Auntie Stella can be used by both youth in school and out of school. Whether you are a teacher, peer counselor or facilitator, your role in the Auntie Stella sessions is extremely important.

It is, however, rather different from traditional teaching methods where the teacher controls and knows about everything that is said and done. Young people are generally most at ease discussing the letters in small single-sex groups, and it is essential to give them privacy when they are doing this, and to avoid listening in to what they say.

However, young people definitely need you to help when they have problems with the methodology of the website, or with difficult vocabulary or unfamiliar cultural references. The letters were written for a Zimbabwean situation, so some may not be relevant to you. If this is the case, skip these topics, or discuss similar problems young people face in their own lives.

If students are working around computers, suggest that their groups are single-sex - at least to start off with. As far as possible, arrange the groups so that they can't overhear each other - for example, with the girls' groups in one part of the room, and the boys in another. They can talk in whatever language they're most at ease in - remind them that there is a glossary card for difficult words, or translate if they ask you.

The user instructions suggest that they mix with the opposite sex for a session or two - but only when they know what the website is like, and only if they want to.