Elise Adams

Hello, my name is Elise Adams. I am from New York, but I currently teach English in Madrid, Spain.

Hello, my name is Elise Adams. I am from New York, but I currently teach English in Madrid, Spain. 

Prior to teaching English, I worked in the journalism field in New York City at NBC, and then later at a start-up. So how did I get into teaching? Well, living in Spain was definitely something I wanted to do at some point in my 20’s, but I wasn’t sure how I was going to make it happen. It was something I talked about often but had no real plan for. 

When life slowed down tremendously during the COVID-19 pandemic, my perspective changed. I realised I was pushing some of my goals in life aside to advance in a job I was not happy in. That was when I decided I would take some time off to live and work in Spain. I knew teaching was a good fit for me because I have always loved working with kids. Their energy, curiosity, and eagerness to learn and have fun has always brought out joy in me.

After doing extensive research online, I knew I needed to get TEFL certified before applying to teaching jobs. I came across The TEFL Academy, and this is where I took the Online Level 5 TEFL course. This course helped me understand how to structure an effective lesson; they provide useful lesson ideas and insights into how to make sure your students comprehend the lesson - it was very helpful. If you want to get a good teaching job and be an effective teacher for your students, I recommend that you take this course. 

Fast forward a few months, and I had been accepted to teach English at a school in Madrid, Spain. I have now been teaching here for 3 months and can say that it is one of the best decisions I could have made for myself. I teach 2nd to 6th grade, and I continue to be challenged in ways that push me to be a better teacher. 

The kids I teach are at the age where they are still very curious and naturally inquisitive about everything, and they have not developed much of a filter yet. They are not afraid to ask questions or be completely honest with you, which I appreciate. I am constantly laughing with them in the classroom, and while I am the teacher, I have learned a lot from my students. 

If you are considering moving to a different country to teach English, the best advice I could give is to just do it. Living abroad puts you out of your comfort zone, builds self-awareness, and opens your eyes to different perspectives. It is an endless learning experience. I think you start off discovering differences between the places you go and the people you meet, but in the end, you find a lot of commonalities among people.