Procedures

• SET UP

  This lesson offers several options for you to use with your students whether you are teaching in class, using a hybrid model, or engaging through distance learning. It can be completed in steps as a class or students can move at their own pace and complete the activities independently.

  You can post links to the videos in the lesson along with the related handout and engage in discussion to share responses on a discussion board or learning management system.

  You can also save and share the following Google resource for students to use with this lesson.

  Handout: Choice Board (Google Slides).

  In Google, choose "File" then "Make a Copy" to get your own copy. You can make any needed adjustments in the instructions such as which activities students need to complete, when it is due, etc. and then make it available to them via Google.

• WARM UP

  Pose the following questions to your students, directing them to record their responses on a sheet of paper, share with a partner, and then with the class if they choose.

  • What do you know about the White House?
  • How and why do myths and folklore spread?

• VOCABULARY

  The vocabulary terms that will appear in the lesson are listed to the right on this webpage. Consider which terms your students may need to preview before beginning the lesson.

  Depending on time and resources, you may consider having your students engage in a Frayer's Model activity, where each student is responsible for completing one or two items. Students can then post their models around the room for reference throughout the lesson.

  Note: this is not an all-encompassing list of terms included in each video. We recommend you preview the video clips to determine any necessary additions/subtractions to this list for your specific students.

• INTRODUCTION

  Have your students access their Google Slide document, review the directions on the second slide, and proceed to the next slide. Direct your students to view the two linked introductory video clips, answer the related questions on the respective slides, and share their findings with a partner, small group, or the class when finished.

• Clip #1: Intro (0:32).

  • Why has “public fascination” with the White House created myths?
  • According to Matthew Costello, what perpetuates the myths?
  • What is the “point” of today’s lesson?

• Clip #2: Example (24:17).

  • Summarize the “story” of Dolley Madison and the portrait. Why is the story “popular?”
  • Describe the 1814 letter from Anna Cutts to Madison shown in the clip. Compare the letter to Madison’s recollection from 1836. * Which is more “accurate,” and why?
  • What is “interesting” about the 1847 article, and how did Madison respond in 1848?
  • Based on the clip, who was Paul Jennings? What did he write about the story in his memoir?
  • What do we “ultimately” come away with regarding this story? Summarize Matthew Costello's comments.
  • Why did Madison “perpetuate” the story?

• ENGAGEMENT

  Direct students to the next section of their Google Slide document. Instruct your students to select one of the eight topics listed on the slide. Have your students view their selected video clip and answer the related questions on the respective slide.

  After your students are finished with their selection, have them prepare to share their findings with the class. As students share with the class, make sure that they record the information from their peers’ sections as well. This share-out portion of the lesson could be completed via a jigsaw activity.

• Clip #3: Alligator (3:51).

  • Summarize the “story” of the White House alligator.
  • What “holds up” about the story?
  • What does Matthew Costello find hard to believe? Why?
  • Based on the clip, what did Auguste Levasseur discuss in his writings?
  • Describe the two pieces of evidence that Costello found. Why does he still consider the story a myth?

• Clip #4: The Name (5:57).

  • What is the story of how the White House got its “official” name?
  • How are the September and November 1901 letters “different?”
  • Why did the September 1901 letter have “black trim?”
  • Summarize the message in the October 1901 letter in the clip.
  • What is difficult to “pin down” with this story? Why?

• Clip #5: The Color (5:00).

  • Summarize the myth described in the opening of the clip.
  • What is the “exterior” of the White House made of?
  • Why did the stonemasons wash the gray stone with “whitewash?”
  • Based on the clip, when was the first coat of paint applied? How many layers were removed in the 1970s?
  • According to Matthew Costello, what was viewable when the paint was removed?

• Clip #6: Ghosts (5:18).

  • Summarize the story about the ghost of “the thing.”
  • What “specters” have other people reported seeing?
  • Which ghost did Winston Churchill supposedly see, according to Matthew Costello?
  • Who believed the White House was “haunted?” Why?
  • Why haven’t there been many ghost stories since 1952, according to Costello? Are ghosts in the White House “possible?”

• Clip #7: Tunnels (6:02).

  • Summarize the opening “stories” about White House tunnels.
  • What is “true” about the tunnels? What did General Winfield Scott “suggest,” and why?
  • According to Matthew Costello, when was a tunnel built to the Treasury Building? Why?
  • Based on the clip, what was added during 1948-52? Why?
  • Where is the “Presidential Emergency Operations Center?” Why?

• Clip #8: Christmas (7:22).

  • What is a “modern tradition,” and how does it compare to what occurred during the 19th century?
  • Summarize the “story” about the Roosevelts and Christmas trees.
  • What is “important to note?” Was there a “ban?”
  • Based on the clip, describe the evolution of modern White House Christmas tree traditions.
  • Who is “in charge” of White House decorations today?

• Clip #9: Lincoln (5:36).

  • What purpose did the “Lincoln Bedroom” serve during Abraham Lincoln's presidency?
  • Why did Mary Todd Lincoln purchase a “suite of furniture?”
  • Why is the bed described as the “Lincoln Bed?” Who has slept in the bed?
  • How did President Harry S. Truman “repurpose” the space?
  • According to Matthew Costello, what did Laura Bush do? Why?

• Clip #10: Magnolia (6:01).

  • Describe what you see in the 1846 photograph of the White House.
  • How does the 1861 photograph differ from the others in the clip?
  • What “legend” has grown over time?
  • Based on the clip, why was the tree in the news in 2017?
  • Compare the three descriptions of the event shown in the clip. What “slants” are present?

• CLOSURE

  After your students finish sharing their findings from the engagement section, direct them to the next section in their Google Slide document. Direct your students to view the linked video clip, answer the related questions on the slide, and share their findings with a partner, small group, or the class when finished.

  Clip #11: Recap (2:48).

  • Summarize the “quick recap.”
  • According to Matthew Costello, what do the myths tell us about the White House?
  • What “deeper truth” do the myths uncover, what “greater good” do they serve, and what is the “key” when studying myths?

• WRITING PROMPT

  After your students are finished sharing their findings from the lesson, direct them to complete the final culminating writing on the last slide of their Google Slide document, and have students share their responses, comparing their perspectives with their classmates' perspectives: Having learned about several White House myths, describe why you think many of them have lasted to the present day. Be sure to include evidence from the lesson in your response.