Eastern Bloc

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/eastern-bloc

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the founding treaties?Comecon (1949) and Warsaw Pact (1955)
2. What is the dominant ideology?Marxism-Leninism, implemented as state socialism/communism
3. What was the Eastern Bloc and why did it exist?It was a group of Eastern European countries that followed Soviet-style communism after WWII. They were kept together by the Soviet Union to protect against the West and spread communist ideas.
4. How did the Eastern Bloc keep its members together?Through one-party rule, state-controlled economies, and strict control over people. They also worked together in Comecon for trade and in the Warsaw Pact for defense.

Satellite State: A country politically and economically dominated by a more powerful neighbor, typically the Soviet Union.
Centralized Planning: An economic system where the government makes all decisions about production, distribution, and pricing.
Proxy Wars: Conflicts where opposing sides use third parties as substitutes instead of fighting each other directly.