The 1950s and 1960s- Full Unit Bundle of Resources

This unit plan contains standards-aligned and engaging student-centered lessons relating to the 1950s and 1960s eras in the United States. Students will examine post WWII culture, the policy of containment through three presidents (Truman, Eisenhower, and Kennedy), and the Civil Rights movement through a historical tour of the south. Finally, there are three separate assessments in this unit that assess understanding of each of the topics.

(Topics related to the Vietnam War will be separate and included in a later resource.)

Within the bundle:

• Classroom handouts for each lesson and the Unit assessment (PDF, PowerPoint, and Google Slides link)
• A Google Slides version of the lesson that can be assigned in Google Classroom (Google Slides link).
• A guided lesson plan for each individual lesson

This bundle also included a pacing guide to help you plan out the full unit!

Check out all my lesson from this Unit of Study or Grab the Full Unit Bundle!

• 1950s America in Color and 1960s America in Color - These viewing guides provides a great overview to the America in COLOR series from the Smithsonian Channel. I love these videos because they utilize primary sources to tell the story of U.S. History. These episodes focus on the 1950s and the 1960s.

• 1950s Culture Quiz Show | Baby Boom, Eisenhower, Teenagers, Cold War at Home - With this lesson, students will “play” a 1950s style game show where they learn about 1950s culture and then answer game show style questions after each round of content. The slideshow includes catchy "quiz show" music, ad breaks, and an overall retro vibe!

• The Korean War - With this lesson, students will learn about the major events of the Korean War. This lesson primarily focuses on the causes and the impact of the war, with emphasis on the effectiveness of containment. Topics include the Truman Doctrine, domino theory, communist China, and the United Nations.

• Truman and Early Containment - With this lesson students will read about the origins of the Truman Doctrine and then two specific policies relating to that lesson - the Marshall Plan and the Berlin Airlift. As students read through the text there are text-based questions for them to answer that assess their understanding.

• Eisenhower and The Cold War | Containment | the CIA | Brinkmanship - With this lesson, students will learn about foreign policy during the Eisenhower Era - specifically, the issues of containment, brinkmanship, the arms race, the development of the CIA, and the Eisenhower Doctrine. There are many, many possible topics relating to the Eisenhower Era, and this lesson discusses five, including - the Suez Canal crisis, the space race, the Taiwan crisis, the overthrow of Iran, the overthrow of Guatemala, and the U-2 incident.

• Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis - With this lesson students will read a mini-play to learn about the Cuban Missile Crisis. The play uses dialogue from the actual meetings that occurred over the 13 days of the crisis. Students will re-enact the major events - using documents from Kennedy, Castro, and Khrushchev to uncover how the crisis unfolded. As an exit ticket, they’ll write a paragraph discussing why they think it occurred utilizing evidence from the mini-play.  

• Cold War Inquiry - Containment Policy and Truman, Eisenhower, and Kennedy - In this inquiry, students will address the question - “Was U.S. policy effective at containing communism from 1946 through 1962?” (A culminating assessment based on previous lessons.)

• The Civil Rights Movement | Major Protests, Leaders, and Turning Points - In this lesson, students embark on a historical tour through the significant events of the Civil Rights Movement, virtually "visiting" the crucial locations where historical milestones unfolded. The analysis delves into the types of protests that occurred, the addressed issues, the involved Civil Rights organizations, and the resulting pushback at each stop along the way.

• 1950s and 1960s Word Wall - Help your students build and retain key vocabulary terms with a visually appealing word wall. This resource includes 57 word wall terms related to the 1950s and the 1960s in the United States, vocabulary review strategies, and three vocabulary (tarsia) review puzzles to support your students' learning.

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