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Home , East Room, Oval Office, Red Room (White House), Resolute desk

The by Gail Skroback Hennessey http://www.gailhennessey.com

The White House is located at 1600 .What do you know about where the President lives during his term in office? Did you know that President was the first to install solar energy panels on the White House or that President had them removed? Did you know that President and his family didn’t like to shut off the “new” electric lights(installed in 1891), afraid to touch the switches or that a specially large bathtub was installed in the White House for President William Taft who weighed 332 lbs?Learn more about the White House with this fun and informative webquest.

1. Did you know that the White has has 35 bathrooms, 147 windows and 132 rooms? Did you know that 570 gallons of white paint are needed to paint the White House?Through the years, the White House has also been called______, ______and ______. Which president officially called it the White House? ______Find the answers at this link:http:// www.whitehouse.gov/about/inside-white-house/history 2. Although our first president, selected the location for the White House and supervised its construction,he never got to live there. Which president was the first to move in the White House in 1800?______It wasn’t finished(only six of the 132 rooms were completed) and was unfurnished.The First Lady used the to hang the wash! In addition to the home of the President of the and his family, what other purpose does the White House provide?______Find the answers at this link: http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/inside-white-house/ history

3. Until the Civil War, the biggest house in the United States was the White House. In addition to a tennis court, swimming pool, a jogging track and a movie theater, what other two recreations can be done in the White House?______Find the answers at this link:http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/inside-white-house/history

4. A competition was held to find the person to design the White House. The winner,______, was given $500 for his winning plan.______In which year was the White House burned to the ground and by whom?______and ______Find the answers at this link:http:// www.whitehouse.gov/about/inside-white-house/history

5. The Oval Office is where the President usually goes to work. It is here that the President has many meetings with staffers, cabinet officials,and meets dignitaries. It is also in the Oval Office that the President often speaks to the American people. What is the famous which most presidents have used?______From which leader and for which president was the desk given in 1880? ______Find the answers at this link:http:// www.whitehousemuseum.org/west-wing/oval-office.htm

6. Which famous singer did President welcome in the Oval Office in 1970?______Which singer met President George W. Bush in the Oval Office in 2005?______Most presidents change the drapes and rug when in office. Which two presidents didn’t change the room decorations at all? ______and ______.How did President Obama change the wall color?______Find the answers at this link:http://www.whitehousemuseum.org/west-wing/oval-office.htm

7. What did first lady Dolly Madison rescued from the White House before it was burned in 1814?______.Who was the artist?______Find the answers at this link:http:// whha.org/whha_classroom/classroom_documents-1812.html

8. There are actually 6 levels in the White House. It has been open to the public since 1805 under President______.During which times has the White House been closed to the public? ______and ______What is the name of the room in the White house where the first lady welcomes her guests? ______The largest room in the White House is the East Room.What is done here?______Find the answers at this link:http://usparks.about.com/cs/parkhistory/a/whitehouse_2.htm

9. The area where the Oval Office of the White House is now located, once was where stables housed horses and carriages. The Rose Garden, once called the West Garden, of the White House dates back to which President?______Which first lady first replaced the colonial gardens with roses?______Find the answers at this link:http://www.whitehousemuseum.org/grounds/ rose-garden.htm

10.The White House Easter Egg Roll has been a tradition since 1878.It started as an activity on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol. Because there was concern about the lawn being ruined, President ______banned the activity at the U.S. Capitol, in 1876. It was moved to the White House lawns soon after. It would be First Lady ______who arranged the last egg roll with REAL eggs. Why do you think they stopped using real eggs? ______Since then, plastic and wooden eggs have been used.Each child goes home with one egg.What is inscribed on the eggs?______Find the answers at this link:https:// www.whitehousehistory.org/whha_press/index.php/backgrounders/ white-house-easter-egg-roll/

Discussion Questions: 1. In addition to being the home of the President and his/her family, what other purpose does the White House provide?

2. What are some of the recreational activities found at the White House?

3. How many bathrooms does the White House have? How many rooms?

4. What are two things usually done in the Oval Office?

Extension Activities:

1. If you could pick another color for the White House, what might it be and why?

2. Why do you think the British burned the during the War of 1912? Make a news headline of the event.

3. Write a diary pretending to be President of the United States. Tell about a day at the White House and include 4 facts learned from the webquest.

4. Try this online jigsaw puzzle on the White House:http://www.jigzone.com/ puzzles/59055D4D6D38

5. Test your IQ on the White House:http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz/ quiz360725294b6e0.html 6. Coloring sheet on the White House: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/ history/us/monuments/whitehouse/printout.shtml

7. Find a fun facts about the White house and draw/color a picture of this fact: http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/fun-facts-know-about-white- house-residents and http://www.enchantedlearning.com/history/us/ monuments/whitehouse/

Answers to Questions: 1. museum of American history 2. tennis court, swimming pool, jogging track, movie theater, bowling alley, basketball court 3. 35/132 4. President's office, means visiting dignitaries and staff/speaks to American people

Interesting tidbit: Some say that the White house has some ghostly residents including ’s ghost as well as the ghosts of Dolly Madison, and .

Read about the ghostly residents of the White House at this link: http://www.history.com/topics/ghosts-in-the-white-house

Key: WHITE HOUSE 1.President’s Palace, President’s House and Executive Mansion/ 2. /museum of AMerican history 3. billiard room/ bowling lane 4James Hoban/1814/British 5.//President Rutherford 6.Elvis Presley/Bono/Eisenhower and Carter/not a solid/vertical strips 7.portrait of George Washington/ 8.Jefferson/wartime/9/11//state receptions/balls 9.Kennedy, Ellen Wilson 10.Grant/Nixon/rotting eggs that weren’t found/signature of President and First Lady

NOTE:Photograph from: http://publicdomainclip-art.blogspot.com/2007/09/ white-house.html