about mr. maynard
Monday, August 21, 2023
Mr. Maynard with his awesome Battle of the Books team from last school year.
My two new nephews, Eamon on the left, and Graham on the right.
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Dear Students, Parents and Readers,
Thanks for visiting mrmaynardreading.com. Here is some brief information about me, Mr. Maynard. I will be beginning my 12th year of teaching during the 2023-24 school year. In the past I have primarily taught Reading, Social Studies and Writing to fifth- and sixth-graders. Six years ago, I exclusively taught eighth-grade Social Studies, which was a big change. I truly love teaching, specifically the daily opportunity to interact with children, who are just so amazing and inspiring. |
Honestly, for as much as I try to give my students on a daily basis, I feel that they give me so much more. Thus, I feel obligated to give them all that I can.
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Ironically, I never dreamed of being a teacher as a young child. Growing up in Chicago during the late eighties and early nineties, I naturally wanted to be an NBA player, thanks to my fascination with the Chicago Bulls. When it was becoming apparent in high school that my playing days were winding to an end, my ambitions shifted towards becoming a sports writer. I went to undergrad at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where I majored in broadcast journalism. While doing some sports reporting in North Carolina and then working some business writing jobs, I felt like something was missing in my life. Thus, I made one of the best decisions in my life, going back to graduate school to become an elementary-school teacher.
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Mr. Maynard as a young baller in grade school
Michael Jordan was the sports idol of my youth.
I went to the U-of-I in Champaign for undergrad.
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My large family of many cousins.
I learned how to become a teacher at UIC.
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At the end of my undergraduate experience, I started thinking about teaching, in large part due to my background. I grew up in a large, extended family of many cousins. As the oldest boy in my family, I got to see many of my cousins grow up, and always enjoyed spending time with the younger kids. With teaching naturally a great opportunity to work with children, I attended graduate school at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), where in 2012 I earned my Master's degree in Elementary Education.
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Since then, I have been teaching in Chicago Public Schools (CPS). My first five years at John C. Dore Elementary School truly went fast, while my first six years at Hernandez have been a whirlwind, especially the last three school years before, during and after the pandemic. I can't wait to see what's in store for this coming school year.
In my free time, I like to hang out with my nephew Sean, my niece Bernadette, and my newest nephews Eamon (4 months) and Graham (3 months), all of whom live in Wisconsin. I also like to read, run daily, ride my exercise bike, and play and write about the game of basketball. I enjoy spending weekends fishing with my Dad. Last but not least, I enjoy collecting old sports figures from my youth called Starting Lineups. I have a very large collection and even paint my own custom figures. I also have several pets. Almost a decade ago I adopted a greyhound named Garrett. He is now 11 years old. I also have nine turtles. During my second year of teaching I bought two turtles for my classroom. In that time, my collection grew, as students gave me their turtles and I bought some more of my own. Well, now that you know more about me, I look forward to getting to know more about you this school year. In the meantime, feel free to ask me a question in the comments below. Sincerely, :-) Mr. Maynard :-) 
Catching a catfish while fishing with my Dad several summers ago
My 50-gallon tank with most of my turtles
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Former Bulldog
Now a Husky
My nephew Sean, 9, and my niece Birdie, 7, live in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which is about an hour-and-a-half from Chicago.
My greyhound Garrett is the lighter dog on the left side of the couch. The other greyhound is my parent's dog Hugo, who sadly passed away this summer. This picture captures both dogs getting caught sneaking on the couch a few summers ago.
Just a small part of my collection of sports figures.
My home turtles, chilling out on top of each other.
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