The Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) Readers Theater Script (Grades 11-12)

Recreate the 13 days that brought the world to the brink: U‑2 photos, ExComm debates, a naval ‘quarantine,’ and back‑channel diplomacy that resolved the standoff without war.

Focus: Students evaluate crisis options, read key documents, and discuss brinkmanship and negotiated settlement.

Summary:

• Missiles discovered; ExComm convenes.
• Quarantine announced; Moscow responds.
• Sea confrontations test resolve.
• Letters cross; a deal is shaped.
• Withdrawal, inspections, and lasting lessons.

What’s Included

(a single PDF with links to Google Docs/Slides; if print format is preferred you can download from your Google Drive to Word/PDF/PPT/etc.)

• Readers Theater script (~9 pages, 10 scenes, ~15 characters, editable Google Doc/PDF)
• Teacher Guide (10 pages) with scene summaries, primary‑source context, CCSS alignment, discussion questions
• Student Worksheet deck (25 Google Slides) covering vocabulary, short‑answer, analysis & extension tasks
• 20‑question self‑grading Google Forms quiz

Skills Addressed

• Source evaluation across speeches, memos, and proclamations
• Oral fluency via crisis councils
• Risk analysis and decision mapping
• Academic vocabulary: brinkmanship, quarantine, deterrence

Primary Sources

• JFK, Address on the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)
• Rusk–Ball telephone memorandum (1962)
• Proclamation 3504 (1962)

Will this script meet your needs?
First try the free Korean War Script in the series below. 

Cold War & Civil Rights Bundle | 8 Readers Theater Scripts | SAVE 40%

1. The Iron Curtain & Truman Doctrine (1947)
2. The Korean War (1950–1953) [FREE DOWNLOAD]
3. The Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)
4. The Vietnam War and Protests (1955–1975)
5. Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
6. Montgomery Bus Boycott & Civil Rights Act of 1964
7. March on Washington & Malcolm X (1963–1960s)
8. Nixon and the Watergate Scandal (1972–1974)

Standards (CCSS)

• W.11-12.2
• SL.11-12.1
• SL.11-12.4
• L.11-12.4
• CCRA.R.2
• CCRA.W.2
• CCRA.SL.1
• CCRA.L.4
• RH.11-12.1
• RH.11-12.2
• RH.11-12.3
• RH.11-12.6
• RH.11-12.7
• RH.11-12.8
• RH.11-12.9