Cold War and Vietnam STAAR Review

Cold War

Prosperity and Culture After WWII

• To help WWII veterans return to

their civilian life, the Servicemen’s
Readjustment Act, also called the GI
Bill,gave them educational benefits
and low-interest mortgages which
encouraged them to buy new
homes

• As a result, homeownership in the

U.S. doubled helping to stimulate
the economy and the suburbs began
to grow and prosper

• The Interstate Highway Act

connected the suburbs and cities,
allowing for efficient transportation
of goods and people

Multiple Choice

2024 STAAR Question:

The trends in this list all occurred as a result of -

• an increase in immigration after World War II

• the creation of the Department of Housing and Urban Development

• reductions in peacetime defense spending

• economic prosperity following World War II

Multiple Choice

Which factor is MOST LIKELY contributed to this growth?

• A

• B

• C

• D

Post War Fears

• After WWII, Europe was divided between

Soviet influence and western influence by an
imaginary line known as the Iron Curtain

• The Soviets cut off West Berlin, so the Allies

launched the Berlin Airlift todrop supplies to
the people in need

• The U.S. adopted new foreign policies:

1.

Containment- the U.S. objective to stop
communism from spreading to other
countries

2.

The Marshall Plan - the U.S. loaned money
to countries to help them rebuild their
economies, which benefitted U.S. trade

3.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) -
an arrangement between the U.S. and its
western European allies that if one country
was attacked, then all would come to its
assistance

Multiple Choice

Which statement describes the response of the U.S government during this time period?

• A

• B

• C

• D

Red Scare

• The U.S. saw communism spreading

and feared communists were trying to
overthrow the American government

• The House Un-American Activities

Committee (HUAC) was established to
investigate suspected communist
activity of average Americans and
Hollywood actors/filmmakers

• Senator Joseph McCarthy claimed he

knew hundreds of communists that had
infiltrated the U.S. government

• As a result, U.S. citizens were arrested

for being suspected communists,
despite having evidence against the
claims

Categorize

Options (3)

Scare of communism spreading in the U.S

Created to investigate possible communist in the U.S

Senator McCarthy claimed he knew of communist infiltrated the U.S government

Organize these options into the right categories

Red Scare

HUAC

McCarthyism

Korean War

•Shortly after China fell to
communism, North Korea
invaded South Korea to
reunite the lands under
communist rule

•The U.S. decided to intervene
and led an attack to contain
communism from spreading

•The U.S. sent General
MacArthur to the Korean
peninsula and eventually
drove the North Korean army
out of South Korea

Multiple Choice

2024 STAAR Question:

Read the excerpt and answer the question that follows. 

What was the PRIMARY goal of the foreign policy described in this excerpt?      

• To increase U.S. colonization of Asia

• To prevent the spread of communist influence in Asia

• To end trade sanctions against Asian countries

• To protect U.S. soldiers stationed in Asian countries

Multiple Choice

What issue was president Truman referring to in this address?

• A

• B

• C

• D

Space Race and Technological Advances

• In 1957, the Soviets launched
Sputnik I which was the first
satellite to orbit earth

• This launched the space race and
the U.S. and Soviets competed to
have the best space program

• The U.S. increased spending on
technology, science, math, and
engineering programs, and
established NASA

• Jonas Salk created the first
vaccine for polio, which was a
common disease among children

Multiple Choice

How did the creation of NASA influence the U.S economy during the 1960's?

• A

• B

• C

• D