Mrs. Bryant’s 5 th Grade Georgia Standards WJIS

  SS5H8a Discuss the importance of the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Vietnam War. Georgia Standards

  In the early 1960s, the Cold War began to heat up! First, in 1961, the East Germans built a wall in Berlin to separate the two sides of the city. Now, people from East Berlin could not travel to West Berlin at all. Americans and other people in Western countries hated seeing freedom denied in such a way. Threat From Cuba

  In 1962 the U.S. learned that the Soviet Union had built missile launching pads in Cuba. That was only 90 miles from Florida! The Cuban Missile Crisis had begun. President Kennedy ordered the U.S. Navy to block any Soviet ships carrying missiles from getting to Cuba. He also sent troops to Florida in case the U.S. needed to invade Cuba. Threat From Cuba

  Things were tense! People worried that a nuclear war might start. After 13 days, the Soviet Union said that they would remove the Soviet missiles in Cuba if the United States would agree not to invade Cuba. The U.S. government agreed, and people all over the world breathed a sigh of relief! Threat From Cuba

  There were some important developments after the Cuban Missile Crisis. A direct telephone line, or “hot line” was set up between Washington and Moscow to discuss critical problems. Both countries also realize that a nuclear war would have been terrible. They decided to limit the testing of nuclear weapons to protect the safety of citizens. Threat From Cuba

  In the early 1960s, the United States became involved in the Vietnam War. Vietnam is a country in Southeast Asia. It was divided into two nations – North Vietnam and South Vietnam. North Vietnam was controlled by Communists, and was trying to take over South Vietnam. The War in Vietnam

  The United States decided to help South Vietnam stop the spread of Communism. This was important because many people thought that if South Vietnam became Communist, all of Southeast Asia would soon come under Communist control, too. This was known as the “Domino Theory.” The War in Vietnam

  Americans were divided over whether the United States should send military troops to Vietnam. There were many protests against the war. The conflict ended in a cease-fire agreement. U.S. troops withdrew from the country in Two years later, North Vietnam took over South Vietnam for good. Today, Vietnam is one country under Communist rule. The War in Vietnam

  The Vietnam War was different from previous wars in many ways. It was the first war to occur during the age of television. In previous wars, citizens had to rely on radio, newspapers, or edited news reels to receive word of the fighting. Vietnam was the first war in which citizens could actually see much of the death and destruction from their own living rooms. Such scenes led many citizens to have strong opinions about the war. Many questioned the way their government was fighting the war. Others opposed the war completely. What was different about Vietnam?

  Vietnam also occurred during a time in which more young citizens were attending colleges than ever before. During the 1960s, many college students began to question traditional values and authority figures, including their own government. A huge anti-war movement arose on many college campuses. It spread to other parts of society. Unlike World War II and Korea, the nation became divided over Vietnam. What was different about Vietnam?

  Beliefs and Ideals The beliefs and ideals of a society influence the social, political, and economic decisions of that society.  Why were American people divided about the Vietnam War?  How did media and television have an affect on American’s perception of the Vietnam War? Enduring Understandings