Part 1: Pre-Viewing
Episode Description -
"The Bay of Pigs: Part I"
"The Bay of Pigs: Part I " provides historical background
and specifically focuses on the political build-up leading to the
land invasion of Cuba. This episode describes U.S.-Cuban relations
in the 1950s and Cuban society and economy before the Cuban Revolution.
It covers Fidel Castro's rise to power, the promises of the Cuban
Revolution, and the U.S. response to it. Finally, this episode outlines
the development of the CIA plan for the Bay of Pigs invasion, taking
the course of events up to the first air strike.
Pre-Viewing Activities
FREE-WRITING PREPARATION FOR "THE BAY OF PIGS: PART I"
Ask students to free-write for 20 minutes about their impressions
of Cuba and U.S.-Cuban relations. What do they think are the most
important aspects of those relations, and why do they think so?
Ask students how they know what they know (what their sources for
information about Cuba and Cuban culture have been). Encourage students
to note any experience they have of Cuban culture, or of any other
non-U.S. culture.
This introductory exercise, if completed before showing any part
of the video, offers two interesting dimensions. First, it will
help students keep a record of their progressive understanding and
impressions of Cuba and the history of U.S. relations with Cuba.
This record can be used in subsequent discussions about preconceptions,
stereotypes, and the sources of our information about the world.
Second, it will allow the teacher to shape the unit according to
students' prior knowledge and primary interests.
BACKGROUND (HISTORY, CULTURE, GEOGRAPHY)
The first few minutes of this episode introduce Cuba in the 1950s.
You can provide students with a greater historical and cultural
context for the events to be covered in the video by giving them
the "Facts about Republic
of Cuba" handout or by using this handout as the basis
for a lecture. You can expose students to a variety of disciplines
(history, political science, geography, economics, and social studies)
through an exploration of Cuba's major resources, geographic and
diplomatic relationships, the origins of Cuban peoples, and how
each of these things has contributed to the course of Cuban history
and world history.
MAP EXERCISE
Assign students a map exercise (in class or as homework) in which
they either create or label a map
of Cuba, placing it within the rest of the Caribbean/Gulf region.
Students can identify major natural and artificial geographic features:
natural resources, cities, mountain ranges, rivers, etc.
VOCABULARY EXERCISE
Ask students to come up with basic definitions (using dictionaries
or encyclopedias) for the terms
listed in the appendix. You can then use the students' definitions
as a starting point for a discussion about the general economic
and political situation of Castro's Cuba. This discussion should
address the reasons for U.S. concern about political and economic
developments, and thereby make clear how Cuban-U.S. relations fit
within a Cold War context.
|
Yalta