Tomorrow morning, I begin a new chapter in my life, one that I have, in some ways, been working toward for over 25 years. Tomorrow is the first day of my student teaching at Sequim Middle School.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the system by which teachers earn their certification: after spending an average of $50,000 and four-and-a-half years of their lives in college, teachers must work for free for three months as "student teachers" in a classroom under the supervision of an experienced teacher. This, of course, does not guarantee them a job. In fact, afterward, Washington State students must pay hundreds of additional dollars in fees to receive their certificate just to enter the job market.

For those of you unfamiliar with me, I have been a classroom teacher for the past fourteen years, working for four different school districts. Before that, I worked as a private tutor and a traveling educational lecturer. I do not, however, have a Washington State teaching certificate. The next three months will, hopefully, rectify that.

With this blog, I hope to share my insights on the "student teaching" process for the benefit of other student teachers, current and future.