Teacher Appreciation Week: Mrs. Knoche

Mrs. Knoche has devoted 22 years of her life to teaching at City High, but most people don’t know that the beloved geometry teacher almost led a very different life.

“I had two choices of careers in college that I kind of went back and forth between, and one was teaching and the other one was being a DJ,” she said. “Then I went and I spent a week with my old calculus teacher in high school and I just realized then that teaching was what I wanted to do.”

Mrs. Knoche might’ve been a good DJ, but she’s made a much better teacher. She’s a social butterfly and always wanders around her classroom to make sure all of her students have the lesson under control.

“I like being with the kids, getting to know [them], and helping them with things that they struggle with,” she said. “It is fun… I can’t imagine having a job where I don’t get to talk to people every day.”

During her time teaching at City High Mrs. Knoche has taught thousands of students everything geometry, but she has learned that it is important to make sure that every subject and unit she teaches is understood by her students.

For many math is one of the more intimidating subjects, but it has always been easy for Mrs. Knoche. She thrives when she’s helping students tackle their various questions and giving them the step by step process on how to solve even the most difficult of equations.

“You have to be able to figure out what you’re doing and make a subject teachable to the students who might not otherwise understand it,” said Mrs. Knoche. “It’s always a little challenge every night to get that lesson plan and think [about] how are students going to perceive this and how I need to tell them.”

Mrs. Knoche prioritizes her students’ needs and is always willing to adjust to make sure everyone understands the lessons. She is always devoted to helping her students with math and, more importantly, being a person her students can trust