Hardly a month goes by, it seems, without some headlines devoted to autism. This October, the news is of a New England Journal of Medicine article finding no link between autism and a vaccine; research from the University of Wisconsin that the condition improves as people age into adulthood; and a People magazine story about actress Jenny McCarthy's struggle to help her son, who has the disorder. To help your students fully understand autism, we've put together "All About Autism," an article that follows three very different teens who have the condition. We hope you and your class find it a valuable source of background information.

The October issue features other articles you can tie into your lesson planning. As the school year goes into full swing, you're likely to see students segmenting themselves into cliques. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as "The In Crowd" demonstrates: Cliques can help teens grow more confident and socially skilled. That doesn't mean cliques don't sometimes have pitfalls. We hope you and your students enjoy a lively debate about the relative merits--and problems--of becoming one of the gang.

Sincerely,

Meredith Matthews