Lesson Plan: Dictators and Civil Wars

Subjects:

U.S. History or World History

Grade Level:

7-12

Lesson Duration:

• 1 class period

Essential Questions:

• What key Cold War events took place in Latin America?
• How were the events across the region similar and different during this time period?
• How was U.S. foreign policy toward Latin America influenced by the global Cold War?

Lesson Objectives:

Students will:

• Examine primary and secondary sources related to the Cold War in Latin America.
• Summarize key events from the time period and contextualize the role of those events in the larger Cold War conflict.
• Compare and contrast the effects of Cold War tensions on various parts of Latin America.
• Analyze U.S. involvement in Latin America during this time period.

Materials:

• Retro Report video “Dictators and Civil Wars: The Cold War in Latin America” (Transcript; Transcripción en Español)
• Interactive Map: The Cold War in Latin America
• Student Activity Document
• The photo/image analysis portion of the student activity is derived from the Library of Congress tool: Analyzing Photographs & Prints

Procedure:

1. Students will begin by viewing the video “Dictators and Civil Wars: The Cold War in Latin America” and answering the questions provided on the student activity document.
   1. The final question asks for students’ initial impression of the Cold War in Latin American and U.S. involvement in the region.
   2. As a class, discuss students’ answers to those questions, and pose follow up questions based on students’ previous knowledge of the Cold War. Possible questions may include:
   3. From what you viewed in the video, how is the Cold War in Latin America similar or different from other regions of the world? I.E. Asia or Europe?
   4. How does U.S. involvement in Latin America compare to U.S. involvement in Europe or Asia during this time period? How are the actions of the U.S. the same or different?
   5. Why might the motivations of the United States in Latin America differ from their motivations in other parts of the world?
2. Next, either on their own or in pairs, have students examine the Interactive Map: Cold War in Latin America.
   1. Prior to investigating individual events/tags, have students examine the Legend and Glossary. Those items can be found under the title by clicking on the globe and paper and quill icons.
   2. The first question asked of students is to provide first impressions of the map. This may be an opportunity to model questioning strategies, or to complete this activity as a whole group.
   3. If time is an issue, the teacher could assign different groups to examine the events of different decades, and have students summarize in small groups.
3. The last question related to the interactive map engages students in a primary source analysis activity. A link to an additional resource and organizer has been provided in the “Materials” section.
4. Possible closing activities or questions for this assignment include a one-word “whipshare” where students provide one word that captures their thinking about the Cold War in Latin America, or a reflection exit ticket.

About the Author:

David Olson is the Director of Education for Retro Report. Prior to joining Retro Report, David was an award-winning teacher of U.S. History, A.P. U.S. Government and Politics and Criminal Justice at a public high school in Madison, Wisc.

Standards

Common Core State Standards

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the information.
• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.2: Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.
• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.5: Analyze how a text uses structure to emphasize key points or advance an explanation or analysis.
• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.8: Assess the extent to which the reasoning and evidence in a text support the author’s claims.
• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.11-12.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, connecting insights gained from specific details to an understanding of the text as a whole.
• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.11-12.9: Integrate information from diverse sources, both primary and secondary, into a coherent understanding of an idea or event, noting discrepancies among sources.

C-3 Framework Standards for Social Studies:

• D1.4.9-12. Explain how supporting questions contribute to an inquiry and how, through engaging source work, new compelling and supporting questions emerge.
• D2.His.1.9-12. Evaluate how historical events and developments were shaped by unique circumstances of time and place as well as broader historical contexts.
• D2.His.5.9-12. Analyze how historical contexts shaped and continue to shape people’s perspectives.
• D2.His.12.9-12. Use questions generated about multiple historical sources to pursue further inquiry and investigate additional sources.

AP U.S. History

• Period 9: 1980-Present