10th Grade Semester One

Unit 8: Russian Revolution and Aftermath

Stage 1: Desired Outcomes
Topic / Unit Title:Russian Revolution and Aftermath
*Was communism the answer for Russia?
NYS Content Standards
Key Idea 4: The skills of historical analysis include the ability to: explain the significance of historical evidence; weigh the importance, reliability, and validity of evidence; understand the concept of multiple causation; understand the importance of changing and competing interpretations of different historical developments.
Key Idea 2: Establishing timeframes, exploring different periodizations, examining themes across time and within cultures, and focusing on important turning points in world history help organize the study of world cultures and civilizations.
Key Idea 3: Study of the major social, political, cultural, and religious developments in world history involves learning about the important roles and contributions of individuals and groups.
Key Idea 4: The skills of historical analysis include the ability to investigate differing and competing interpretations of the theories of history, hypothesize about why interpretations change over time, explain the importance of historical evidence, and understand the concepts of change and continuity over time. / Common Core Skills
Reading-Social Studies (RH)
1. Use relevant information and ideas from documents to support analysis
2. Determine the main idea of a document
5. Identify and analyze arguments/ideas presented in documents
8. Identify and analyze evidence
9. Compare and contrast primary and secondary source information
Writing (W)
1. Write an argument to support claims
4. Produce writing appropriate to task, purpose and audience
9. Draw evidence from informational text
Speaking and Listening (SL)
1. Initiate and participate in collaborative discussion
2. Accurately use multiple sources of information
4. Clearly present appropriate information and evidence
6. Demonstrate command of formal English
Understandings:
Conditions and social structure of Russia under the czar
Effects of Russo-Japanese War and World War I
Czar Nicholas II’s handling of deteriorating conditions for the Russian people events leading to and aftermath of Bloody Sunday
Opposing views of Alexander Kerensky and Vladimir Lenin
Lenin’s actions after taking power
Stalin’s economic policies and totalitarian rule. / Essential Questions:
Was revolution in Russia inevitable?
How could Czar Nicholas II have handled Russia’s problems differently?
Lenin vs. Kerensky: Whose ideas were better for Russia’s future?
Was communism the answer to Russia’s economic problems?
Should Lenin be considered a hero or a villain?
How did communism affect Russia’s economy?
How did Stalin control Russia?
Should Stalin be considered a hero or villain for Russia?
Stage 2: Assessments and Tasks
Common Core Literacy Task
Write a 1-2 page letter from a peasant describing conditions in Russia under the czar and hopes for economic, social, and political change in the future;
Pretend you are Czar Nicholas’s chief adviser. Create a 1-2 page dialogue describing how you would advise the czar regarding war with Japan, conditions of the peasants, and people’s demands for greater civil liberties.
Czar RAFT (Role, Audience, Format, Topic): Roles: czar, military leader, peasant, noble; Audience: royal court, suffering World War I veterans, Duma, village meeting of peasants; Format: Skit, rap, letter, journal entry, cartoon strip, speech; Topic: Russo-Japanese War, Bloody Sunday, World War I, government’s role in people’s lives
Lenin RAFT: Role: Lenin, Kerensky, Bolshevik, Menshevik; Audience: Soldiers, workers, wealthy business owners, war widows; Format: Skit, rap, letter, etc.; Topic: Russia’s continuing economic crisis, military crisis, best leader, imagining Russia’s future
Stalin: RAFT: Role: Stalin, worker, small business owner, cow; Audience: steelworkers, peasants, military leaders, Stalin; Format: Skit, rap, letter, etc.; Topics: Effects of Five-Year Plans
Regents style thematic essay: Discuss the causes of the Russian Revolution and evaluate at least three effects on the people of Russia / Performance Task(s) – Other Evidence
Performance Task(s) – Other Evidence
Regents style thematic essay: Discuss the causes of the Russian Revolution and evaluate at least three effects on the people of Russia
Thematic essay comparing Stalin’s leadership with that of another leader studied this year (suggestions: Robespierre, Napoleon, Emperor Meiji)
Draw a political cartoon criticizing the social class structure of Russia under the Czar
Propaganda posters against the Czar and Bloody Sunday
Campaign posters, Lenin vs. Kerensky
Gallery walk of Lenin’s policies and accomplishments
Analyze graphs and charts regarding the success or failure of the five-year plans
Create your own five-year plan for Russia
SQPL Activity: SQPL statement suggestions: Communism is the perfect economic system; the ends always justify the means….always; it’s better for a leader to be feared than loved; Stalin’s terror was needed to improve the Soviet economy and society; Stalin combined leadership qualities of the Meiji Emperor and Robespierre;
How will students reflect upon and self-assess their learning?
Students will peer and self-edit essays for proper structure and mechanics and evaluate their essay content
Students will revise 1st drafts of their essays
Students can self-assess learning by attempting another combination in the RAFT
Students can assess whether they can answer their own student generated questions from the SQPL activity
Students can assess their key term knowledge by attempting to recreate parts of the vocabulary word maps without looking through their notes.
Accommodations: Scaffolds and Differentiation
Content /
  • Modify primary source texts (variety, complexity, length)
  • Incorporate alternative materials (visual, video, audio, internet)
  • Provide supplementary resources for supports
  • Group with a purpose

Process /
  • Model skills, task and/or product
  • Utilize graphic organizers / note taking template
  • Provide individual or group intervention and support
  • Re-enforce vocabulary / concept development
  • Provide choice / variety of activities or tasks
  • Group with a purpose

Product /
  • Assign specific, purposeful assessments to individuals or groups
  • Allow students to choose from a variety of assessments
  • Provide scaffolds / supports (outlines, templates, models)
  • Provide extension activities to expand thinking or understanding
  • Group with a purpose

Stage 3: Learning Plan
Instructional Activities and Materials (W.H.E.R.E.T.O.)
Aim: Was the czar responsible for his own downfall?
Identify/define: Bloody Sunday, Duma, Czar Nicholas II. Russo-Japanese War, Rasputin
Discuss the problems facing Russia in the early 20th century.
Analyze the role of the Russo-Japanese War, Bloody Sunday, and WWI in bringing about revolution in Russia.
Evaluate whether Czar Nicholas II could have dealt with these problems more effectively.
Evaluate whether Czar Nicholas II was responsible for his own downfall.
Aim: Could democracy have survived in Russia?
Identify/define: Alexander Kerensky, Lenin, “Peace, bread, and land.”
Analyze the program of Alexander Kerensky and the provisional government (March-November, 1917) in Russia.
Assess the impact upon Russia of Kerensky’s decision to continue World War I.
Analyze Lenin’s Bolshevik program of “Peace, Bread, and Land” and to compare it with Keresnky’s attempts to establish democracy in Russia.
Evaluate the reasons why Lenin’s program and the organization of the communists were able to gain control of the Russian government.
Determine if the promise of food or freedom is more important to a society lacking in democratic tradition.
Aim: Should Lenin be considered a hero of Russia?
Identify/define: N.E.P., Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Cheka
Analyze the methods used by Lenin to bring change to Russian society.
List and explain the changes implemented by the Communist government immediately following the October Revolution.
Assess the extent to which Lenin changed ideology to meet the changing needs of Russian/Soviet society.
Aim: Should individual freedom be sacrificed in order to achieve industrial growth?
Identify/define: Five Year Plans, collectivization, kulaks, command economy.
List and explain the major accomplishments of Stalin’s early rule in Russia.
Compare and contrast Stalin’s policies with those of Lenin (i.e. the N.E. P. vs. Stalin’s Five Year Plans).
Compare and contrast the Soviet system under Stalin with that of the Romanov political system, i.e. autocracy, the nature of bureaucracy, the importance of the secret police, censorship and Russification of nationalism.
Evaluate the extent to which Stalin was successful in modernizing and industrializing the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).
Teacher Reflection for Future Planning
Evaluate exit tickets and response to questions during discussion.
Explore test results and essay writing skills on class exam to shape future writing lessons/assignments.
How well did the RAFT work?
Create new statements for the SQPL

August 2014

Theme: Change—Political Leaders
Political leaders have come to power under a variety of circumstances. Once in power, these leaders implemented policies and practices that have affected people, societies and regions in different ways.
Task: Select two political leaders and for each
  • Describe the historical circumstances that brought this political leader to power
  • Explain one policy or practice that was put into effect under this leader
  • Discuss how this policy or practice affected a specific group of people or society or region
You may use any political leader from your study of global history and geography. Some suggestions you may wish to consider include Si Huangdi in China, William and Mary in England, Napoleon Bonaparte in Ayatollah Khomeini in Iran, and Nelson Mandela in South Africa.

January 2013

Theme: Change—Collapse of Government
The sudden death of a ruler, a defeat in war, or a successful revolution has often led to the collapse of government. Political, social, and economic changes have occurred as a result of the collapse of a government.
Task: Select two situations where the collapse of a government has led to significant changes in a country or region and for each
● Describe the historical circumstances that led to the collapse of a government
● Discuss the political, social, and/or economic changes that occurred as a result of the collapse of that
government
You may use any situation from your study of global history and geography in which the collapse of a government led to significant changes in a country or region. Some suggestions you might wish to consider include collapse of the Roman Empire, collapse of Louis XVI’s government, collapse of the Tokugawa shogunate, collapse of Czar Nicholas II’s government, collapse of the Ottoman Empire, collapse of the Nationalist government in China [Guomindang], collapse of Batista’s government in Cuba, fall of Reza Pahlavi’s government in Iran, breakup of Yugoslavia, and collapse of the Soviet Union.

August 2007

Theme: Political Systems
Political systems have affected the history and culture of nations and societies.
Task: Choose two different political systems and for each
● Describe the characteristics of the political system
● Discuss how the political system has affected the history or culture of a specific nation or society
You may wish to use any political systems from your study of global history. Some suggestions you might wish to consider include absolute monarchy, constitutional monarchy, parliamentary democracy, direct democracy, theocracy, communism, and fascism.

Multiple Choice

1 An incompetent government, massacres on Bloody Sunday, and the high costs of World War I were causes of the

(1) Mexican Revolution

(2) Boxer Rebellion

(3) Sepoy Mutiny

(4) Russian Revolution

2 The Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 in Russia was caused in part by

(1) a forced famine in Ukraine

(2) the failure of Czar Nicholas II to come to Serbia’s aid

(3) a shortage of military supplies and food during World War I

(4) the establishment of Lenin’s New Economic Policy (NEP)

3 What was a major reason the Russian people engaged in the Revolution of 1905?

(1) dissatisfaction with czarist rule

(2) discontent with involvement in World War I

(3) irritation over the banning of the Orthodox church

(4) failure to emancipate the serfs

4 One way in which the government under Czar Nicholas II of Russia and the government under Benito Mussolini of Italy are similar is that both governments

(1) liberated the serfs and industrial workers

(2) reformed the executive branch by incorporating theocratic principles

(3) established policies of censorship and repression

(4) used televised propaganda to rally the masses

5 Forced famine in Ukraine (1932–1933) was a direct result of

(1) Czar Nicholas’s involvement in World War I

(2) Vladmir Lenin’s New Economic Policy

(3) Joseph Stalin’s collectivization

(4) Nikita Khrushchev’s removal from power

6 Which action was taken by the Bolsheviks under the leadership of Vladimir Lenin?

(1) supporting a traditional economy

(2) eliminating political opposition

(3) surrendering to the Provisional Government

(4) extending the war against Austria-Hungary

7 A primary objective of the New Economic Policy (NEP) in the Soviet Union was to

(1) promote private ownership of heavy industry

(2) organize support for educational reforms to improve literacy

(3) coordinate efforts to end World War I

(4) gain stability by increasing production

Base your answer to question 8 on the poster below and on your knowledge of social studies.

8 In early 20th-century Russia, which group may have gained support by circulating this poster?

(1) aristocracy

(2) Bolsheviks

(3) monarchists

(4) Orthodox clergy

9 “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity” and “Peace, Land, and Bread” are slogans used by revolutionaries to represent

(1) frameworks for economic stability

(2) political and economic ideals

(3) plans for maintaining the social hierarchy

(4) methods of political reform