The students will research different U.S. Cold War strategies and determine which strategy they agree with the most. The students will then move into different corners of the room based on their decision and collaborate with the students who agree with them so they can develop multiple arguments to defend the decision.
California Academic Standard(s)
- 11.9.2 - Understand the role of military alliances, including NATO and SEATO, in deterring communist aggression and maintaining security during the Cold War.
- 11.9.4 - List the effects of foreign policy on domestic policies and vice versa (e.g., protests during the war in Vietnam, the "nuclear freeze" movement).
- 11.9.5 - Analyze the role of the Reagan administration and other factors in the victory of the West in the Cold War.
- Two (50) minute classes - Great for Block!
The students will acquire critical thinking, social, presentation, writing and organizational skills while understanding and evaluating strategies employed by the United States during the period of the Cold War.
Learning Styles
- Linguistic
- Auditory
- Physical
- Social
- Logical
Lesson Plan
Anticipatory Set (10 min)
The instructor will write a question on the board that states "What do you think the term "Cold War" means? The instructor will allow the students two minutes to think about the question. The instructor will call on random students to answer the question and write the answers on the board.
Direct Instruction (15 min)
The instructor will briefly discuss the origins and major events of the Cold War. The instructor will provide the students with the following handout:
Cold War Strategies
Working with your partner, you will research and evaluate the following Cold War strategies:
- Massive Retaliation
- Flexible Response
- Detente
- Peace Through Strength
- Who proposed the strategy?
- When was the strategy implemented?
- What are the details of the strategy?
- What was the effect of the strategy? Explain.
- Provide a one sentence explanation of the strategy (Elevator Speech)
Using the computer and overhead, the instructor will answer the questions for the proposed Cold War strategy of "Nuclear Freeze".
Guided Practice (25 min)
The instructor will place the students in groups of two. The students will work together to complete the Cold War strategy handout.
Checks for Understanding (15 min)
The instructor will call on random students to provide information for each Cold War strategy. The instructor will write the answer on the board under a heading for each strategy.
Direct Instruction (5 min)
The instructor will place cards with the four different Cold War strategies on each corner of the room. The instructor will tell the students to take a couple of minutes of silent thinking to determine which strategy they agree with the most. After the contemplation time is complete, the students will walk to the corner with the strategy they agree with. The instructor will tell the students in each corner that they must come up with a minimum of three arguments to defend why they chose the particular Cold War strategy.
Modeling (5 min)
Using the computer and overhead, the instructor will provide three arguments for the proposed strategy of "nuclear freeze".
Guided Practice (20 min)
The students will take a couple of minutes of thinking to decide which Cold War strategy they agree with the most. The students will then go to the corner of the room with the strategy name. The students will then discuss the reasons why with the others at their corner. The group will decide on the best three arguments to defend their position.
Checks for Understanding (15 min)
The instructor will call on random students from each corner to provide and argument for their preferred Cold War strategy. The instructor will write the argument on the board. The instructor will then engage the students to debate the validity of each argument.
Checks for Understanding
The students will submit their question answers about the Cold War strategies to the instructor.
Direct Instruction (10 min)
The instructor will summarize each Cold War strategy and the success and or failure of each one.