Five tips for improving your Finnish speaking skills

Many people often ask me for tips and resources to help develop their Finnish speaking abilities. That's why I've put together my top five practical tips for practicing spoken Finnish. These tips also work well for learning other languages, so feel free to try them out in practice!

1. Listen a lot
   Listen to Finnish music, watch Finnish movies, or tune in to podcasts in Finnish. This helps you get used to Finnish pronunciation and sentence structures. You can also listen to Finnish news or radio.

2. Speak as much as possible
   Practice speaking Finnish whenever you can—whether in language classes, by yourself, or with friends. Even if you don't know all the words, try anyway. Speaking is the best way to learn to use the language in real-life situations.

3. Build your Finnish vocabulary
   Learn new words every day using dictionaries or language apps to help remember them. Write down words and repeat them often. For example, you might learn the phrase "to deliver a speech" (Finnish: "pitää puhe"). Expanding your vocabulary is essential for exams like the Finnish YKI test and everyday conversations.

4. Use Finnish in daily life
   Incorporate Finnish into your daily routine—read Finnish books and newspapers, talk Finnish in shops or restaurants, and don't hesitate to ask questions like "Where is...?" - Missä on...? or "Do you have...?" - Onko teillä....? Every conversation helps with learning!

5. Be confident and don't fear mistakes
   Don't worry about making mistakes. The important thing is to try speaking Finnish on any topic. Everyone makes errors when learning a language, especially with languages such as Finnish, where words may sound similar but have different meanings. Keep practicing and you'll do great!