Happy World Teachers' Day! 🍎 Every 5 October, UNESCO celebrates the people who teach us. It felt like the right day for a follow-up to "Pinkoa": the Finnish word behind the name. Last time we explained what pinkoa means (to study hard, to cram). This time: what the country that gave us the word actually does with study time, and what has happened to Koa since.
Finland's secret: more breaks, not more hours
Finland often ranks near the top of international school comparisons, but Finnish students don't sit at their desks longer than everyone else. A few things stand out:
- A break after every lesson. In Finnish schools, younger pupils typically get about 15 minutes of free time after each 45-minute lesson, often outside, in any weather. That's basically a pomodoro with a bigger break.
- Short school days. Days are shorter than in many other countries, with little homework in the early years.
- Exams in autumn too. The big final exam, the ylioppilastutkinto, runs twice a year, in spring and in autumn. This year's autumn round started on 14 September, so for the past few weeks thousands of Finnish students have been, quite literally, pinkoamassa: cramming.
- Fully digital. Those exams have been taken on laptops for years now.
The lesson for the rest of us: focus in short rounds, then really step away. That's exactly what the free Koa timer does: 25 minutes of focus, 5 minutes of break, a little reward, and "one more pomodoro?".
Koa's first 10 days in numbers
| What | Status (as of 2 October) |
|---|---|
| Products in the shop | 41 |
| Printables on Etsy | 7 |
| Countries we ship to | 27 (the whole EU) |
| "Study with Koa" videos on YouTube | 1 live, 10 scheduled for October |
| Visits to pinkoa.com | 108 |
| Orders | 0, still waiting for the first one |
Want the full story of how it was built? Read behind the scenes: how I built Pinkoa in 6 hours with AI.
New since last time
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Pomodoro Tracker Sheets (€2.90) Colour in a tomato for every round you finish. Finnish-style breaks included. |
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Koa Believes in You Hoodie (€45.99) For the last week before the exam, when you need someone in your corner. |
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PINKOA Study Hard Club Notebook (€17.90) "Study hard" is literally what pinkoa means, so it had to go on a notebook. |
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Koa Hearts Tumbler (€42.99) Keeps your tea warm through four full pomodoros. |
Kiitos, teachers
If a teacher once made a subject click for you, today is a good day to tell them. And if you are a teacher: Koa's free starter pack works nicely in class, too.
One more pomodoro? 🐨💗
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