Jimmy Carter: To the White House and Beyond

Biography examines the extraordinary story of a small-town boy who resurrected his reputation and honor on the world's stage. In 1976, James Earl Carter rode a tide of anti-government sentiment into the White House. There, he set out to change the way Americans think about politicians. But four years later, in the wake of the Iran hostage crisis, Americans voted President Carter out of office. Now, Carter is again leading America by brokering peace deals around the world. Find out about the life and times of the man from Plains in this incredible story of exoneration and redemption. Jimmy Carter: To the White House and Beyond would be useful for classes on American History, American culture, Political Science and Ethics. It is appropriate for middle school and high school.

OBJECTIVES

Students will examine the Carter presidency and the political, cultural and world events of the era. They will explore the relationship between the presidency and foreign policy, as well as gaining an understanding of the American political system.

NATIONAL HISTORY STANDARDS

Jimmy Carter: To the White House and Beyond fulfills the following National Standards for History for grades 5-12: chronological thinking, historical comprehension, historical analysis and interpretations, and historical research capabilities for United States History eras 8, 9 and 10

• autocrat
• emulate
• finesse
• incumbent
• insatiable
• mandate
• patriarch
• quagmire
• sharecropper
• surrogate

1. Jimmy Carter's campaign stressed the fact that he was different than the Washington politicians. Was he different? If so, what made him different?

2. Lillian Carter, President Carter's mother, served her community in a unique way. Discuss her role in Plains, Georgia, in the 1920s as a public health nurse.

3. Earl Carter, President Carter's father, owned peanut farms that employed African American tenants. Discuss the class and racial differences between Earl Carter and his sharecroppers.

4. Earl Carter's tenants made their living by sharecropping. Research and discuss this system of sharecropping. What are its origins? How did it work? Whom did it benefit? What is the system's role in Southern history, especially Southern African American history?

5. President Jimmy Carter grew up in the segregated south. How did this system of segregation work? How did it influence the life of President Carter?

6. President Carter left the United States Navy in 1953. Why?

7. Discuss the political corruption Jimmy Carter encountered in his first campaign for elected political office, the Georgia State Senate.

8. President Carter is known as a man of principle and honor. How has he shown this throughout his life, as a president and as a private citizen?

9. Discuss the symbolic value of President and Mrs. Carter walking to the White House after his inauguration.

10. President Carter negotiated the treaty to turn over control of the Panama Canal to the nation of Panama. Discuss the significance of this treaty.

1. Create a timeline illustrating the events of the Carter administration.

2. Design a political poster or button for the 1976 presidential campaign.

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Air Dates

• October 29, 2004