Meet Our Amazing Child Care Staff!
At The Big Barn Preschool, our well-qualified and experienced child care staff have great affection, knowledge, and understanding of young children.
These nurturing teachers guide the boys and girls through a comfortable environment away from home. They also assist the children in communicating successfully with others and developing a positive respect for themselves.
Director
Bonnie Kasman
I am very excited to be the Director of The Big Barn Preschool! I have been the Director for since May 25, 2011, and I have been working in Early Childhood Education for more then 20 years. I graduated from Western Illinois University with a BS in Early Childhood Education.
I am so excited to be the Director of such an amazing school, and I know I will be able to help the school and become ever more amazing!
While I have been here we have re-painted the school, added rubber chips to the play ground and a climber.
I am married to a wonderful man, Jim. He helps out around The Big Barn Preschool frequently. We have two children, Nicole and Chris. I have some wonderful ideas for a great year so please call (847) 278-2188 or schedule a tour of our terrific child care center. Member of GoAEYC, a Child Care organization.
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Assistant Director / Lead Teacher
Sheri Futris
My name is Sheri Futris and I've been working at The Big Barn since September 1, 2009. I started as the 3, 4 & 5 year old teacher and I am now the Assistant Director as well. I have an Early Childhood Certificate and have been teaching for 28 years.
Teaching children has always been my passion. It is amazing to watch the children grow and learn. It is an awesome experience because I still learn so much from them every day.
Teaching new experiences such as Holiday’s Around the World is something I love! This is a unit I teach every December, where the children get passports and we pretend to travel and learn about other cultures. I also enjoy watching the children go from recognizing their names to writing them.
Married to a great man, Tom and I have two children, Tyler and Chad. Some of my hobbies are watching my boys play their sports, watching T.V. and reading.
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Lead 3/4 Teacher
Brian Darrow
I have an Associate Degree in Early Childhood Education from Harper College, and have been in child care teaching children ages 3-5 for 19 years.
After working at various other centers around the area, I joined the Big Barn in February of 2016.
Working with young children to help enrich their lives is a true joy and pleasure knowing that I make a difference in their lives. My favorite activities outside of work are seeing action/horror films with my Dad and watching Mr. Who.
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Julie Hofer
Hello! My name is Julie Hofer, a.k.a "Ms. Julie". I am excited to meet yo_u! I would like to tell you a little about myself.
I was born in Illinois and grew up in Itasca. In High school I became involved in working with young children. I did some babysitting, volunteer work and worked in a daycare facility then realizing this is what I wanted to do as an adult. I went to College of DuPage where I obtained my Associates degree in Applied Science and minored in Early Childhood Education. I have three grown children that have gone on to make lives of their own. I live in Schaumburg with my husband and our cat. I enjoy cooking, taking photos, crafts/drawing and collecting HIPPOS!
I have been involved with young children for over 30 years. After college I was employed as an aide, assistant, and the last 5 years I have been a lead teacher to 2-year-olds through Pre-K. The thing I love most about working with children is their creativity and excitement they have to activities I teach. I aim for school to be both work and fun! My teaching philosophy is "play is a child's work." My goals while working with the children are safety, fun and to learn something new daily whether it is an activity or a skill. Children have always taught me that work should also be fun. I cannot wait to see where our time at Big Barn Preschool will take us and what we will find along the way.