The Soviet Union's decision to block West Berlin from access by the Western allies began an international hostility that extended into the rest of the twentieth century. Class members examine both Harry Truman's and Joseph Stalin's mindsets at the beginning of the Cold War to better understand why the Berlin Blockade occured—and how it came to define relations between the USSR and the rest of the world.

Concepts

the cold war, joseph stalin, winston churchill, the soviet union, atomic bombs, hiroshima, nagasaki, berlin blockade

Show More Show Less

Additional Tags

social studies

Show More Show Less

Instructional Ideas

• Use the activity in the context of a larger lesson on post-World War II Europe
• Reenact the blockade in class; allow a small number of students to guard another group in one section of the class, and brainstorm ways to get resources to the guarded group

Classroom Considerations

• Map on the fifth page is difficult to read; project a clearer map of the distribution of Germany after World War II
• Learners should have some prior knowledge of Joseph Stalin, the Cold War, and the end of World War II
• Resource has a lot of images as background, so you may want to move the text onto another document for easier reading

Pros

• Encourages learners to look at all perspectives of a historical event
• Each page includes different activities

Cons

• None

Common Core

RH.6-8.3 RH.9-10.3 RH.11-12.3