1. Our Democratic Way of Life

We are about to elect a president. This is something we take for granted, but people in other parts of the world don't have the right to choose their leaders. One of the great leaders of modern history, Winston Churchill, once said: "Democracy is the worst form of government, except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time." Look through the newspaper for articles about countries where the military or dictators of one kind or another rule. Then use what you have learned to write an essay about what you would do to make democracy in the United States better, or how the U.S. could help bring democracy to another country.

Common Core/National Standards: Producing clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization and style are appropriate to the task, purpose and audience; explaining how the rule of law protects individual rights and serves the common good.

2. The Last Debate

On Monday, October 22 presidential candidates Barack Obama and Mitt Romney will have their final face-to-face debate of the campaign. It will take place at 9 p.m. at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida. The debate will be the third between the candidates, and will give undecided voters another opportunity to make up their minds about whom to support. The Republican Romney picked up support after his strong performance in the first debate. Obama was stronger in the second debate. Watch Monday’s debate and read follow-up stories about it this week in your newspaper. At the end of the week, write a short editorial for the newspaper summarizing how the third debate has affected the campaign and which candidate seems in a better position for success on Election Day on November 6.

Common Core/National Standards: Producing clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization and style are appropriate to the task, purpose and audience;

3. Know, Wonder, Learn — About the NBA!

Training camps have begun for the National Basketball Association, and millions of NBA fans are excited. Following basketball in the newspaper is a great way to build reading skills if you use the approach called Know, Wonder and Learn. With this approach, called KWL for short, you ask yourself questions every time you read something. First, you ask what you already KNOW about the subject. Then you ask what you WONDER or WANT TO KNOW about the subject. Then you read and ask what you have LEARNED about the subject by reading. Practice KWL by finding a short story in the newspaper about your favorite basketball team in the NBA. Write out what you already KNOW about the team. Then write what you WONDER or WANT TO KNOW about the team. Then read the story and write what you LEARNED about the team by reading. When you have finished your NBA search, repeat this activity with a story about something outside the world of sports.

Common Core/National Standards: Producing clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization and style are appropriate to the task, purpose and audience; making connections between key ideas in texts and students' own lives.

4. Edith & Henry

Edith Wharton and Henry James were very accomplished writers of the 19th and 20th centuries. Wharton wrote such books as "The Age of Innocence," "Ethan Frome" and "The House of Mirth." James' writings included "The Turn of the Screw," "Daisy Miller" and "The Portrait of a Lady." Wharton and James were also good friends. This October 26 marks the 112th anniversary of the start of their written correspondence to one another. Look for an article in today's newspaper that amuses, interests or worries you. Write a friendly letter to a friend about it. Now send it!

Common Core/National Standards: Producing clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization and style are appropriate to the task, purpose and audience; using the English language effectively.

5. Black Tuesday

On October 29, 1929, the stock market crashed, an event that contributed to The Great Depression and a worldwide economic downturn. Imagine you have been given 100 shares in today’s stock market in five different companies. You get to decide which companies you want to invest in and which percentage of your shares will be from each company. Follow your shares in the newspaper throughout the week. Record what shares of each company are worth for each of your companies each day of the week, and use a calculator to determine what your number of shares is worth for each company each day. At the end of the week, do a final tally for the worth of your shares and compare what they are worth to what they were worth the first day. Did you make or lose money overall?

Common Core/National Standard: Using addition, subtraction, multiplication and division to solve problems; acquiring information from books, maps, newspapers, data sets and other sources; interpreting the meaning and significance of the information.