Learn More – Teach MoreLesson TitleDo Iron Curtains go with steel blinds?

Grade Level11th-12th

Estimated Time Required(Provide the estimated instructional time necessary for the lesson plan. First give the number of days required and then the time required each day in half-hour segments.)Number of Days: 1Number of Half-Hour Segments per Day: 3

Author InformationName: Jason PhillipsSchool: Southern Guilford High School, Greensboro, NC.

Brief Description of the LessonStudents will study the creation of the Iron Curtain and the formation of the Eastern Bloc.

Lesson Plan ObjectivesContent Objectives:1. Students will understand the origins of the Cold War.2. Students will examine the communist threat to Europe.3. Students will develop an understanding of American involvement in Europe in opposition to Communism.4. Students will examine the division of Europe between NATO and Warsaw Pact aligned countries.

Skill Objectives:1. Students will learn how to accurately label a map of post-WWII Europe.2. Students will learn how to apply information from a map to enhance content.

North Carolina Social Studies Curriculum AlignmentAccess the Table of Contents for the North Carolina Social Studies Curriculum at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/curriculum/socialstudies/2003-04/toc.html.Click on the appropriate grade level. Cut and Paste the appropriate Competency Goal(s) and Objective(s).)

COMPETENCY GOAL 10: World War II and the Beginning of the Cold War (1930s-1963) - The learner will analyze United States involvement in World War II and the war's influence on international affairs in following decades.

Objectives 10.04 Elaborate on changes in the direction of foreign policy related to the beginnings of the Cold War.

Print and Non-print MaterialsPrint Materials (textbook segments or readings)

Outline map of post-WWII Europe. Copy of Section II of the Yalta agreement. Winston Churchill’s “Iron Curtain” speech.

Non-print Materials (videos, images, etc.)

Supplies (paper, notecards, scissors, etc.) Colored pencils or markers.

Technology Needs(Include computer hardware and software, audio-visual components, and internet sites needed to teach the lesson.)

Overhead projector and a transparency with the outline map on it.

Pre-Lesson Expectations(Provide a brief statement of the context for the lesson. Where should the lesson fit in the sequence of the class? What should a student know before beginning the lesson?)

Students should have already covered the end of WWII and the Berlin Crisis. Additionally, students should be familiar with the promises made about the self-determination of Eastern Europe by the Allies at Yalta.

Activities(Provide a step-by-step sequence of instructions for the teacher to teach the lesson. It is very important to be as specific as possible. A teacher should be able to follow the sequence and know not only what they should be doing in each step but also what the expectations are for the students in the appropriate steps.)

1. Have students read section II of the Yalta agreement in preparation for this lesson. Review it with them and ask them what was supposed to happen in Eastern Europe after the end of World War II.

2. Have students use a map from their text, or the one provided, to label a map of Europe in 1950 (or thereabout). Ask students to color code those countries belonging to NATO and the Warsaw Pact and include a key on the front of the map. Have students use a red pen or marker to draw in the Iron Curtain on their map.

3. Discuss what actually happened in Europe after WWII despite the Yalta agreement.4. Have students read the Iron Curtain speech and complete the written document analysis.

After everyone has finished, review the answers and discuss. 5. Ask students what Churchill was warning the world about and what was he hoping would

happen? What was his ideological orientation?

6. Review student answers to the document analysis and go over the map as a class to make sure it is correctly labeled.

7. Have a class discussion on the following question: In what way did the events from Yalta to the formation of NATO and the Warsaw Pact reflect a failure to correct the causes of World War II?

Assessment(Provide an assessment plan to allow the teacher to evaluate a student’s progress toward meeting the objective(s) of the lesson. The assessment must include a rubric that tells a teacher how to grade the proposed assessment tool.)

Students should be graded along the following rubric:100- Completed readings, the analysis, the map activity and contributed at least once to the class discussion. Student exhibited a high level of analysis.

80- Mostly completed the readings, the analysis, the map and contributed once to discussion. Students exhibited a basic level of analysis.

60- Finished only one of the readings, completed only part of the analysis or the map and did not contribute to discussion. Student exhibited a low level of analysis.

0- Showed up to class, but did little else. Student exhibited the same level of analysis as a pygmy goat.

Supplemental Information for Teachers

http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/history/A0857419.htmlA brief history of the beginning of the Cold War and the institution of containment by the

United States.

http://www.winstonchurchill.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=711An in-depth analysis of the Iron Curtain speech.

http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war/episodes/02/A possible resource that you may want to use if you have access to CNN’s series “Cold

War”. This episode could provide even more information for your students if you have the time and the means to show it.

Related Internet Resources(Provide web addresses related to the lesson plan that a teacher might use as background or supplementary material for the lesson.)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/img/hi07003.gifAnother source showing the location of the Iron Curtain.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_Curtain

Basic background information on the Iron Curtain.http://www.coldwar.org/

Background information that can be searched for by topic or time period.http://www.learningcurve.gov.uk/coldwar/

Lesson created by the National Archives with good information organized by discussion questions.

http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~hpcws/index2.htmSite with interesting materials on declassified documents and specific Cold War events.

http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/coldwar.htmSite full of various documents relating to the Cold War.

http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war/experience/culture/film.essay/Discusses some of the effects of the Cold War on Hollywood and popular culture.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_Un-American_Activities_CommitteeBackground information on the House Committee on Un-American Activities.

Attachments(List the filenames for charts, presentations, or other materials created for the lesson.)

Labeled map of post-WWII Europe with NATO and Warsaw Pact. Blank map of post-WII Europe 1945. Iron Curtain Speech Written Document Analysis Worksheet. Text of the Yalta Agreement Section II. Text of Winston Churchill’s “Iron Curtain” speech.