At present SOL has three centres: one in Barnstaple one in Tiverton and the other in Bideford. We rent classrooms in the towns, so the children have their lessons in the town where they stay. The same teachers teach in all three centres and the families are equally nice, so the different locations mean no difference in the quality of the course.

The lessons involve a great deal of practical use of language, dealing with real situations, and are often related to work done with the families or in the activities or visits Lessons concentrate on building up confidence in speaking English. Many classes are drama based and an end of course production is organised where students present work to their fellow students. In the evenings, all students are expected to be with their host families. Tasks will be set in class, which will encourage and support conversation with families.

A language profile form has been designed to give us as much information as possible, about the language competence of each group, so valuable time will not be wasted at the start of a course. It will help us to divide the group for teaching purposes as well as to teach to the appropriate level from the start. Our SOL teachers are happy to get any information, request or ideas concerning the teaching (such as grammar or communication based lessons, topics etc.). Rather than have placement tests, the visiting teachers, knowing their students, can help form the teaching groups much better than a written test after a tiring journey. We welcome all visiting teachers into the classroom during lessons, we also ask that teachers supervise the students during breaks.