Cold War · 1989-1990

9 November 1989: the Wall comes down

In the summer of 1989 Hungary opened its border, East Germans fled through it, and crowds marched every Monday in Leipzig. On the evening of 9 November a confused press conference opened the Berlin Wall. Students follow the chain of events and the road to a united Germany in 1990.

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
50 minutes
Ages
12–15
On the map
3 steps, AD 1960 to AD 1994
Live lesson
7 rounds, 3 on the map
Worksheet
Two A4 pages, with Classroom
You need
A projector; phones for live

Live lesson · new in Classroom

Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.

Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.

€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.

A live lesson on the projector: the class's pins on the map around Alexandria, the closest students listed beside it A student's phone: the question and a map to tap
7 rounds
3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
About 15 minutes
Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
A report
Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
1

Introduction

5 min

Read aloud

In the summer of 1989 Hungary opened its border, East Germans fled through it, and crowds marched every Monday in Leipzig. On the evening of 9 November a confused press conference opened the Berlin Wall. Students follow the chain of events and the road to a united Germany in 1990.

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Describe the events of 1989 that led to the opening of the Berlin Wall.
  • Locate the Hungarian border, Leipzig and Berlin and explain the role each played.
  • Explain how Germany was reunited on 3 October 1990 and compare the 1960 and 1994 maps.
2

Explore the map

15 min

Project the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.

a

AD 1960

The hole in the curtain

Open the map in 1960 and find the border between Hungary and Austria. In the summer of 1989 Hungary began removing its fences here. Why did that matter for East Germans far to the north?

Open this view on the map
b

AD 1960

Leipzig

Zoom in on Leipzig in East Germany. Every Monday from September 1989 crowds marched around the ring road after prayers in the Nikolai church. Ask the atlas: "What did the Leipzig marchers chant?"

Open this view on the map
c

AD 1994

One Germany

Move the slider from 1960 to 1994 and watch Germany. What happens? Ask the atlas: "When was Germany reunited?"

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

15 min

Pick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.

  1. Gorbachev told the East German leaders in 1989 that Soviet troops would not help them against their own people. Why did that change everything?
  2. The Leipzig marchers chanted "We are the people". Later it became "We are one people". What is the difference?
  3. On 9 November a spokesman said the new travel rules applied "immediately". Was the Wall opened by a plan or by a mistake?
  4. Many East Germans were happy with unification; some later missed parts of their old lives. Why can big changes feel like loss as well as gain?
  5. The Wall fell without a shot. Why was 1989 so peaceful in East Germany when 1953, 1956 and 1968 had not been?
4

Game round

10 min

Play one round of Rule History as Frederick the Great, who built up Prussia and Berlin. Then compare: in 1989-1990 Berlin became the capital of a united Germany again. Who decided, Kohl, Gorbachev, Bush, or the people on the streets?

Open Rule History
5

Worksheet

5 min

This worksheet comes with Classroom

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