1. “Nuclear Weapons Club” (Handout)
(1) Which country is actively seeking to become the 10th country possessing nuclear weapons?
(2) What concerns should this pose to the world community?

2. President Eisenhower’s Containment Strategy:
Eisenhower: Believes ground troops are costly in terms of lives and $$$
Brinkmanship & massive retaliation
Korean War, 1953
Taiwan, 1954
West Berlin, 1957
U.S. Covert Operations & CIA
Iran, “Operation Ajax”
Deposed Mohammed Mossadegh
Crisis of Sputnik

3. “Duck and Cover” - Hmm, how effective might this have been?
- Nuclear fallout
- Federal Civil Defense Administration (1951)
School-practiced drills to survive a nuclear bomb attack
Encouraged Americans to build bomb shelters
“Duck and Cover”
(9:15)
The naïve attempts of Bert the Turtle to survive the firecracker of his monkey nemesis in the 1952 film Duck and Cover were overshadowed by the reality of the 1954 H-Bomb.

4. “Duck and Cover”
“Dropping immediately and covering exposed skin provide[s] protection against blast and thermal effects....Immediately drop facedown. A log, a large rock, or any depression in the earth's surface provides some protection. Close eyes. Protect
exposed skin from heat by putting hands and arms under or near the body and keeping the helmet on. Remain facedown until the blast wave passes and debris stops falling. Stay calm, check for injury, check weapons and equipment damage, and prepare to continue the mission.”

5. 1954 – Bikini Island, Hydrogen Bomb test

6. Bomb Shelters
- Avoid Nuclear Fallout, as the idea was people could avoid nuclear fallout
- Two weeks inside
- 12-inch concrete thick walls
- Ventilation & waste systems
- Food, water, etc.

7. Write down the following prompts in notebooks, preparing to watch a video about the 1950’s, “Happy Days”: America's Time, (0:47 – 13:25)
(1) Real wages went up …
(2) Culture of conformity at work …
(3) Working environment for women …
(4) By 1957, percentage of marriage eligible Americans that were married …
(5) During the 1950’s, ______ Americans entered the “Middle Class” each year.
(6) T.V.’s in _____ and percentage of time watching T.V. …

8. Write down the following prompts in notebooks, leaving one line between preparing for a video clip about “America’s Time: Best Years” (4:54 – 13:12)
(1) G.I. Bill of Rights guaranteed …
(2) An economy rich in unprecedented …
(3) Levittown …
(4) For $8,000 you could …
(5) Most dramatic demographic change …
(6) For women, an era of …
(7) Desegregating the military by President …
(8) Jackie Robinson …

9.
The 1950’s U.S. economy grew by 37%. Inflation, which had wreaked havoc on the economy immediately after
WWII, was minimal, because of President Eisenhower's persistent efforts to balance the federal budget.

10. President Eisenhower’s Domestic Policies
Cut spending on some programs, TVA, RFC, etc.
Extended Social Security to 10 million people
Extended unemployment benefits to 4 million citizens
Raised federal minimum wage
Continued federal aid to farmers
Balanced budget through higher taxes on wealthy

12. Changes in American Society, Post-WWII
G.I. Bill (1944)
Low-cost mortgages, low-interest loans to start businesses, college tuition & living expenses to attend university, or vocational education

13. Changes in American Society, Post-WWII
Levittown and Suburban America
Mass produced homes, providing Americans homes outside cities
*** For $8,000 you
could …

14. Changes in American Society, Post-WWII
“Baby Boomers” …
, 65 million children born
Affluent Society & the Suburban America
Average income for Americans tripled!!!
Reasons for this?

15. Changes in American Society, Post-WWII
Federal Highway Act of 1956
Largest public works program in world history
10-year effort, constructing more than 40,000 miles of interstate highways

16. 1950’s – The Era of the Classic American Cars