Lesson 1: Postwar Tensions
Duration of Days: 6
Lesson Objective
Describe the ideological and strategic reasons for conflict between Western democracies and the Soviet Union.
Compare Soviet and U.S. motives during their occupation of Europe following World War II.
Describe the different types of conflicts that occurred within Central Europe during the Cold War.
Analyze the effectiveness of nuclear deterrence in maintaining peace between the United States and the Soviet Union.
Evaluate the danger illustrated by the Cuban Missile Crisis as well as the long-term consequences of the event.
Why did the Soviet Union and the United States emerge from World War II as rivals?
foreign aid, domino theory, arms race, collective security, Warsaw Pact, Red Scare, blockade, Iron Curtain, Cuban Missile Crisis, communism, Berlin Airlift, Berlin Wall, Truman Doctrine, Cold War, superpower, Yalta Conference, command economy, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Apollo Program, containment, Marshall Plan, Space Race, Sputnik, capitalism
Analyze complex and interacting factors that influenced the perspectives about
international laws and treaties in the Cold War era (e.g., United Nations, Geneva
Conventions, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Warsaw Pact, Nuclear Non-Proliferation
Treaty)
3,4
Creation of Nuclear Energy and the Nuclear Bomb
the belief that the United States could have easily prevented the Soviet takeover of Eastern Europe, that the American public was fully supportive of the war effort, that the war's end brought immediate peace and prosperity, that the only major conflict was the Cold War, and that the majority of soldiers readily volunteered for service, when in reality many were drafted.
? Provide graphic organizers to
guide students in note-taking as
they explore. Teachers may want
to include additional directions or
cloze elements in these notes.
Use assessments from techbook
Inquiry based projects
Maps, Readings, Videos, Images, Primary, Secondary Sources