What functions does our presidential residence serve?

• List activities that take place at the White House.

• Review the lesson plan. Locate and bookmark suggested materials and other useful websites. Download and print out documents you will use and duplicate copies as necessary for student viewing.

• Activity 1. What Happens in the White House

Activity 1. What Happens in the White House

Show the class some or all of the following images from the modern presidencies of Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter. Compile a list of what happens at the White House and, if desired, where it happens. (NOTE: All images are available through the online Archival Research Center [ARC] of the EDSITEment reviewed website Digital Classroom.)

• Oval Office (Carter Administration)
• Swearing-In of Secretary of Labor (01/27/1977)
• President Carter Signing the Energy Bill at His Desk (01/27/1977)
• President Carter Press Conference (02/08/1977)
• Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter host State Dinner honoring Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau and Margaret Trudeau of Canada (02/21/1977)
• President Carter Hosts a Working Dinner (03/22/1977)
• Jimmy Carter in the White House library during a televised Fireside Chat on Energy (02/01/1978)
• The Reagans eating on TV trays in the White House residence, November 6, 1981
• President Reagan holding a National Security Council Meeting on the TWA hijacking, Situation Room, June 16, 1985
• President Reagan leading a Cabinet Meeting, September 11, 1986
• The Reagans being greeted by their dog Rex after arriving at the White House in the helicopter (Maine-1), April 20, 1986
• President Reagan and Prime Minister Thatcher talking on the patio outside of the Oval Office, July 17, 1987
• President Reagan and General Secretary Gorbachev signing the INF Treaty in the East Room of the White House, December 8, 1987 (NOTE: The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, with signatories the United States and the Soviet Union, eliminated all nuclear-armed, ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers.)
• President Reagan and Vice-President Bush eating lunch in the Oval Office Study, March 31, 1988

Engage the class in a discussion about the images. The President (and family) lives and works in the White House. Which images show "living"?

Working?

A combination of the two?

Help students understand the nature of a ceremonial event.

Which images show ceremonial events? Which show work in session?

What kind of "house" is required to facilitate everything a President must do?

The President's office is the Oval Office. In the activity above, students may have viewed a photo of the Oval Office during the Carter Administration. If desired, students can explore the interactive activity Design the Oval Office for Yourself on National Geographic's Inside the White House, a link from the EDSITEment resource Explore DC.

Selected EDSITEment Websites

• American Memory
  • November 1, 1800
  • Oval Office (Carter Administration) 
  • Swearing-In of Secretary of Labor (01/27/1977)
  • President Carter Signing the Energy Bill at His Desk (01/27/1977)
  • President Carter Press Conference (02/08/1977)
  • Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter host State Dinner honoring Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau and Margaret Trudeau of Canada (02/21/1977)
  • President Carter Hosts a Working Dinner (03/22/1977)
  • Jimmy Carter in the White House library during a televised Fireside Chat on Energy (02/01/1978)
  • The Reagans eating on TV trays in the White House residence, November 6, 1981
  • President Reagan holding a National Security Council Meeting on the TWA hijacking, Situation Room, June 16, 1985 
  • President Reagan leading a Cabinet Meeting, September 11, 1986 
  • The Reagans being greeted by their dog Rex after arriving at the White House in the helicopter (Maine-1), April 20, 1986 
  • President Reagan and Prime Minister Thatcher talking on the patio outside of the Oval Office, July 17, 1987 
  • President Reagan and General Secretary Gorbachev signing the INF Treaty in the East Room of the White House, December 8, 1987
  • President Reagan and Vice-President Bush eating lunch in the Oval Office Study, March 31, 1988
  • Oval Office during the Carter Administration
• Explore DC
  
  • National Geographic's Inside the White House
  • Design the Oval Office for Yourself