Deepen your students' understanding of women's experiences during the Cold War and the 1950s!

This quick five-page Reading Assignment and Worksheet provides an overview of the various activities, contributions and activities of women during the postwar period from 1946 to 1960. It works well as a Guided Reading activity or as an exercise for Reading Comprehension.

Women's roles were shifting after World War II ended. Many wanted women to return to the home and to domesticity but more women worked after the war then before the war. Additionally, with the development of suburbs, women became involved in community efforts and volunteer work. And, there were the beginnings of protest toward inequities in the country, including civil rights.

This resource addresses the following topics:

* Women and Work
* Education

* Baby Boom and Suburbs
* Women's Voluntary Associations and Clubs
* Family Values and Conformity
* The Second Red Scare, the Cold War and Communism

* Korean War and Women in the Military

* Politics and Activism

* African-American Women and Civil Rights

* Sports, Leisure and Recreation

This includes 9 primary sources and 13 comprehension questions to process learning and evaluate understanding of the material.

Students can read this on their own as a homework assignment or it can be a group activity in a classroom. It is also ideally suited for home-schoolers or independent learners who want to learn more about women's contributions and experiences. A Worksheet with questions based on the reading is included, along with an Answer Key.

Reading Assignment - 3 pages

Worksheet - 2 pages

This is part of the Women in American History Series which includes Reading Assignments and Worksheets from other eras:

Women in the US Military during WWII: Reading Assignment and Worksheet
Women during the 1920s: Reading Assignment and Worksheet

Progressive Era Women: Reading Assignment and Worksheet
Women's Suffrage Movement: Reading Assignment and Worksheet

Women during the Industrial Era: Reading Assignment and Worksheet
Early Women's Rights: Reading Assignment and Worksheet
Women of the American Revolution: Reading Assignment and Worksheet
Women in Colonial America: Reading Assignment and Worksheet
Native American Women: Reading Assignment and Worksheet

This is NOT an editable file.

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I have been a high school history teacher for over 15 years, both in-person and online with involvement in education for over 25 years. I have primarily taught U.S. History, AP World History, World History, AP World History and U.S. Women’s History.

Thank you for your interest in this resource!

Please reach out if you have any questions, concerns or comments about this resource at christa@historyprisms.com.

Do you or your students like historical fiction? Hearts of War is about a Nisei soldier who served in the Military Intelligence Service and a woman who served in the Women Army Corps. In writing this book, I wanted to bring an unknown aspect of history to light. Available on Amazon or Kindle and I appreciate any reviews. Thank you!

Christa Nonnemaker
M.A./B.A. - History