SPONGE:
Please put ALL notes/books
away!!!! There is ABSOLUTELY NO
TALKING!!!!
 Please
put ALL notes/books away!!!! There
is ABSOLUTELY NO TALKING!!!!
 Some
students will be given words or dates
(BLUE PAPER).
 Other
students will be given the definitions
or events (ORANGE PAPER).
 Silently
and using no gestures, find your
match!!!!
WRITE ALL STATEMENTS!!!!
___ 1. The Soviet’s economy was a strong, growing
economy.
___ 2. Mikhail Gorbachev increased Soviet military
spending and continued Cold War policies.
___3. The city of Berlin was divided after World War II.
___4. Germany has never been reunited into one
country.
___ 5. The Soviet Union split into 15 republics in 1991.
Place your Alphaboxes graphic organizer
on your desk. You will need to complete
all of the empty boxes after we are done
with today’s activity.
SS6H7: The student will explain conflict
and change in Europe to the 21st century.
What Should You Be Able To Do?
Explain how the collapse of the Soviet
Union led to the end of the Cold War and
German *reunification.
*(reunite or bring back together)
 Soviet
Union and the U.S. were evenly
matched.
 They
both had:
 permanent seats on the UN Security
 Strong militaries
 Space technology
 Large reserves of nuclear weapons
After World War II ended in 1945, the
United States and the Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.) competed to
become the most powerful nation in the
world.
Weapons Buildup
Arms Race
Space Race
Take a minute to think about the following
question before you answer it. What do
you think caused the Soviet Union to
collapse?
 Beginning
with the Launch of Sputnik 1
(first Earth-orbiting artificial satellite)
by the Soviet Union, the Space Race was a
contest between the Soviet Union and the
United States.
 It
involved the launching the first satellite
into orbit, the first human and also the
first human on the moon.
 1957-
Russian dog, Laika orbited the
planet. She was launched into space on
Sputnik 2.
 On
the 12th of April in 1961, Yuri Gagarin,
a Soviet pilot was the first person to travel
into space.
 On
the 21st of July in 1969, Astronaut Neil
Armstrong of the United States became
the first man to set foot on the moon.
U.S. was the first country in the world to use nuclear weapons.
In 1952, the United States exploded their first hydrogen bomb.
The Soviet Union was extremely concerned by
these developments. Although they had
exploded their first atomic weapon in 1949,
they were a long way behind the United States
in nuclear technology.
Since
Soviet Union had a
Communist government, the
government decided and made all
the decisions for their citizens.
Government controlled
everything!!!!!
The Soviet government was spending
(wasting) money on weapons
buildup, space race, and supporting
other Communist countries, it was
NOT meeting their citizens’ basic
needs—bread, meat, and clothing.
 In
1956, Hungary and Poland tried to
break away from Soviet control. However,
the Communist army put an end to these
attempts.
 Nikita
Krushchev (KRUSH-chef) ruled
Soviet Union from 1958-1964, but was
unsuccessful. He was removed from
power.
 Soviet
leader that came to power in 1985.
 He
wanted to modernize the economy and
agreed to decrease military spending.
 He
allowed more political and economic
freedom.
 He
did NOT force the countries of Eastern
Europe to remain Communist.
Not
really…The economies in
Eastern Europe did not improve and
Communists were displeased.

In 1991, a group of more traditional leaders tried
to take over the Soviet government.

Thousands of people opposed.

One by one, the Soviet republics declared
independence.

Warsaw Pact was dissolved and Soviet Union no
longer existed.

Split into 15 republics. The Cold War was over!
 Take
out “The Cold War Ends” discussion
questions, so that we can discuss your
answers!!!!
Your group will be assigned a topic. As a
group, you all will complete the
assignment that is next to the topic you
all were assigned.
* Topics and Activities handouts are
stacked up in your groups.
Together we will read, “The Cold War
Ends” and “The Collapse of the Soviet
Union and German Reunification.”
After reading about the collapse of the
Soviet Union, were the responses on your
Anticipation Guide correct?????