Cold War and Decolonization
Aligned to C3.D2.His.9 — C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.
What this lesson teaches
After 1945 the United States and the Soviet Union entered the Cold War, a decades-long rivalry between capitalism and communism backed by nuclear weapons but avoiding direct war. At the same time, colonized peoples across Asia and Africa won independence in a wave of decolonization.
Worked example
In 1962 the Cuban Missile Crisis brought the superpowers to the brink of nuclear war when the Soviet Union placed missiles in Cuba, only ninety miles from Florida.
Practice questions
- Identify the two superpowers of the Cold War.
- Explain what the term Cold War means and why the conflict stayed 'cold.'
- Analyze how the superpower rivalry influenced newly independent nations.
Watch the lesson
Every lesson comes with a video taught in English and Spanish — the same video the QR code in the printed workbook opens.
▶ Watch this lessonEn español
Guerra Fría y Descolonización
Después de 1945, Estados Unidos y la Unión Soviética entraron en la Guerra Fría, una rivalidad de décadas entre el capitalismo y el comunismo respaldada por armas nucleares pero que evitó una guerra directa. Al mismo tiempo, los pueblos colonizados de Asia y África lograron la independencia en una ola de descolonización.
Ejemplo: En 1962, la Crisis de los Misiles de Cuba llevó a las superpotencias al borde de la guerra nuclear cuando la Unión Soviética colocó misiles en Cuba, a solo ciento cincuenta kilómetros de Florida.
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