Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Communism

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders study how Russian government has changed and how the attitudes of people have changed as a result of these political changes, while learning how to write a persuasive paper, type paragraphs, and use WP utilities.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Rise and Fall of Joseph McCarthy

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students analyze documents, cartoons, speeches and articles about Joseph McCarthy and his crusade against "Un-American" activities. They guide their research with a worksheet and participate in class discussions about their findings.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Red Scare

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students identify and interpret issues of Nativism and Protectionism in early 20th Century America. They analyze the roots of anti-immigrant movements in the Post-World War One United States. Finally, students identify and explore the...
Lesson Plan
North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics

Henry Kissinger and Detente

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
How did relations between the United States and the People's Republic of China evolve between 1950 and 1970? Your young historians will complete a timeline of events with evidence that the relationship between these two great...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

China and Communism

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders discuss what might happen if United States government took over media ownership, read Junior Scholastic article entitled "China Looks to the Future," and create chart comparing Chinese Communist government to United States...
Lesson Plan
Facing History and Ourselves

The Nazi Party Platform

For Teachers 7th - 11th Standards
Not all party platforms stay democratic. A resource covers many political issues in Germany during the time of World War II, and teaches pupils about the Nazi party platform and what went wrong. Individuals participate in a warm-up...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

McCarthyism: The Political Cartoons of Herb Block

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine McCarthyism. In this Cold War instructional activity, students analyze 6 political cartoons by Herb Block that capture the essence of the Red Scare. Students discuss the cartoons and the fear of communism that permeated...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

McCarthyism: The Effects of the Anti-Communism Fear

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students read a flowchart and look at corresponding photos to explore the anti-communist fears in the mid-twentieth century and the impact Senator Joseph McCarthy had on those fears.
Lesson Plan
Center for History Education

A Presidential Decision - The Bay of Pigs

For Teachers 6th - 12th
The lesson plan examines President Kennedy's response to the Bay of Pigs Crisis and  Cold War tensions. Academics learn how the information President Kennedy had affected his response to the question of whether to invade Cuba....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tiananmen Square

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students identify and explain the Tiananmen Square incident of June 1989. Studentsl compare what it is to be an American Citizen (Democracy) vs. Chinese Citizen (Communism). Students identify and define various vocabulary terms,...
Lesson Plan
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National Endowment for the Humanities

The Rise and Fall of Joseph McCarthy

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
"I have here in my hand . . ." The war against Communism and Joseph McCarthy’s place in it are the focus of a series of lessons examining postwar America from 1945-1954. Joseph McCarthy takes center stage in this, the final lesson...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Cold War: Anti-Communism at Home

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders take a closer look at the Red Scare. In this Cold War lesson, 11th graders read the provided literature about anti-communism in the United States and then respond to the provided discussion questions that accompany the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Follow the Marx

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Young scholars explore communism from historical and theoretical perspectives to present to fellow classmates at a teach-in. Each team of students be responsible for researching and presenting on one of the suggested topics in the activity.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Harry S. Truman - Campaign of 1948

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students establish the major events leading up to the election in 1948.  In this U.S. History lesson, students research details about Harry S. Truman, then they participate in a class discussion about him so that they are ready to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Research Activity: Grades 10-12

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students discuss the war in Iraq, Adam Michnik's essay "We, the Traitors," and the notion that we bear a collective responsibility to rise up against oppression, within a modern geo-political context. They each write a research report on...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

History: Declaration of Conscience Political Cartoons

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students examine political cartoons depicting opinions about Margaret Chase Smith's Declaration of conscience. After examining the cartoons, they create their own political cartoons about the speech. As an ongoing activity, students...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

World War II - War Comes to Hawaii

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders use geographic representations to organize, analyze, and present information on people, places, and environments. They use tools and methods of geographers to construct, interpret, and evaluate qualitative and quantitative...
Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

Animal Farm: Allegory and the Art of Persuasion

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Introduce your class members to allegory and propaganda with a series of activities designed to accompany a study of George Orwell's Animal Farm. Readers examine the text as an allegory, consider the parallels to collective farms...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

People Power

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers view a television program that explores many Eastern European residents' discontentment with communism. They work in groups to research living conditions in an Eastern European country before communism, under communism and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

McCarthysim

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders explore and analyze the impact of the Cold War at home and how the fear of communism and nuclear war affected American life throughout the Cold War. They study what role Senator Joseph McCarthy played on American fears...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Connecticut Communists

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders investigate Cold War politics. In this Connecticut history lesson, 11th graders discover details about the Connecticut Seven who were indicted for violating the Alien Registration Act of 1940. Students write closing...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Early Tensions of the Cold War

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers uncover the roots of the Cold War. In this Cold War lesson, students research the political philosophies of the Soviet Union and the United States during the era as they define key vocabulary and discuss government...
Lesson Plan
Cuban Revolution

The Cuban Revolution and Its Impact on Latin America

For Teachers 8th - 12th Standards
Fidel Castro was the iconic leader of Cuba. Yet, individuals may know little about the man or his motivations. In an engaging Web quest activity, scholars investigate Castro's political aspirations and his more ephemeral personal life...
Lesson Plan
Constitutional Rights Foundation

Refugees From Vietnam and Cambodia

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The United States may have pulled its troops from the Vietnam War in 1973, but the conflict was far from over for the citizens living in Asia at the time. An informative resource lets learners know about the wave of over 220,000...