This article discusses another ancillary project of the Writers In Electronic Residence's (WIER) program, "The Virtual Practicum," which provides online practice teaching placements to pre-service candidates. WIER offered its first virtual practicum in 1989 through the former Faculty of Education, University of Toronto, and has since expanded to include programs at several institutions; other initiatives have appeared elsewhere, developing notions of what virtual practica might be. WIER's virtual practicum signals the value of, and need for, identifying and supporting shared professional interests--including those articulated across learning communities, comprising different aspirations within shared contexts. The program links WIER explicitly to teacher education, developing and enhancing the kinds of "apprenticeship-learning" McKinnon describes within WIER's "electronic residency," creating a kind of online "studio" setting for communities of learners. WIER's aspirations for the program have been modest, responding more to particular than general interests in teacher education; however, these have nurtured broader initiatives, bridging pre-service and in-service programs through mentorship, critical reflection and inquiry. One of the author's experience in participating on WIER's virtual practicum is presented. (Contains 10 endnotes.)