Just liker her mother who was also a teacher, Ms. Gonsman has had a passion for education since she was young.
“When I was little I enjoyed playing with my mom’s teaching supplies,” said new 7th and 8th grade science teacher Mrs. Gonsman, who took over the roll for Mr. Hescox this year. It wasn’t until later she started thinking about trying a teaching career and realized she could have fun with it.
Ms. Gonsman went to Altoona Area High School and then to Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Before starting her teaching career she went to the Salon Professional Academy for her cosmetology license.
She became first interested in science during her high school microbiology class.
“I like everything about the topic – plants, animals, diseases, cells, genetics, so I like sharing that and making it interesting for others,” she said.
Ms. Gonsman is loved by all her students.
“She’s very patient with us and is a fun teacher to have for science,” said 8th grade student Hayden Drost.
Ms. Gonsman’s favorite thing about teaching is, “making a subject people find boring or hard interesting.”
The most difficult part of teaching, she said, is “keeping up with the lesson plans, grades, emails, and other difficult tasks along the way.”
Ms. Gonsman said her experience at Bellwood-Antis has been good, and the amazing staff and students have made it easy and enjoyable for her to teach.
