What was the cold war? How did it shape history? How are we still seeing its echoes today? Below are 13 years of Learning Network lesson plans and other materials to help students answer these questions by going beyond the textbook and working with original Times reporting, photojournalism and essays, any of which can be used to address one or more of the following essential questions: Who was responsible for starting the cold war? Why didn't the cold war ever turn "hot"? How did the cold war challenge American values, at home and abroad? How did the cold war contribute to the current unrest in the Middle East and Afghanistan? Is the cold war still going on? Click on the categories below to go directly to that section: Cold War Lesson Plans Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc Quizzes and Crosswords Lesson Plans Taking a Closer Look at an Undivided Germany Cuba and Latin America Comparing Bay of Pigs Invasion and Invasion of Iraq North Korea North Korea and Its Quest for Nuclear Weapons China Learning About Tibet's Struggle for Independence Since China's Invasion in 1950 Vietnam and Southeast Asia Cold War at Home Communism Theory and Practice Connecting the Cold War to Current Events Many of the lesson plans above connect key events in the cold war, like the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Vietnam War. Below are additional ideas for connecting the cold war as a geopolitical dynamic to events covered in any day's New York Times. Trace how the cold war shaped current events. Students can choose a country in the news, like Iran, Syria or Afghanistan. For example, students can read about the current civil war raging in Syria, and learn about the diplomatic chess game taking place between the United States and Russia. Then students can research how the cold war helped sow the seeds for the current dynamic in Syria. They can read about how the cold war helped lead to thousands of Russian women marrying Syrian men and raising families in Syria. Students can also read about how the rift between Syrian intellectuals has echoes of the cold war. Challenge yourself: How many echoes of the cold war can you find in a day's edition of The New York Times? For example, how does this week's story about (among other things) American teenage baby sitters connect? Consider whether the United States and China are headed for a new cold war. Students can learn about historic relations between the United States and China before reading the related Room for Debate feature. Then, students can hold a discussion about relations between the two countries, and what advice they would give the president for dealing with China. Your Ideas Here. How do you connect the cold war to current events? Post a comment, below, and we may add it to our list. Search Tips for Finding Cold War Articles in The New York Times The Times is a treasure trove of cold war documents for the classroom, including famous headlines, news articles, opinion pieces and photographs. Here are some ways to find the best pieces to use in the classroom: Use Times Topics pages. The Times has thousands of Topics pages, which collect all the news, reference and archival information, photos, graphics, audio and video files published on a topic. Here are some cold war examples: Times Topic: Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) Times Topic: Berlin Airlift (1948-49) Times Topic: Vietnam War Times Topic: Korean War Times Topic: Joseph R. McCarthy Use the advanced search feature. With this page you can search by keyword, date range, section or author. For instance, some articles you might find while searching for the term "cold war" are: Selected Cold War Teaching Materials From Around the Web Three Lessons How do you teach the cold war in your classroom? Please share with us your own teaching ideas and suggest additional resources in the comment section below.