The Cold War at home and abroad, 1945–1960

Grade 11 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Cards A and B on Berlin (both are summaries in our words, not quotations). Card A, "General Clay's cable to Washington". Who made it: General Lucius D. Clay, head of the American military government in Germany. When: June 13, 1948. For whom: officials in Washington. Why: to argue for staying in Berlin. Summary in our words, not a quotation: Clay wrote that staying in Berlin could not be judged only by what was practical. He said that leaving would hurt American standing in Germany and Europe, and he called Berlin a symbol of American intent. Card B, "Berlin, June 1948 to September 1949". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: The Soviet Union closed the surface routes into the western parts of Berlin on June 24, 1948. The airlift of food and fuel began on June 26. The blockade was lifted on May 12, 1949 (one government page gives May 11 in its text). The airlift continued until September 30, 1949, and about 2.3 million tons were flown in over the whole airlift.

2. 1.

   Card A is dated June 13, 1948, and card B dates the blockade from June 24. What does that tell Ari about Clay's cable?

   • The cable came before the blockade, so it cannot be Clay's reaction to the blockade itself
   • The cable should be read as Clay's plan for the airlift, since the airlift began two days after the blockade
   • The cable shows that Washington already knew the blockade was coming, since Clay wrote before it began
   • The cable was Clay's answer to the blockade, since it argues against leaving Berlin after the Soviet move
3. 2.

   Bo combines Cards A and B. Which question can the two cards answer together?

   • What did Clay argue before the blockade, and how long did the airlift last compared with the blockade?
   • Why did Soviet leaders close the surface routes into Berlin, and what did they hope the closing would achieve?
   • How many Berliners left the western parts of the city during the blockade, and where did they go?
   • Which Allied leaders agreed with Clay's cable, and how did each of them reply to Washington?
4. 3.

   Card A summarizes Clay's cable. What should Esme remember about Clay as its maker?

   • Clay was a neutral observer, so the cable gives a balanced account of what both sides wanted in Berlin
   • Clay led the American government in Germany and was arguing a position to Washington, so the cable is an official's argument
   • Clay wrote from Germany to Washington on June 13, 1948, so the cable is a source from the time of the crisis
   • Clay spoke for the whole American government, so the cable shows what President Truman had decided to do
5. 4.

   Jun writes a sentence from card B. Which sentence do the dates support?

   • The airlift began two days after the blockade began and continued for months after the blockade ended
   • The airlift forced the Soviet Union to end the blockade, since the blockade was lifted while flights continued
   • The airlift lasted about one year, since the blockade lasted from June 1948 until May 1949 and flights ended with it
   • The airlift began before the blockade and ended on the same day as the blockade, in May of 1949

6. Use this

   Cards A to C on Korea (all three are summaries in our words, not quotations; the war is named and dated here, not described). Card A, "Truman's statement on Korea". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: On June 27, 1950, President Truman told the nation that American forces would join a United Nations military effort in Korea. Card B, "Korea, 1950 to 1953". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: The Korean War began on June 25, 1950. An armistice was signed on July 27, 1953. Card C, "Two words". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: An armistice is an agreement to stop fighting. It is not a peace treaty. The United Nations is an organization of countries that was formed in 1945.

7. 5.

   Card A summarizes Truman's statement of June 27, 1950, two days into the war. Which statement about it is accurate for Kira?

   • It shows the policy Truman announced two days into the war, not how the war would go or end
   • It shows Truman expected the fighting to end with the armistice of 1953, since the armistice came after the statement
   • It shows what Americans wanted the war to achieve, since a President speaks for the nation's aims in a statement
   • It shows that the United States won the war, since American forces joined the United Nations effort as the card says
8. 6.

   Luz combines Cards A, B and C. Which question can the three cards answer together?

   • Which side won the war, according to the armistice, and what land did the winning side gain in the end?
   • How many soldiers from the United Nations countries fought in Korea, and how many came from each country?
   • What did Truman say American forces would join, and what kind of agreement stopped the fighting in 1953?
   • Why did the Korean peninsula end up divided into two countries, and who drew the line between them?
9. 7.

   Truman made his statement to the nation two days after the war began. What does that setting suggest to Milo about its aim?

   • He aimed to ask Congress for a declaration of war, since a nation's leader speaks that way before fighting
   • He aimed to give a balanced account of both sides' reasons, so the statement shows how Korea saw the war
   • He aimed mainly to win public support, so the statement cannot be treated as a real decision about policy
   • He aimed to tell Americans and others what the United States would do, so it shows announced policy
10. 8.

    Which sentence do Cards A, B and C support for Noah?

    • The United Nations effort won the war, since the fighting stopped in 1953 after American forces had joined it
    • Truman said American forces would fight alone, and the United Nations did not take part until the armistice
    • American forces joined a United Nations effort two days after the war began, and the fighting stopped in 1953 under an armistice
    • The armistice of 1953 was a peace treaty, so the war ended in a final settlement signed by the nations at war

11. Use this

    Cards A to C on three events (all three are summaries in our words, not quotations). Card A, "The Soviet atomic explosion, announced September 23, 1949". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: On September 23, 1949, President Truman announced that the United States had evidence of an atomic explosion in the Soviet Union within recent weeks. Card B, "The People's Republic of China, October 1, 1949". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: On October 1, 1949, the Communist leader Mao Zedong proclaimed the People's Republic of China. Card C, "McCarthy at Wheeling, February 9, 1950". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: On February 9, 1950, Senator Joseph McCarthy gave a speech in Wheeling, West Virginia, in which he said he held a list of Communists in the State Department. Accounts of the number he named differ, and the charge was never substantiated.

12. 9.

    Ren combines Cards A, B and C. Which question can the three cards answer?

    • How did voters in each state vote in the elections held after the Wheeling speech in 1950?
    • Which three events of 1949 and early 1950 did Americans hear about, and in what order did they come?
    • How many people did the State Department dismiss after McCarthy's speech at Wheeling in February 1950?
    • Did the Soviet explosion and the new Chinese government cause McCarthy to give his speech at Wheeling?
13. 10.

    Card A is a summary written today of Truman's announcement. What does that mean for Tala?

    • It is a clear record of what was announced and when, which is enough to know how Truman presented the news
    • It shows how Americans felt in 1949, since the summary says the explosion happened in the Soviet Union
    • It is Truman's own account, since it begins with his announcement and uses his name throughout
    • It reports the announcement clearly, but Truman's own words would show how he chose to present the news