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Editor's note: WIB presents "Head of Class," a two-part, autobiographical series chronicling guest blogger Matt Wood's experiences as a student teacher. The following was edited for grammar, clarity and length to bring the quality of writing up to a high school competency level.

Head of Class, Part 1: A Formal Rebellion

Most of you know that I have been working on my student teaching over here in Spokane at University High School. I teach US History and Current World Problems four days a week to 132 junior and seniors, including Kenna's little sister.

Two weeks ago I had my first observation. The day before my advisor was to come in, I told my students what was going to happen, and I tried to prep them for what to expect. My students all stated they understood and would behave appropriately. The next day, five male students, who usually wear baseball caps with well-worn sweatshirts and blue jeans, come in wearing dress shirts, ties and slacks. They take their seats right in front of my advisor and proceed to tell me how eager they are to learn.

Throughout my entire lesson these five guys keep raising their hands saying how this is the best lesson they have ever heard and that they were dying to hear what I have planned next. When I was lecturing, all five guys would nod their heads and scribble notes as if they were grossly engaged with the material at hand. At the end of class the guys came up to me and said they could not wait to get home and start their homework because this is their favorite class and I am such a great teacher.

The entire time I could hardly keep myself from laughing in the front of the class. Seeing their nodding heads with quizzical looks plastered on their faces was almost more then I could handle. My advisor told me in his 30 plus years of teaching he had never seen anything like that. I still have four more observations, so I hope next time they don’t show up in body paint or skirts.

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I've been swamped at work, basically because of the 1,000+ stories, similar to this one, that will be published over the next few days about the new Windows Mobile operating system. So, here's your early Valentine's Day post, because I probably won't be able to get around to it later.

I have decided that I'm not entirely fond of Valentine's Day.

  • It does make singles feel like shit.
  • It mandates couples to make a special day, when they shouldn't require a holiday to make a special day for themselves.

However, I read the following counter-argument in one of my favorite sections in The Stranger, "I, Anonymous." Reader discretion advised...

KISS MY ASS, VALENTINE HATERS

I want to wish a great big FUCK YOU to the singles out there who whine about Valentine's Day. FUCK YOU! In the past when I was single on Valentine's Day, I didn't expect the world to stop the holiday on my behalf. You know what I did instead? I gave cards and candy to my FAMILY, my FRIENDS, my CO-WORKERS; one year I even took flowers to a stranger in a nursing home across town. A fucking STRANGER, and it made me feel great. I still give cards to the people I love platonically. What the fuck is wrong with you if you can only show love to someone who FUCKS YOU? Why don't you get off your ass and show love first -- instead of think the day is a plot against you? Why the belief that a holiday has to stop just because YOU don't celebrate it? What, are you going to tell the world that celebrating Chinese New Year is all about making YOU feel bad because you're not Chinese? Maybe you're fucking single because you're a whiny loser who thinks the WORLD REVOLVES AROUND YOU.

I can subscribe to that argument. Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

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While Anna Nicole Smith's death steals frontpage headlines, there's a bigger story that needs to be told. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that autism effects about one in every 150 children born in the U.S. -- that's up from a previous estimate of autism effecting one in every 166 children.

According to a Reuters report, "Two surveys by the agency encompassed 22 states and represented the largest and most comprehensive studies of how many children have autism. "

 "Finally, we can end the debate on the prevalence of autism in our nation and focus on getting the services and supports the families need," said Lee Grossman, Chief Executive Officer of the Autism Society of America.

This report raises awareness and prompts two questions:

  1. How can we fund and what educational resources can we offer the public and children affected by autism?
  2. People affected by autism have full life expectancies. What resources can we offer the increasing number of adults and seniors affected by autism?

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My PR company was named Washington CEO's Best Place to Work last year. Today exemplifies why:

  • Noah's Bagels with a variety of spreads for breakfast.
  • Vincenzo's Italian cuisine for lunch.
  • Four cases of beer for the afternoon.

Not bad. Not bad at all. And I love Redhook ESB.