University of California
Roots of the Cold War
When and how did the Cold War begin? To answer this question, you will not find a better-organized, in-depth, activity- and inquiry-based resource than this! Executing best teaching practices throughout, each portion of this inquiry...
TED-Ed
History vs. Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Lenin is on trial in an engaging, animated video where the merits and consequences of the formation of the Soviet Union and Lenin's actions are reviewed. This is a great way to illustrate how to establish and argue unique...
Curated OER
Writing Exercises: Russian Revolution, #2
Why did communism develop in an unindustrialized Russia? What human rights were violated under Joseph Stalin? And, how did the Soviet Union become industrialized? These are the writing prompts your class will work to answer with complete...
Curated OER
Writing Exercises: World War II, #2
Comprehending the role of key players and events of WWII is a task all learners must undertake. Here, they respond to three critical thinking questions regarding the roles Roosevelt and Stalin played during the war as well as Germany's...
Curated OER
Revolutions in Russia
From the fall of the Czars, to Stalin as Dictator, this presentation outlines major shifts in political power during the Russian Revolution. Easy to follow and great for taking notes, your class will be able to obtain the information...
Curated OER
WWII
As a review of information learned about Word War II, this would be a great resource. In a format using pictures, diagrams and lists of information, the presentation provides a look at the key topics. Both visually attractive and...
Curated OER
The Great Terror: Old and New Approaches
Here is a thorough Russian history activity. In it, learners read a two-page selection about the Great Terror and Stalin. They respond to four short answer questions based on the selection.
Curated OER
Dictators
Students can learn about the elements of a dictatorship through these lessons.
Curated OER
The Cold War
In this Cold War study guide worksheet, students respond to 20 short answer questions. The questions correlate to assigned readings in a textbook.
Curated OER
Dictator Comparison
In this dictators study guide worksheet, young scholars add notes of to the graphic organizer regarding Mussolini, Tojo, Hitler, and Stalin.
Curated OER
Russian Revolution to Stalin
For this social studies worksheet, middle schoolers look for the words that describe the events of the Russian Revolution and the answers are found at the bottom of the page.
Curated OER
Communist Revolution
High schoolers examine the Russian Communist Revolution of 1917. They watch and discuss a video, take notes and answer video discussion questions, and read and evaluate newspaper articles about how Lenin and Stalin are viewed today in...
National Archives (UK)
Nalc: Cold War
The tension between Great Britain, United States, and the Soviet Union at end of World War II is surveyed with an excellent presentation with many links and images, a time line, glossary, and archive.
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: Leon Trotsky
A detailed biography of the life of Leon Trotsky. Discusses his life before the Russian Revolution, his political accomplishments afterwards, his opposition to Stalinism, his exile and his assassination.
PBS
Commanding Heights
This timeline of East Germany from 1945 to 1990 chronicles key events from communist domination to political and economic freedom with the end of the Cold War and the dismantling of the Berlin Wall.
Flow of History
Flow of History: The Start of the Cold War (1945 48)
The events leading up to the Cold War are profiled. Text plus a graphic flow chart format make the topic visually appealing and of interest to both students and educators.
Other
Info ukes.com: World War Ii in Ukraine
InfoUkes.com offers a huge article on how the Ukraine experienced World War II, with a population loss of 10 million.
Other
Hoover Digest: Remembering the Katyn Massacre
Description of one of the most horrific atrocities committed by Stalin's secret police whereby almost 22,000 Polish prisoners were forced to dig their own graves and then were shot to death. They were never tried or accused of any crimes.
Other
Bucknell University: A Chronology of Russian History
An abridged timeline that details the history of Russia from 860 to present day.
Other
Hoover Digest: Inside Stalin's Darkroom
The article from the Hoover Digest provides accounts of the falsification of photographs, art, and records in Stalinist Russia from a book by David King, "the Commissar Vanishes."
Other
Ithaca College: Project Look Sharp: Soviet History Through Posters
[Free Registration/Login Required] Multi-unit curriculum kit on the history of the Soviet Union told in five episodes using Soviet posters as source material. Coverage includes the birth of the Soviet Union, Stalin, the Great Patriotic...
BBC
Bbc News: Soviet Union Timeline
A timeline covering the history of the Soviet Union from 1917 to 1991.
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
Woodrow Wilson Center: Digital Archive: Nikita Khrushchev Collection
Documents containing the thoughts and opinions of Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. Most are from Russian archives, along with a few Bulgarian and Romanian documents. The collection includes comments on Stalin, the post-Stalin Soviet...