Beth Winton is an Extended Education Experience teacher at
Jefferson Junior High School and Lange Middle School. Missouri
State Treasurer Clint Zweifel spoke to my class of 8th-9th grade
gifted students at Jefferson Junior High to discuss the “fiscal
cliff,” the large and looming tax increases and spending cuts
that were put in place by Congress to encourage an agreement. I
invited him to speak to my class as the culminating activity for
a unit I teach called Rights and Responsibilities. I have been
teaching this unit for many years, but this year provided new
and interesting dynamics. During the Rights and Responsibilities
unit, students become familiar with the Constitution and the
Bill of Rights. They discuss the differences in rights and
responsibilities between minors and adults. They explore the
concepts of each person’s responsibility to society and their
view on the government’s responsibility to society. Students
read and discuss the Patriot Act, the law that expanded the
government’s capabilities in