Cold War Unit Homework
Homework #1 – Cold War Comic
Create a comic (hand drawn or on the computer) that tells the story of the origins of the Cold War.
Be sure to include:
•
Communism’s rise in the U.S.S.R.
•
U.S.S.R.’s relationship with the Western Allies during WWII.
•
The differing views on Europe’s future following the war.
•
How the U.S. and U.S.S.R. solidified alliances through NATO and the Warsaw Pact.
•
The fundamental differences between the U.S.’s capitalist and U.S.S.R.’s communist
economic theories and how they wanted to spread their beliefs to other countries (e.g.
Korea, Vietnam, China, etc…)
Homework #2 – The Arms Race
Write a short response of 2-3 paragraphs that explains the Cold War arms race that details why
each side sought greater destructive power through nuclear weaponry, and offer an opinion as to
whether or not it was justifiable in the end.
Remember that hindsight is 20/20 and that in the heat of the moment, people react to perceived
threats differently than they would looking back after the fact.
Feel free to make connections to literature and movies to back your argument, but don’t simply
re-state what the creators did.
Homework #3 – Korean War Radio Broadcast
Write a script for a radio broadcast similar to what was in the video, that details the course of the
Korean War from beginning to end, and explains the impacts that resulted.
Your broadcast will run approximately 3 to 4 minutes in length and would be equal to 2 to 2.5
pages (double spaced, size 12 Times New Roman font).
This is not an assignment that requires your opinion; just hard facts, laid out in clear and simple
terms. Refer to the presentation for a loose outline of the material, and your textbook and notes
for a more in depth understanding of it.
Homework #4 – McCarthyism Research Paper
1. Click this link: McCarthyism Research Paper Directions
2. Then click this link: McCarthyism Research Paper Rubric
3. Then write your paper.
Homework #5 – The Cuban Missile Crisis
Write 3-4 paragraphs (you’ll probably need 4 to explain the nuances of the Cuban Missile Crisis).
Using your chart from the previous slide, decide for yourself who really won the Cuban Missile
Crisis.
State the evidence for either side being the winner:


On the one hand some people might think Khrushchev came out as the winner of the
Cuban Missile Crisis because . . .
However, on the other hand, some people would argue Kennedy was the winner because
...
Following your FACT BASED evidence collected from the previous slide, write a paragraph stating
your OPINION as to who came out as the winner.

In my opinion . . .
Homework #6 – Video Responses
Watch the two videos from class (Eisenhower’s farewell address and Kennedy’s speech on the
Cuban Missile Crisis).
Write a response (2-3 paragraphs) that:


Explains Eisenhower’s warning to the American public.
How the U.S. response to the Cuban Missile Crisis may have caused the American
public to disregard Eisenhower’s warning.
Extra Credit #1 – Execution by Hunger
Read the introduction on page 342 titled “Famine in Ukraine” in the Sources of the Western
Tradition textbook.
Read the essay that follows on page 343 by Miron Dolot titled “Execution by Hunger”.
Reflect on the story for a day.
Write an essay approximately 2 pages long (double spaced, 12 point Times New Roman font) that
uses the content of Dolot’s story to illustrate how collectivization and its consequences were an
effective tool of punishment aimed at Ukraine’s defiance of the Bolsheviks during their rise to
power.
Extra Credit #2 – Korean War Radio Broadcast Recording
Record your radio broadcast and email the audio file to [email protected]