New
New
Year 11
AQA
The Space Race
I can analyse the events of the Space Race.
New
New
Year 11
AQA
The Space Race
I can analyse the events of the Space Race.
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Lesson details
Key learning points
- The Space Race was a competition between the US and USSR in the 1950s and 1960s.
- Security and prestige both motivated the Space Race.
- The USSR launched the first satellite, Sputnik, in 1957.
- Soviet successes in space triggered fears that the US was falling behind.
- US astronauts landed on the moon in 1969.
Keywords
Satellite - in this context, an object that moves around a planet in space
Orbit - the circular journey that a spacecraft or planet makes around the sun, the moon, or another planet
Prestige - respect and admiration people feel for someone else, often because they are successful
ICBM - short for inter-continental ballistic missile; a missile that can deliver bombs to hit targets over 5500 km away
Common misconception
The USA was in the lead throughout the Space Race.
The USSR beat the USA to launch the first satellite into orbit and to put both the first man and first woman in space.
Ask students at the end of the lesson who 'won' the Space Race. Get students to define specific criteria (i.e. is it based on biggest individual achievement, consistency of achievements, etc?).
Teacher tip
Content guidance
- Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), 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.
Write the missing word. is an action or system intended to prevent or discourage someone from doing something.
Q2.
Who was the first country to develop nuclear weapons?
Britain
China
France
USSR
Q3.
How many times more powerful were hydrogen bombs (H-bombs) compared to atom bombs (A-bombs)?
10
100
Q4.
What was the name of the theory which suggested that nuclear weapons made war between the superpowers unlikely?
BAD
SAD
Q5.
Write the missing word. In the late 1950s, some US officials became worried that a gap existed between the USA and USSR.
Q6.
Starting with the earliest, sort the following events into chronological order.
Exit quiz
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6 Questions
Q1.
What is an object that moves around a planet in space called?
Q2.
What was the name of the first woman in space?
Q3.
Which country sent the first man into space?
Britain
China
France
USA
Q4.
Which event is usually considered the end of the Space Race?
the launch of the first satellite into Earth's orbit
the first manned spaceflight
the first manned flight to Mars
Q5.
Who said the following in 1961: "the dramatic achievements in space have an impact on the minds of men everywhere, who are attempting to make a determination of which road they should take"?
Neil Armstrong
Nikita Khrushchev
Yuri Gagarin
Q6.
Starting with the earliest, sort the following events into chronological order.
Additional material
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