Cold War Lesson Plan

What is a Cold War?

• In order to answer you need to know what a "HOT WAR" is.

• A "Hot War" is when actual battles and literal shots are fired.

What is a Cold War?

• No DIRECT fighting between the US / Western Europe and the Soviets

• Period of high tensions (1945-1991)

• Big Fear: NUCLEAR FALL-OUT...Cold War will become a Hot War

• Due to the availability of nuclear weapons, the threat of war also meant there was the threat of a nuclear fall-out (The world would use Nuclear Weapons on one another causing massive destruction)

Multiple Select

What was the Cold War? CHECK ALL THAT APPLY

• No DIRECT fighting between the US / Western Europe and the Soviets

• Period of high tensions (1945-1991)

• Big Fear: NUCLEAR FALL-OUT...Cold War will become a Hot War

• The worlds greatest snowball fight

• All the Above

Open Ended

What was the biggest fear during the Cold War?

After WWII

• During World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union set aside their differences.

• As they moved toward victory in 1945 (near the end of the war), these  two powerful nations began to disagree about what the world was to be like after the war.

How / Why Did the Cold War Start?

• Choices at end of WWII

• U.S. and other members of the U.N. wanted to rebuild Germany and the rest of Europe. The idea was that you Don’t kick someone when they are down. (Remember what happened after the Treaty of Versailles)

• The Soviet Union (USSR) wanted to set up a buffer zone between themselves and Germany, Set up puppet governments in Eastern Europe, Blame Germany and harshly hold them responsible.

Multiple Choice

What was the main disagreement between the US and USSR after WWII?

• Germany

• Skittles

• Money

Super Powers

• The U.S. and Soviet Union emerged as the world’s two Superpowers. 

• Both had the military and the political strength to influence worldwide events. 

• Distrust developed between the two countries.

  
  

Multiple Select

Who were the two super powers during the Cold War? CHECK ALL THAT APPLY

• United States

• USSR

• US

• Soviet Union

Germany Divided...The Iron Curtain

After the war's end, Germany was divided which created West Germany and Eastern Germany. This division is what is referred to as the iron curtain, because it was almost as if the line not only divided Germany but divided Eastern and Western Europe. Eastern Europe were under Communist control.

Germany Divided

When Germany was divided. The Soviet Union gained control of the capital city of BERLIN. The Allies made further fractions by dividing BERLIN into zones.

Berlin Divided

This is how Berlin was divided East Berlin and West Berlin.

Contrast in Government and Economy

• The United States took the position of spreading democracy and promoting growth through world trade by way of a free market economy  or free enterprise.

  
  

•  Soviet leaders wanted to spread communism. Soviet Union moved into countries like Poland, Romania, Hungry, & East Germany after WWII (Creation of the U.S.S.R.- United Soviet Socialist Republic)

Multiple Choice

Which country was a communist country?

• The United States

• The Soviet Union

Multiple Choice

Which country was a capitalist country?

• The United States

• The Soviet Union

Trouble

• Both countries began to stockpile weapons in case of war. 

• Weapons buildup, space race, and continued support of its Communist countries cost the Soviet Union a lot of money. 

• With the drain in money, the economy began to falter  Too often, government planning left many Communist countries with barely enough food and goods to meet their citizens’ needs.

• The U.S. didn’t like the way in which the Soviets were expanding their territory.  Tensions rose even higher when Cuba allowed the Soviet Union to place Nuclear Missiles in Cuba and point them at the U.S.

The US Strategy

• The Truman Doctrine – The U. S. would support any country that was fighting for democracy against communism. 

• The Marshall Plan – also known as Economic Cooperation Act  Was created by United States Secretary of State, George C. Marshall in June 1947 United States gave aid to Western European countries.   The aid was in the form of supplies, machinery, and food worth $13 billion! The economic recovery (success) that followed, weakened the appeal of communism!  

• Containment Policy The U. S. believed the best way to end communism was to keep it from spreading.

Cold War Events

• Soviets installed Satellite States in Eastern Europe

• The Marshal Plan rebuilt Western Europe

• The Berlin Blockade and Airlift

• Soviets cut off Berlin from the west

• US flew supplies to Berliners

• Creation of NATO and Warsaw Pact

Open Ended

What was the Berlin Wall?

Multiple Choice

Which country flew and dropped supplies by airplane to Berlin?

• The US

• The USSR

Cold War Events

• Alliances of Western powers and Eastern Powers

• Creation of Israel – safe haven for Jews

• Start of Arab / Israeli Wars

• Korean War

• War by Proxy. (Support others who are fighting) Vietnam

• Arms Race -Conventional and nuclear

Cold War Events

• Propaganda

• Spies / Espionage against one another

• Space Race

• Cuban Missile Crisis

Poll

Which event from the previous list looked like an interesting research topic?

• Start of Arab / Israeli Wars

• Korean War

• Vietnam War

• Arms Race -Conventional and nuclear

• Spies / Espionage

Open Ended

What was the SPACE RACE?

Open Ended

What was the Cuban Missile Crisis?

Reunification of Germany

• In 1989, after weeks of protest, East Germany relaxed its borders and allowed citizens to travel to West Berlin and West Germany. 

• The people of Germany climbed on top and began to tear the wall apart.  1990- New government was elected and Germany was reunited

end of the Cold War

• 1991- group of Soviet leaders tried to take over the government. 

• They failed and the Soviet Republics declared independence. 

• The Soviet Union came to an end and officially split into 15 republics. 

• The Cold War was Over! The U.S.S.R. is over and the majority of land is renamed Russia.

Open Ended

What do you think would have happened if the Cold War became a Hot War?