The New Frontier and Great Society
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can compare and assess the impact of the New Frontier and Great Society programmes in the USA.
Key learning points
- President's Kennedy and Johnson both promised regeneration for the USA.
- JFK led the New Frontier programme and LBJ led the Great Society programme.
- Poverty declined in the 1960s but inequality remained.
- Access to education and healthcare improved.
- Critics argued that the New Frontier and Great Society could have achieved more.
Keywords
Regeneration - the process of improving a place or system, especially to make it more active or successful
Social Security - benefits system which provided payments to vulnerable groups such as the elderly or unemployed
Congress - the group of politicians who vote on laws for the whole of the USA
Common misconception
Government policies in the 1960s were only focused on improving civil rights in the USA.
The New Frontier and Great Society were both varied programmes that involved policy action to improve many different aspects of life in America.
Teacher tip
Before Task C, ask pupils to do mini-comparisons first which focus on different areas of life (i.e. civil rights, education, healthcare, poverty etc). This could be done as a purely verbal discussion with students asked to identify a clear example for each programme to support each judgement.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Write the missing word. Legislation refers to passed by the government.
Q2.Which president signed the 1964 and 1968 Civil Rights Acts as well as the 1965 Voting Rights Act?
Q3.Which civil rights law was also known as the Fair Housing Act?
Q4.What percentage of African American teenagers were unemployed by 1970?
Q5.Which of the following laws was a response to police attacks on protestors at Selma?
Q6.Starting with the earliest, sort the following events into chronological order.
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Write the missing keyword: refers to the process of improving a place or system, especially to make it more active or successful.
Q2.Who introduced the New Frontier as president?
Q3.How did JFK change the minimum wage?
Q4.Name either of the healthcare insurance schemes introduced by LBJ in 1965.
Q5.Which statement about US poverty levels between 1959 and 1970 is most accurate?
Q6.Starting with the earliest, sort the following events into chronological order.
To help you plan your 11 history lesson on: The New Frontier and Great Society, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 11 history lesson on: The New Frontier and Great Society, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 4 history lessons from the America 1920–1973, Opportunity and inequality unit, dive into the full secondary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.