Steps towards YKI:
Listening

YKI levels 3 and 4
May 2025

Steps towards YKI: Listening

The self-study edition
YKI levels 3 and 4

Steps towards YKI: Speaking

The self-study edition
YKI levels 3 and 4

 Are you preparing for the intermediate Finnish YKI test? 

Steps towards YKI: Listening is a course to help you prepare for the intermediate YKI listening part whenever works best for you, with support and feedback from an experienced teacher.

We will cover all 9 YKI themes with exercises from our textbook, YKIä kohti. 

Teacher:

Mari Nikonen 

Price:

85 €, including VAT 25,5 %

Textbook:

YKIä kohti. Note that the textbook is not included in the course price and must be purchased separately. 

"Mari is an exceptional Finnish teacher, who has a unique set of skills that go beyond imparting grammar and vocabulary."

- Araceli del Río Sastre, a student in Steps towards YKI

Are you preparing for the intermediate Finnish YKI test?

Steps towards YKI: Speaking is a self-study course to help you prepare for the YKI listening part whenever works best for you, with support and feedback from an experienced teacher.

Teacher:

Mari Nikonen 

Textbook:

YKIä kohti

Price:

Early bird price 65 €, when you sign up by 14/4/2025

Regular price: 85 € 

"Mari is an exceptional Finnish teacher, who has a unique set of skills that go beyond imparting grammar and vocabulary."

 - Araceli del Río Sastre , a student in Steps towards YKI

Moi!



My name is Mari Nikonen, I'm a Finnish teacher (MA, University of Helsinki) and I run my own small business teaching Finnish. I have been teaching Finnish to adult learners since 2008, and helping students prepare for YKI since 2010.

I'm one of the authors of YKIä kohti, a textbook for intermediate YKI preparation.

My goal in everything that I do is to help my students feel at home with the Finnish language.

I'm can't wait to meet you and help you prepare for YKI.

Tervetuloa kurssille!



"I participated in both the speaking and writing courses, both were very helpful in preparing for a successful test!

The course materials are presented in a very clear, progressive and systematic format, really easy to follow and study with at my own pace. It was a great opportunity to understand the types of tasks that I would be doing in the test, and what the proficiency target was. Knowing the expectations and format of the test made it seem less overwhelming. And having everything in both Finnish and English also put some of my doubts to rest.  

I would definitely recommend it to anyone wanting to “train” for the test… Thanks Mari 🙏🏼"

- Bonnie L., a student in Steps towards YKI: Speaking, October 2024

  • You will learn listening comprehension strategies and boost your listening skills to help you take the test with full confidence 
  • A clear step-by-step structure and learning program 
  • We will cover all nine YKI themes
  • Five live Zoom lessons that will be recorded
  • An active Whatsapp group for questions and support in May 2025
  • The course is focused on teaching you the real world language skills and strategies that you need to succeed in YKI.

    Course schedule in May 2025

We will have five live lessons on Zoom. You can attend the lessons live, but they will be recorded, and the course is designed so that you can study whenever works best for you.

We will be using the textbook YKIä kohti, which is available in most Finnish online bookstores. Here's one place to get it.

Starting date: 2 May 2025
End date: 30 May 2025

Live Zoom sessions:

1. Friday 2 May, 12:00-13:00, Finnish time
2. Tuesday 6 May, 18:30-19:30 Finnish time
3. Thursday 8 May, 9:00-10:00 Finnish time
4. Friday 16 May, 12:00-13:00 Finnish time
5. Tuesday 20 May, 18:30-19:30 Finnish time

You can attend all five meetings live, join the ones that work for your schedule or watch the recordings whenever works best for you.

The course is designed so that you can complete the entire course before the YKI test on the 24th of May. 

  • You will learn listening comprehension strategies and boost your listening skills to help you take the test with full confidence
  • A clear step-by-step structure and learning program
  • We will cover all nine YKI themes
  • Five live Zoom lessons that will be recorded
  • An active Whatsapp group for questions and support in May 2025
  • The course is focused on teaching you the real world language skills and strategies that you need to succeed in YKI.

Course schedule in May 2025

We will have five live lessons on Zoom.

You can attend the lessons live, but they will be recorded, and the course is designed so that you can study whenever works best for you.  

We will be using the textbook YKIä kohti, which is available in most Finnish online bookstores. Here's one place to get it.  

Starting date: 2 May 2025
End date: 30 May 2025  

Live Zoom sessions: 

1. Friday 2 May, 12:00-13:00, Finnish time
2. Tuesday 6 May, 18:30-19:30 Finnish time
3. Thursday 8 May, 9:00-10:00 Finnish time
4. Friday 16 May, 12:00-13:00 Finnish time
5. Tuesday 20 May, 18:30-19:30 Finnish time

You can attend all five meetings live, join the ones that work for your schedule or watch the recordings whenever works best for you. 

What my students are saying

 "The course is really well structured, with short parts, so you can do one at the time and you dont get exhausted.  

Videos are both in Finnish and English, as well as all the written material. There are plenty of tips for each type of the exercises, and a lot of examples to practice!  

Teacher is really nice and answer all the questions and give feedback about homeworks."

- Cayetana, a student in Steps towards YKI, September 2023


 



 "The course is just perfect! Especially for someone who lacks confidence more than knowledge, having all parts translated to English helped build up the confidence well.
 
Also the YKI mini tests helped a lot. The useful phrases and slang language words also helped me during the test to reduce the times I blacked out :)"

- A student in Steps towards YKI September 2023

"The course was very useful for me.  It will be good if there are more exercises "

- Martin Kralev, a Student in Steps towards YKI September 2023

 "Kiitos paljon kurssista Mari! Olen varma siitä, että sinun kurssi auttoi minua kehittämään minun kielen tasoa huomattavasti. Minun mielestäni kurssilla on paljon erilaisia ja hyödyllisiä tehtäviä."

- Viktoriia, a student in Steps towards YKI September 2023

"This course doesn't just help you go through being relaxed with the speaking part but it also calms your doubts with the actual tasks."

- A student in Steps towards YKI September 2023




"The course was super good. This course helped me to talk much better. The feedbacks given by you for every exercises gave me more confidence. To be honest, I was able to do spontaneous talking during my YKI speaking test, which I believe is because of this course. Thanks a lot Mari :)"
 
- A student in Steps towards YKI September 2023

Minun mielestäni kurssi oli tosi hyödyllistä ja kivaa. Tykkäsin, että kurssilla oli paljon materiaaleja ja tehtäviä.

- A student in Steps towards YKI September 2023


This course is for you if

  • You have a busy schedule and can't commit to a traditional language course schedule.
  • You want to prepare for YKI as efficiently as possible, with all the key information summed up in one place.
  • You're ready to put in the work needed to level up your language skills.  
  • You would like to have feedback as well as teacher an peer support. 

Who is the teacher?

My name is Mari Nikonen. I'm a Helsinki based Finnish teacher, and have been teaching Finnish to adult learners since 2008. I completed my master's degree in Finnish as a second language in 2013 at the University of Helsinki. I’ve been helping students prepare for the YKI test since 2010.

How do I register?

Click here or on the "enroll here" buttons anywhere on this page. The link will take you to a checkout page (powered by Stripe) where you can purchase the course and start studying immediately. Stripe accepts most credit and debit cards.

If you'd prefer to use Finnish online banking, you can also purchase the course in my other online store, powered by Holvi.

If you'd prefer an invoice, email me at mari@askafinnishteacher.com and we'll set up your course access together.

What will I miss if I can't make the Zoom meetings? 

The live Zoom meetings are a fully optional part of the course and will be recorded, so that you can attend the course even if the live schedule doesn't work for you.

 In the Zoom meetings, we will do different listening exercises together, practice and discuss listening strategies and general learning strategies and learn key vocabulary.

What if I sign up and pay for the course, but it's not what I expected?

This course has a full refund policy until 30 May 2025.

If you are unhappy with course in any way, just email me at mari@askafinnishteacher.com and we will set up your refund together.  

How do I know if I'm at the right level?

You will get the most out of this course if you're at least at A2 in Finnish when the course starts. Most of the tasks that we will be doing are on YKI levels 3 and 4 (B1 and B2 on the CEFR scale), just like the YKI test itself.
 
Here's a blog post I've written about figuring out if this is the right moment to attend.

Course curriculum

Questions?

I'm more than happy to answer any questions you might have!

You can email me at mari@askafinnishteacher.com, call or message me on my phone: +358 40 554 29 55. 

"I recommend Mari, for a simple reason. She herself took the YKI test, and understands more than other professors about the struggle for passing the test. Super recommended for those who want to pass the writing or speaking sections of the test."

- Rafael Vera, a student in Steps towards YKI: Speaking in February 2024


"Todella mahtava kurssi, joka oli minulle erittäin hyödyllistä. Olen nyt ymmärtänyt, miten YKI:n puhuminen-tehtävät toimivat ja tiedän, mitä taitoni on ja mitä minulla on vielä harjoitettavaa. Mari on hieno, empaattinen ja erittäin pätevä sekä luova opettaja. Suositelen kurssin kaikille, jotka haluavat päästä YKI tenttiin."

- Friederike Lüpke, a student in Steps towards YKI: Speaking in February 2024




This course is for you if you

  • Have a busy schedule and can't commit to a traditional language course centered on live lessons. 
  • Want to prepare for YKI as efficiently as possible, with all the key information summed up in one place.
  • Would like to have feedback for your work as well as teacher and peer support. 
  • Are ready to put in the work needed to level up your language skills. 

    Who is the teacher?

My name is Mari Nikonen. I'm a Helsinki based Finnish teacher, and have been teaching Finnish to adult learners since 2008. I completed my master's degree in Finnish as a second language in 2013 at the University of Helsinki. I’ve been helping students prepare for the YKI test since 2010.

   How do I register?

Click here or on the "enroll here" buttons anywhere on this page. The link will take you to a checkout page (powered by Stripe) where you can purchase the course and start studying immediately. Stripe accepts international credit and debit cards.

If you'd prefer to use Finnish online banking, you can also purchase the course in my other online store, powered by Holvi.

If you'd prefer an invoice, email me at mari@askafinnishteacher.com and we'll set up your course access together.

   How do I know if I'm at the right level?

You will get the most out of this course if you're at least at A2 in Finnish when the course starts. Most of the tasks that we will be doing are on YKI levels 3 and 4 (B1 and B2 on the CEFR scale), just like the YKI test itself. 

Here's a blog post I've written about figuring out if this is the right moment to attend.

   What will I miss if I can't make the Zoom meetings? 

The live Zoom meetings are a fully optional part of the course and will be recorded, so that you can attend the course even if the live schedule doesn't work for you.

In the Zoom meetings, we will do different listening exercises together, practice and discuss listening strategies and general learning strategies and learn key vocabulary.

    What if the course is not what I  expected?

This course has a full refund policy until 30 May 2025. If you are unhappy with course in any way, just email me at mari@askafinnishteacher.com and we will set up your refund together.

    Questions? 

I'm more than happy to answer any questions you might have!

You can email me at mari@askafinnishteacher.com, call or message me on my phone:
+358 40 554 29 55.

Course curriculum

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