a formal request to an organisation — for a deferral, an exemption or an authorisation — with the right formal prepositional phrases.