HistoryAges 11 to 14The Space Race, 1957 to 1969

Race to the Moon

Put twelve years of the Space Race in order, then decide what mattered most.

NameClassDate

Learning goal

I can sequence events on a timeline and explain why some mattered more than others.

Success criteria

I can place events on a scaled timeline by date.
I can work out the gap in years between events.
I can judge significance using criteria.

1Complete the timeline5 marks

Three are done for you. For each card below, find its marker by date and shape, then write the date and event in that callout.

3USA

25 May 1961

Kennedy asks Congress to aim for the Moon before this decade is out.

Why it mattered: a public goal.

6USA

Date

Event

7USA

December 1968

Apollo 8 is the first crewed flight to orbit the Moon. The crew photograph Earthrise.

8USA

Date

Event

1USSRModel

4 October 1957

Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, orbits Earth.

Why it mattered: it shocked the USA.

2USSR

Date

Event

4USSR

Date

Event

5USSR

Date

Event

USA square, above USSR diamond, below Outline: you complete it Long tick: new decade

Event card bankJumbled! Check the date and the shape on each card.

USA

20 July 1969

Apollo 11 lands on the Moon. Armstrong and Aldrin walk on it.

USSR

16 June 1963

Valentina Tereshkova is the first woman in space (Vostok 6).

USA

27 January 1967

A fire in an Apollo 1 launch rehearsal kills three astronauts.

USSR

12 April 1961

Yuri Gagarin is the first human in space (Vostok 1).

USSR

18 March 1965

Alexei Leonov makes the first spacewalk (Voskhod 2).

The Space RaceSignificance

What mattered most?

Use your finished timeline to weigh events and make a judgement.

2Weigh the significance6 marks

Choose the three most significant events. Write Yes, Partly or No for each criterion, then justify using a criterion word.

Remarkable

Amazing or shocking at the time?

Changed things

Changed lives or later events?

Still remembered

Marked or taught today?

Event

R

C

S

Why it is significant

Model: Sputnik 1

Yes

Partly

It was remarkable because nothing made by people had orbited Earth before. It changed things: the USA set up NASA in 1958 to catch up.

3Turning point6 marks

Look at the shapes on your timeline. Who was ahead?

aBefore 1966:

bAfter 1966:

A turning point is a moment after which events head in a new direction. Which event was the turning point? Say what changed before and after it.

The turning point was ... because ...Before this, ... ; after this, ...Some might argue ... ; however, ...

4Chronology check4 marks

Number these from 1 (earliest) to 4. Try it from memory first.

Apollo 8 orbits the Moon.

Sputnik 1 orbits Earth.

Valentina Tereshkova flies in Vostok 6.

Kennedy sets the Moon goal.

Find the gap in years. Show the subtraction.

aSputnik 1 to Apollo 11: years

bKennedy's speech to Apollo 11: years

cWas that before this decade is out? Yes / No

Go further

The USSR never landed a person on the Moon. Did it lose the Space Race? Give one reason for and one against.

Teacher pageDo not hand out

Answers, criteria and teaching moves

Mark scheme (21 marks)

Task

Accept

Marks

1

Callout 2: 12 April 1961, Gagarin, first human in space. 4: 16 June 1963, Tereshkova, first woman in space. 5: 18 March 1965, Leonov, first spacewalk. 6: 27 January 1967, Apollo 1 fire. 8: 20 July 1969, Apollo 11 lands on the Moon. One mark each for the right event with its date.

5

2

Up to 2 marks per event: 1 for criterion judgements that fit the event, 1 for a justification that names a criterion and gives a specific consequence or detail. Accept any three events if the reasoning holds.

6

3

a: the USSR (satellite, man, woman and spacewalk all came first). b: the USA (Apollo 8 and Apollo 11). 1 mark each. Judgement, up to 4: names an event; says what was different before and after; supports with a date or detail; weighs an alternative. Strong choices: Sputnik 1 (race begins), Kennedy's speech (the Moon becomes the goal), Apollo 8 (the USA overtakes).

6

4

Order down the list: 4, 1, 3, 2 (two marks; one with a single pair swapped). a: 1969 minus 1957 = 12 years (accept 11 years 9 months). b: 1969 minus 1961 = 8 years. c: Yes, July 1969 is before 1970. One mark for a and b together, one for c.

4

Lesson flow (about 60 minutes)

Starter, 5 min: show the 1957 to 1970 line with no events. Ask: who do you think got to space first?
Task 1, 15 min: pairs place the cards, then compare with another pair before writing.
Tasks 2 and 3, 25 min: model the Sputnik row aloud, then pupils judge independently.
Plenary, 10 min: vote on the turning point; take one reason from each side.

More dates for extension

31 January 1958Explorer 1, the first US satellite.1958NASA is set up.5 May 1961Alan Shepard, the first American in space.20 February 1962John Glenn, the first American to orbit Earth.

The three criteria

Remarkable asks how people saw it at the time. Changed things asks about consequences, for lives or later events. Still remembered asks about its place in memory today. An event can score highly on one and low on another; that tension is what makes a judgement.

Common misconceptions

"The USA was ahead from the start." The USSR achieved the first satellite, first human, first woman and first spacewalk. Point to the diamonds clustered left of 1966.
Confusing Gagarin (first in space, 1961) with Armstrong (first on the Moon, 1969).
Thinking Apollo 8 landed. It orbited the Moon only.
Thinking Apollo 1 crashed in space. The fire happened on the launch pad during a test.

Support and stretch

Support: cut out the five cards and lay them on the line before writing; for task 2, choose the three events with the pupil first.
Stretch: add Alan Shepard (first American in space, 5 May 1961) to the timeline and explain why it did not win the "first human" title.

Debate question

"The Apollo 1 fire was more significant than the Moon landing." How far do you agree?