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Petrie U.S. History and Geography

Cold War (1945-1975)

Subject:
U.S. History and Geography
Start Date:
End Date:
Goal Summary:
Students analyze the response of the United States to communism after World War II.
Standards Met:
IDs Only
Detail
Essential Questions:
Was the Cold War inevitable?

Was containment an effective policy to thwart communist expansion?

Should the United States have feared internal communist subversion in the 1950s?

Should the United States have fought “limited wars” to contain communism?

Should President Kennedy have risked nuclear war to remove missiles from Cuba?

Did American presidents have good reasons to fight a war in Vietnam?

Was the U.S. planning to go to war in Vietnam before August 1964?

Can domestic protest affect the outcome of war?

Did the war in Vietnam bring a domestic revolution to the United States?

Should the president be able to wage war without congressional authorization?

Did participation in the Vietnam War signal the return to a foreign policy of isolation for the United States?

Did the policy of detente with communist nations effectively maintain world peace?

Should the United States be concerned with human rights violations in other nations?

Were Presidents Reagan and Bush responsible for the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War?

Did the United States win the Cold War?
Content Goals:
Students will learn about the origins, policies, and impact of the Cold War on both the United States and the rest of the world. Beginning with a post World War II America, students will trace the rise of Communism worldwide and explore the progression of U.S. foreign policy.

The causes, course, and consequences of the Korean and Vietnam Wars will be examined. Students will analyze attitudes and reactions of Americans to the Red Scare, the events leading up to the the wars, as well as response to the military intervention. Additionally, students will draw parallels between foreign policy and historical events with those of the current era.

The reading of primary source documents is a key feature of this unit. Students will also perform daily writing tasks based on historical narratives, primary sources, and personal reflections. An overarching unit project will require students to gather journal/diary entries of Americans during this time period and then recreate their own series of journal entries that capture the same tone, sentiment, and attitudes.

Assessments: