One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned as an auxiliar has nothing to do with teaching itself. It’s about not saving my progress. During my first year, I didn’t really lesson plan. And honestly, I didn’t need to. Most days, I handled warm-up activities, games, or conversation starters. It was easy to decide what I was doing with the kids on the walk to school. No stress, no elaborate plans, just vibes and a solid game of Hangman or a speaking activity. It worked until it didn’t.
Now that I’m in my second year, I’ve realized something: I really wish I had saved what I was doing. Even simple things. Because when you don’t, every week starts to feel like you’re reinventing the wheel. You end up asking yourself the same questions over and over. What did we talk about last week? What level are they at again? What activity worked really well that one time?
If I had saved my progress, I could’ve gone into each week already knowing the topic, the vocabulary, and the flow of the class. I could’ve spent my time finding ways to supplement the lesson instead of starting from zero every time.
The good news is I caught on early in my second year. Now, whenever I find a helpful YouTube video, a website, a game, or an activity that actually works, I save it immediately. I’ve started organizing everything by week. Week 1 topics. Week 2 activities. Backup games. Conversation prompts. Everything has a place. And the best part, this system isn’t just for this year.
For example:
October
- Week 1 (Oct 1–4): Introduction week → “Getting to Know Me + America” (photos, maps, quick facts about the U.S.)
- Week 2 (Oct 7–11): Tennessee → geography, music (Nashville & country roots), food (hot chicken, BBQ). Activity: “Guess That Music Genre” listening game.
- Week 3 (Oct 14–18): Halloween intro → traditions, costumes, trick-or-treating. Activity: show photos, explain candy culture, maybe carve/decorate paper pumpkins.
- Week 4 (Oct 21–25): Halloween game → trivia, “Halloween Bingo,” or a simple “Costume Guessing” charades-style game.
Under each week, I’ve organized everything by class levels: 1/2/3 years and 4/5/6 years, since I’m working in a primary school. This way, each lesson is tailored to the age group and developmental stage. On top of that, I include supplementary resources to enhance the lesson: YouTube video links, word wall references, and any other relevant links that connect to the day’s topic. This helps make the presentations more engaging and interactive for the students, while also giving me a clear roadmap for the day.
I’m building something I can reuse. If I teach again next year or even the year after that, I won’t be scrambling. I’ll already have a structure. I can reuse, tweak, and improve instead of constantly planning from scratch. Less stress, less mental load, and more energy for actually enjoying life in Spain.
Keep in mind that every school does things a little differently, so your workload may not look anything like mine or another auxiliar’s. For example, during my first year, one of the teachers I worked with usually had me lead a 10- or 15-minute warm-up activity before he took over the rest of the class. With another teacher, my role was much more hands-off. I would help pass out papers, read things in English, or occasionally help students with pronunciation.
My second year was completely different. The teachers expected me to have a lesson plan prepared for each class, which meant planning the presentation, activities, games, and other parts of the lesson myself. So, don’t assume your workload will be the same as another auxiliar’s. Your responsibilities will depend heavily on your school, teachers, grade levels, and how they choose to use your role.
My best advice is to be overprepared, especially in the beginning. It’s always better to have an extra activity, game, or lesson idea ready to go than to find yourself standing in front of a classroom thinking, Well… now what? Having a few backup activities in your pocket can save you more than once.
So if you know you’re planning to do this for two, three, or even four years, take this as your sign. Save your progress. Organize your lesson ideas by week. Even if your role feels informal now, future-you will appreciate having something to fall back on. Because the goal isn’t to make teaching harder. It’s to make your life easier. Plan a little. Save everything. And then go do what you came to Spain to do: enjoy yourself.
Love always,
American Girl Meets World
