Libr 260a: Online Resources



Katrina Deliramich
Libr. 260A
Assignment Number (#1)
September 28, 2010



Reference Websites:

Yahoo! Kids

Yahoo! Kids is a free online website that provides reference information, games and advice for children. The website is apart of the main Yahoo! Site and is available national and internationally.
Yahoo! Kids allow you to ask questions to a carton character named Earl. You can look up questions already been asking and look up terms for definitions. There is a separate section for study help. The main interface is very colorful and has pictures and bright colors. You can either use the large tabs at the top of the page to find Animals, Ask Earl, Science, reference, and World Factbook. The animal’s tab allows you to get information on a list of animals or to find animals in definitions and topics. Science shows you information on the solar system NASA, videos on space and science projects and links to other science sites. Reference gives you links to homework help websites, definitions, encyclopedia and a search box to look up anything you need.
I explored the topic of dolphins using the reference search box. I received over ten hits for definition, encyclopedia entries and links to other websites. I then tried asking Earl a question about how dolphins breathe. When I asked the question they then asked for my first name and age from a drop down box. I said I was four. When I submitted the question I was confused how I would get the answer. On more careful searching I found the answer would be posted under the Earl tab when it is answered. I am not sure how long this will take.

I feel this is a good site for older kids from 3rd to 8th grade. The interface is easy to use and there are a lot of fun learning games and pictures to keep kids interested. If a parent were to help a young child they could use the website to view videos on animals and space. Overall I think the information is good although the Ask Earl area was confusing if you need information fast, I would try one of the homework help links they have instead.




Awesome Library
HYPERLINK “http://www.awesomelibrary.org/student.html” http://www.awesomelibrary.org/student.html

Awesome Library is a free online website that provides thousands of reviewed WebPages and information for students, librarians and parents. The website was created by Dr. R. Jerry Adams and is associated with the Internet Content Rating System that provides a thorough survey of information to provide family safety.

Awesome Library has a very simple interface. There are bright colored boxes that provide the different school subjects for K-12. The subjects include English, Math, Science, Health and PE, Technology, Language, The Arts and Social Sciences. Each subject provides a further breakdown of topics such as The Arts gives information on Arts & Crafts, Architecture, Dance, Painting, Theatre, Music, Sculpture, Movies and Photography. When a sub-subject is chosen you are then provided with definitions, papers on the topic, other areas to search for similar topics, website links and materials. If you get stuck at any point there is always a search box at the bottom of the page to help guide you in a new direction.
I looked at the Photography section more in-depth. I was provided with lessons on how to use different cameras. They gave links to view photos and you can get descriptions explaining the photo. There were websites that provided links to famous photographers, history of photography and slide shows from famous photography exhibits.
I really liked this site for older children, such as 4th grade and up. This is a great way to find historical facts on subjects along with information on how things work and how to put what you are learning into real life. The interface is very straightforward and is easy to maneuver to where you want. By having the subject broken down like the schools it would be easier for children to know where to look for certain homework assignments.            




Little Explorers

Little Explorers provides information for free but also has a subscription available. The benefits of being a subscriber allow you to view the website without ads and to view and print more content than the free website provides. The subscription is $20.00 and is paid yearly. A maker of educational games created little Explorers in 1996. The website is available in many languages including Japanese to allow access to almost everyone.
The home page has a large colorful alphabet to allow easy access to definitions and subjects. The dictionary gives the definition and a picture so young children can enjoy the site, although subscriber’s rate the age group to 2nd-3rd grade. Below the alphabet children can click on links to the right for information about the current season, famous birthdays the face of a medieval explorer to locate facts related to history and animal print outs. Language selections are provided in the center of the webpage under the alphabet. I found the breakdown for ages helpful because they have certain links to a bunch of WebPages for age groups, it makes searching faster. Icons are provided for scavenger hunts, vocabulary maps and definition information. The vocabulary map gives a breakdown of the word and synonyms, acronyms, parts of speech, a picture and how to use it in a sentence. This is a very valuable tool for young children.
I decided to try out one of the vocabulary maps. I clicked on the link and it took me to a page with many different layouts for the vocabulary map. I could then either print out a blank map or download it to my computer. A link at the top of the page brought me back to the alphabet dictionary. I then clicked on the letter B. When you click on a letter instead of having a list of words come up you get a grid like feature. In each box are an illustration, the word and a brief definition. You can click on any box you want for further information. Filling in the vocabulary map was extremely easy because all the information you need, including the picture, is already provided.
This site is designed to be used by kids but I can see how teachers and parents would find the information very useful. There are many tools that can be used in the classroom for activities and homework help. Younger children might have a problem figuring out certain areas, such as the vocabulary map, but I feel with the help of a parent they will enjoy the illustrations and learn quickly.     




Kids Click!

Kids Click! Is an ALA rated Best Website. The site was created by the school of Library and Information Science at Kent State University in 1995. Kids Click! Is free with no membership required. The focus of the website is to provide links for information and informational sites to kids.
The homepage of the website is not very exciting. There is a breakdown of fifteen categories: facts & Reference, Weird & Mysterious, Religion & Mythology, Society & Government, Science & Math, Health & Family, Home & Household, Machines & Transportation, The Arts, Popular Entertainments, Sports & Recreations, Literature, Reading Writing & Speaking, Computers, Geography History & Biography. Under each category there are dozens of sub-categories. A search box is provided at the top of the page.
I chose to try looking into the history category to see what was provided. When I clicked on the heading I was taken to a page with many listings for history related websites. They were broken down into sub-menus by City, Country, American History, World History and much more. I could also look under specific subjects such as War, Witchcraft and Royalty. When I clicked on either a sub-menu or category I was taken to another webpage that even more breakdowns, such as American History the next page provided breakdowns by period and events. I could then click on a specific period or event. I chose Colonial period and was given a listing for 23 websites relating to the Colonial Period. I tested a few of the sites, which provided a brief overview in the listing.
What I thought was the most beneficial aspect of this site was the notation at the bottom of each website listing that gave the appropriate age level to view the site. This allowed me to see which sites they said were appropriate for first grade and which for seventh grade. I was very impressed by how much information was given and how carefully they divided up the categories. It would be very simple for a third through eighth grader to follow this website and to find exactly what they wanted. Younger children would need more help since there are no pictures and you could get confused with so many options.



Smithsonian Kids

Smithsonian Kids is a free website offered by the Smithsonian Institution. The goal of the Smithsonian Kids website and the institution as a whole is to educate kids and educators by providing resources and programs. The website has won many awards including the American Association of School Librarians award and the WEBBY award two years in a row.
The home page of Smithsonian Kids is very exciting and interactive. There a real photos along with illustrations. There are links to Art, Science, History and People. Four educational adventures are giving for exploring the moon, archeology, the Universe and a “Kids” link. There are many online interactive areas such as exploring the climate and viewing animals live through video. Fun facts are given on the right side of the page.
There is no search box so you have to explore the different areas in order to find what you are looking for. I chose to look through the People link. Once I clicked on the link I was given many categories such as exploring people around the world, transportation, history of homes and biographies on notable authors, historians, and pioneers. It seemed with every area I chose I got a slideshow, a video or some fun game to play. The facts are given about each area but instead of reading a long paragraph about a lion you actually can view footage of the lion habitat and information about their everyday lives.
I feel this is a great website to get children interested in science and the world. They can learn exciting facts and explore in so many different ways. I thought this site was the most interactive one I have found so far and I was not bored at all with the content. If it pleases me I know it will keep children entertained for hours. I do not think a parent really needs to help kids with this site because the goal is exploration. You cannot really go wrong anywhere unless you are looking for one specific thing. I found it was difficult because there was no search box, so you cannot just go to one specific fact, you have to explore.



Readers Advisory Websites:

BookHive

            BookHive is a reader’s advisory site presented by the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. BookHive has a kid friendly interface that allows children to easily search for the book they are looking for. A large link in bold type allows you to “Find Books” (the link is a cartoon bee and very inviting for kids). The books are divided into thirty-two categories including classics, poetry, sports and humor. There is a break down for picture books, non-fiction books and read-aloud as well. Books can also be viewed by winter, spring, summer and fall. When you click on a category you are then able to either view all reviews in the category or narrow your search results by audience. The audience categories include babies, toddlers, primary, intermediate and adult. I tried searching for a historical book. My options were to type in a book or theme in the search box provided or choose a category. When I accessed the historical link I was able to view books for each age group. I could find no results for babies and toddlers under historical, but I was able to find seven reviews for primary kids. The a few of the books included: The Bravest Knight by Mercer Mayor, A Library for Juana: The World of Juana Ines by Pat Mora, and Martin’s Big Words: The Life of Martin Luther King Jr. by Doreen Rappaport. A nice edition at the bottom of the page provides reviews of the books by children and adults who have previously read them. The website is very colorful and full of animation. There are many options to view books including searching, categories and booklists.
           

Reading is Fundamental
HYPERLINK “http://www.rif.org/” http://www.rif.org/

            Founded in 1966, Reading is Fundamental is a non-profit organization geared towards teaching children to read and providing free books and education. The foundation focuses on children ages 0-8. The website is very interactive and the children’s section is divided into two groups. 0-5, 6-15. These sections are also available as links in Spanish. When you click on an age group the website talks to you. For the ages 0-5 pictures appear and tabs are presented. The tabs break up the age group into babies &toddlers, preschoolers and grown-ups. Under babies & toddlers you can view stories, nursery rhymes and play games. The grown-ups tab gives you access to more book reviews and a search box. You can choose keyword or subjects to search for. There are also links to journals and articles for children.  I did a search for books on bears. I was bale to choose the age group I was searching for. Since I was still under the 0-5 section my age choices were 0-1, 2-3 or 4-5. I chose 4-5 to search. I noticed from the results not only did I get titles with bears in it but if the review mentioned a bear I received that result as well. A few of the books I found were Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown, Goldilocks and the Three Bears by Jan Brett and The Girl Who Lived With the Bears by Barbara Diamond Gouldin. The results give the picture of the book and a nice summary. This site is very interactive for kids but would need an adults help to navigate to the right area. Once they are in their age group a child can spend hours playing and reading.


The Database of Award-Winning Children’s Literature
HYPERLINK “http://www.dawcl.com/introduction.html” http://www.dawcl.com/introduction.html

The Database of Award-Winning Children’s Literature was created in 1997 by Lisa Bartle. The database at first glance is very bleak looking but once you start searching it becomes much better. Instead of a simple search box the database provides fifteen questions to answer about what you are looking for. The questions are: Suggested age, setting, historical period, ethnicity of protagonist or tale, includes languages, keyword, awards, format, genre, multicultural, gender of protagonist, publication year, author/illustrator and sorting, You can choose to fill in the options or to choose that they do not matter from a drop down box. The results are catered exactly to your needs. The trouble I had was when I filled in too many options I could not find any results. If you chose about three options I could find results I wanted. I tried searching for a girl protagonist, age group 5-8, with a keyword horse. I received seven results including That Book Woman by Heather Henson and Song of the Horse by Richard Kennedy. There are no pictures provided of the covers and the summaries are rather brief. I know from previously reading That Book Woman that it fits my criteria but I am not sure of the other book. I liked this website for parents who have children interested in a certain subject or time period. It can be hard finding books if they have read all the known ones around. This is a great site to give suggestions. A child can access this site with their parent to help fill in the questions but alone I think they would find it boring and confusing.



Columbus Metropolitan Library

The Columbus Metropolitan Library has a great reader advisory site for children. The website is interactive with comical pictures and bright colors. The words are written in large font and the overall interface is pleasing to the eye. There are links for searching for books or resources. The website is different from other sites in that it does not give you any search options to begin with. You type in a keyword and then a new page comes up with the results, including pictures of each cover. There is a web to the left with more keywords and on the right there is a break down of categories. Topic and age groups are listed along with the number of results for each category. This is an easy way to sort through information and adjust your search as you go if you do not know a specific title or author. Parents would need to help kids navigate the website but there is a lot the child could accomplish on his own as well. I tried a search for pictures and I received an incredible amount of results. In less than ten seconds I was able to look just under preschool age books. From there I could pick a series, number of pages, author or genre. They provide many more options to lower your searches. I found they even have a separate search engine for just picture books, which helped me narrow my searches even more. When I tried a search if they did not have a picture book with that search they give you a suggestion for a similar word or topic.

Children’s Literature Network

The Children’s Literature Network is a reader’s advisory site that is for-profit yet all proceeds go back into education. The site offers a subscription option but you can read the review and access most of the site without a subscription. The interface is calming and crisp, more suited to parents and librarians than to kids. New books are listed on the homepage and you can easily read more about the book and they provide color photos of the covers. Unlike in others sites the search box was not very useful. The best way to find books is to choose from one of the subject breakdowns they have. They cover over thirty-eight subjects including adoption, historical and poetry. The subjects are a bit odd because they include subjects such as reading with dad, skinny books and child’s heart. Under each subject all books relating to the subject are listed along with the book covers and a short description. The books are organized very cleanly and easy to view what you want. Another way to find books is to look under the review section. The reviews are divided by months and you can view all the reviews along with videos on how the books were made and about the authors. This is not a kid friendly site but I appreciated the details such as the videos to learn more about certain books. I looked for a book under the subject farm and farming. They had reviewed over two hundred books and ranked the top twenty. I found books such as From Wheat to Bread by Kirstin Keller, Harvest Year by Cris Peterson and How Do You Raise A Raisin? by Munoz Ryan. From the descriptions of the books and the cover pictures provided these books seemed very interesting and colorful for children.



Sources

American Library Association Wiki Website (2010). Retrieved September 18, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://wikis.ala.org/professionaltips/index.php/Main_Pagehttp://wikis.ala.org/professionaltips/index.php/Main_Page

Awesome Library Website (2010). Retrieved September 23, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://www.awesomelibrary.org/student.html” http://www.awesomelibrary.org/student.html

Children’s Literature Network Website (2002-2010). Retrieved September 18, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://www.childrensliteraturenetwork.org/http://www.childrensliteraturenetwork.org/

Columbus Metropolitan Library Website (2010). Retrieved September 18, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://kids.columbuslibrary.org/http://kids.columbuslibrary.org/

Digital Librarian Website (2010). Retrieved September 18, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://www.digital-librarian.com/childlit.htmlhttp://www.digital-librarian.com/childlit.html

Facts for Learning Website (2008). Retrieved September 20, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://www.factsforlearning.com/trial/ffl-learn-more.asphttp://www.factsforlearning.com/trial/ffl-learn-more.asp

Kids Click!, School of Library and Information Science at Kent State University Website (1995-2010). Retrieved September 20, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://www.kidsclick.org/http://www.kidsclick.org/

Little Explorers Website (1996-2010). Retrieved September 23, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Dictionary.htmlhttp://www.enchantedlearning.com/Dictionary.html

Madison Public Library Website (2008-2010). Retrieved September 16, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://www.madisonpubliclibrary.org/booklists/readersites.htmlhttp://www.madisonpubliclibrary.org/booklists/readersites.html

National Science Digital Library Website (2010). Retrieved September 16, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://www.nsdl.org” http://www.nsdl.org

Peck, P. (2006). Crash course in children’s services. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited.

Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County Website (2010). BookHive Website Retrieved from HYPERLINK “http://www.plcmc.org/bookhive/http://www.plcmc.org/bookhive/

Reading is Fundamental Website (2010). Retrieved September 18, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://www.rif.org/” http://www.rif.org/

San Mateo County Library Website (2010). Retrieved September 17, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://kids.smcl.org/en/node/151http://kids.smcl.org/en/node/151

Smithsonian Kids Website (2010) Retrieved September 19, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://webzero.si.edu/kids/http://webzero.si.edu/kids/

The Children’s Literature Web Guide (1994-2001). Retrieved September 17, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://people.ucalgary.ca/~dkbrown/index.htmlhttp://people.ucalgary.ca/~dkbrown/index.html

The Database of Award-Winning Children’s Literature (1997-2010). Retrieved September 18, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://www.dawcl.com/introduction.html” http://www.dawcl.com/introduction.html

Yahoo! Kids Website (2010). Retrieved September 25, 2010 from HYPERLINK “http://kids.yahoo.com/learnhttp://kids.yahoo.com/learn



















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