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Year 11
AQA

US involvement in the Vietnam War

I can explain the significance of US involvement in Vietnam in the years 1954-68.

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New
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Year 11
AQA

US involvement in the Vietnam War

I can explain the significance of US involvement in Vietnam in the years 1954-68.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. South Vietnam was supported by the USA.
  2. US involvement in Vietnam escalated between 1954 and 1968.
  3. North Vietnam was supported by the USSR and China.
  4. US prestige was damaged by the conflict.

Keywords

  • Prestige - the feeling of respect and admiration for a country, often because it is successful

  • Limited war - a conflict where those involved refuse to use their full strength or try to avoid it spreading into additional locations

Common misconception

US assistance to South Vietnam immediately included the deployment of American ground troops.

The US began supporting South Vietnam in 1954 but did not deploy US ground troops there until 1965.


To help you plan your year 11 history lesson on: US involvement in the Vietnam War, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Using their answers to Task B as scaffolding, ask students to produce a narrative account of the escalation of American involvement in Vietnam from 1954-68. Emphasise that students must make clear how successive events related to one another.
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Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
supervision-level

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

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Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is the term for a country or territory controlled by another, more powerful country?
Correct Answer: colony, colonies
Q2.
Write the missing word. The Viet Minh were a nationalist and organisation.
Correct Answer: communist
Q3.
How many French troops fought against the Viet Minh at Dien Bien Phu?
1600
Correct answer: 16 000
160 000
Q4.
What was agreed at the 1954 Geneva Conference?
Indochina would be divided into Laos, Thailand and Cambodia.
Indochina would be divided into Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Correct answer: Indochina would be divided into Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Q5.
Why did the USA refuse to hold scheduled elections in South Vietnam?
Correct answer: The US were concerned that the Viet Minh would gain power.
The US were concerned that the Soviets would stage a coup.
The US were concerned that the French would regain control.
Q6.
Starting with the earliest, sort the following events into chronological order.
1 - Ho Chi Minh returned to Vietnam and created the Viet Minh
2 - French forces were defeated at Dien Bien Phu
3 - The Geneva Conference was held to decide on the fate of Indochina
4 - Elections were scheduled to decide who would govern Vietnam
5 - The US and South Vietnam refused to hold elections

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
The US feared that communism would spread from one Asian country to another. The theory of this effect was called the theory.
Correct Answer: domino
Q2.
Match the following terms to their definitions.
Correct Answer:Viet Minh,organisation run by Ho Chi Minh
tick

organisation run by Ho Chi Minh

Correct Answer:Vietcong,communist forces in South Vietnam
tick

communist forces in South Vietnam

Correct Answer:ARVN,anti-communist South Vietnamese army
tick

anti-communist South Vietnamese army

Q3.
Who was the leader of South Vietnam after 1954?
Ho Chi Minh
Correct answer: Ngo Dinh Diem
Nguyen Ngoc Tho
Emperor Bao Dai
Q4.
Why did the US support Ngo Dinh Diem?
They knew he was a popular leader.
They wanted him to keep Vietnam divided.
Correct answer: They preferred an anti-communist leader in South Vietnam.
They knew he had a powerful arsenal of nuclear weapons.
Q5.
How much did Eisenhower spend in the 1950s on supporting the ARVN?
$1 billion
Correct answer: $2 billion
$3 billion
$4 billion
Q6.
Starting with the earliest, sort the following events into chronological order.
1 - US began supporting anti-communist forces in Indochina
2 - France withdrew from Indochina
3 - President Eisenhower sent aid and militray advisors to South Vietnam
4 - President Kennedy approved the use of chemical weapons in Vietnam
5 - President Johnson began Operation Rolling Thunder
6 - 500 000 US troops were stationed in Vietnam

Additional material

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