The study timer

Yalango has a focus timer that follows you around the site while you're signed in. It's for the study you do off-screen as much as on it - reading a textbook, working through a grammar exercise, watching something in your target language.

Two modes

• Standard - an open-ended timer. Start it, study, stop it when you're done.
• Pomodoro - 25 minutes of focus, then a 5 minute break, with a long break after every 4 cycles. Breaks don't count toward your study time.

Pomodoro mode shows which cycle you're on and a row of dots for your progress through the round.

Play soothing music

On the timer setup screen (and while a session is running) you can turn on Play soothing music. Use the volume slider (Music volume) and the mute control (Mute music / Unmute music) if you want quieter background sound.

Music is optional - the timer works the same with it off.

Earning stars

Focus sessions earn stars: 1 star for every 5 minutes you study, so 30 minutes earns 6 and an hour earns 12.

A session has to reach 5 minutes to earn anything, and a single session can run for up to 6 hours. There is no daily limit, so study as long as you like. Time is only counted once, so running the timer in two tabs at the same time doesn't earn double.

The timer adds to the stars you earn from practice and reading while it runs.

What it does and doesn't track

The timer records time. Your daily goal, streak and spaced repetition schedule are driven by correct answers in games, and the timer doesn't touch any of those.

That means a long timed session with no reviews won't advance your streak, and a five-minute game session will. They're two separate measures, and you can see both under Stats.