• About Mrs. Friend

    Family

    I love spending time with my family as much as I can!  My mom (Pat), sister (Renee), brother-in-law (Chris), and niece (Bethany) are all in the Columbus area.  I don’t get to spend as much time with them as I would like to.  My dad (Charlie) and my step mom (Betty) are here in the area.   I get to see them often as my son loves to spend time at his “Pa and Gram’s.”   I have a son (Luke) from a previous marriage.  He is eight and he will be going in 3rd grade this year here at Beverly Gardens.  He has attended Beverly Gardens since kindergarten.  I love having him attend school here and he loves BG! He is obsessed with Legos and Star Wars right now. We recently added a 3rd member to our family.  We adopted a dog named Rosco this summer.  He is 9 years old and he is a sweet boy.  We love him and have welcomed him into our home.  I am wonderfully blessed to have these special people in my family!

     

    Hobbies

    My family enjoys attending church and participating in many church activities together.  We spend lots of time at the pool in the summer.  I enjoy expressing my creative side with rubber stamp art and scrapbooking.  I also love to read, shop, watch good movies and find new and fresh ideas for my home and classroom on Pinterest.

     

    Education

    I have known since I was a little girl that I wanted to be a teacher.  I loved school as a little girl.  I would “teach” my stuffed animals and my little sister endless lessons.  I love teaching, but I also love to learn.  I really enjoyed my days in school.  I graduated high school from Vandalia-Butler many moons ago.  I went to Sinclair Community College and earned an Associate Early Childhood Degree.  I went to the University of Dayton and graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Primary Education.  I fell in love with teaching reading and I went back the University of Dayton to earn my Master’s Degree in Literacy.  I continually attend professional development workshops to continue to learn and grow professionally and collaborate with many colleagues throughout the district and state of Ohio.

    Experience

    I began my professional career working with children in a preschool at a daycare.  I spent 8 years teaching preschoolers in various settings including Mini University, Head Start, and the Northridge/Vandalia Preschool.  After finishing my Bachelor’s Degree, I began teaching first grade here in Mad River.  I developed a passion for teaching reading and writing.  I taught 8 years in first grade before moving to kindergarten.  This will be my 7th year teaching kindergarten.  I have a passion for teaching little ones and helping them to develop a love of learning.