Oklahoma Social Studies USH.C.6.3.I

Social StudiesGrades 9–12Content Standards

The Standard

USH.C.6: Analyze foreign events and policies during the early Cold War Era.
USH.C.6.3: Analyze the escalation of international tensions by examining the series of events and their long- term foreign and domestic consequences during the height of the Cold War.

Analyze the political and economic impact of President Nixon’s foreign policies including détente and the opening of China.

Oklahoma Academic Standards for Social Studies (2026) · USH.C.6.3

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students explain how Nixon's talks with the Soviet Union and his visit to China changed Cold War relationships. They connect détente to arms limits and grain sales, and the China visit to diplomatic leverage and gradually expanding trade.
What Mastery Looks Like: A student can explain how SALT I limited some nuclear weapons and how Soviet grain sales increased trade. They can explain why the China visit gave the United States leverage with Moscow without claiming that it created full diplomatic relations or large-scale trade in 1972.
Common Misconceptions: Students may think SALT I ended the nuclear arms race or that Nixon established full diplomatic relations with China in 1972. They may assume today's level of US-China trade began right after his visit.
How to Assess It: Exit ticket: Give one political and one economic effect of détente, then do the same for Nixon's China opening. Name a specific event for each policy.

Lesson moves

Pairs place cards for SALT I, Soviet grain sales, and Nixon's China visit on a map, then annotate each card's effects.
Read two short excerpts from the Shanghai Communiqué, then write which changed sooner: US leverage with Moscow or US-China trade.
Play a card match: pair SALT I, Soviet grain sales, and Nixon's China visit with arms limits, trade, and leverage with Moscow.
Bring a product labeled Made in China; students write one sentence linking it to the gradual easing of US-China trade barriers.

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