The new school year has brought new teachers with it! One of those new teachers is Mr. Maya, a 7th grade science teacher in room 14. Here’s a little bit about him!

Q: What was your favorite subject in school?

A: Probably science or math.

Q: Where did you go to college, and what were your majors?

A: I did my undergrad at UC Irvine, and I majored in chemistry. And then I got my teaching credential from Cal State Long Beach. And then I did my masters online at Western Governor’s University, and my masters is in curriculum and instruction.

Q: Do you have a teaching motto, or something you like to remind yourself?

A: Yeah, I would say just for me, I try to have fun and make it fun.

Q: When did you know you wanted to be a teacher, and why?

A: I didn’t know it, but I was teaching Junior Lifeguards, and I really liked doing that, and that’s kind of where I started to really feel like… I guess building the skills that you need to be a teacher, that’s where it started. Yeah, just after some, like, life events and doing some reflecting, I decided to go back and quit my job, and go to school and become a teacher.

Q: What advice would you give to your middle school self?

A: Maybe just, it’s okay to be yourself, and stop worrying about what other people think about you.

Q: If you could take your classes on a field trip anywhere in the world, where would you go?

A: This isn’t super far, but it’s something that would be really cool, but I feel like it would be cool to go to Catalina. Like an overnight trip.

Q: What do you do in your free time?

A: I like to work out, I like to go camping/backpacking, and travel.

Q: What’s your favorite place to travel to?

A: I really love the Pacific Northwest, like Oregon and Washington. Super pretty.

Q:  What is the most rewarding part of your job?

A: I mean, I feel like just getting to see, like, students grow and getting to see them in many different areas. And not just in my classroom, but going to choir shows or band performances and just getting to see how talented all the students are.

Make sure to thank Mr. Maya for the hard work he does as a teacher!