Online resources overview for Social Studies
(Information from Library Media Center, please check with Library Technology (414-3905)
before distributing or posting somewhere other than this site)
How to access:
 Library catalog thru Knowledge Portal
 District webpage to library resource page
What online resources are provided by the state through Digital Knowledge Central
 DKC workshops
 Lesson plans
 Training/support materials
Learning Zone (Britannica) Prek-2nd [Guided Tour located under help]
 Talking dog Newton reads text and highlights in math
 Teacher’s guide create own lessons with login or use sample lesson
Http://info.eb.com/learningzone/teachers_guide.html
 Activity based learning or Subject based learning
o Explore: geography with world atlas, click on flag to learn about that part of the
world through videos
o Play: interactive learning through games & take quizzes Subjects: Shapes,
Colors, Sounds, Time, Vocabulary, Math (counting, adding, subtracting)
o Read: (build vocabulary) click on a letter for words that start with that letter and
get a definition that is read and highlighted
o Draw: use mouse skills to draw on the computer
Encyclopedia Britannica (Elem., MS, HS)[Guided Tour as pdf located under Britannica Online
blue bar & Teacher Resources/Training materials are located at the bottom including
powerpoints]
Search by a specific leveled encyclopedias or search all 3 at once
 Articles also includes magazine articles, graphics, multimedia and authoritative websites /
uses outline form for quick access to facts in the encyclopedia
o Curriculum Standards - in article or by standard to article
o Spanish translator by word
o double click on word for definition
o save to workspace to collect all the research info
 Animal Kingdom new elementary
o By group ie fish
o By habitat
o Alpha by specific animal
 interactive timeline
 atlas
 multimedia/interactive lessons plans tied to state standards
 Compare countries with stats
 Britannica Spotlights like the Presidency
 Britannica Blog section hs
 Discover America
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Curriculum Resource Center, Jr. edition (elem.) [Help-great explanation for the sections under
the main menu]
 Brief information but great graphical display of information
 Timelines
 People in history
 Events in history
 Career information and career survey
 Science diagrams
 Science projects
 Large map collection countries and states
EBSCO(all levels including professional) [online tutorials
http://support.ebscohost.com/training/tutorials.php , also click on EBSCOhostweb - under any of
the databases is a Title List of resources in that database]
 35 separate databases which includes an encyclopedia, magazines, books, newspapers,
pamplets, primary docs. and government documents
 4 metasearchers by appropriate level databases or direct access to search in a specific
database or specific magazine
 Translates into Spanish
 Texas resources including Indian tribes in the publication Texas Indians
o Path Database is Texas Reference Center, click on Publications at top of window,
next window type Texas Indians and click browse, click on blue link for Texas
Indians, click on Full Text: 01/01/1999 to 01/02/1999. A list will appear of the
tribes.
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Professional journals
Country reports
Maps & flags
Lexile level
Students can save research in folder if create a login
Journal alerts must have login – anytime an journal is published the table of contents are
mailed to your email
Search alerts must have login – create a search and then set it to continue to email you if
any articles are published with your search criteria
Enciclopedia Juvenil (Britannica) (Elem.) [Ayuda under Help guided tour & powerpoint]
 Encyclopedia articles
 Spanish-English dictionary
 Animals
 Videos
 *Multimedia lessons in Spanish America
 Click on word for definition in Spanish
 Spanish Reference Center takes you to other Spanish leveled resources
Estudiantil Hallazgos (World Book) (Elem.) [scroll to bottom of page and click on Online
Tutorial]
World Book Kids articles match these in Spanish
 Short brief articles
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FACTS on FILE (secondary only) - has a federated search page that will search all 3 of these
databases at one time (Knowledge Portal – FOF Search Portal) or you can go into the specific
database [click on FOF search portal and under each database is an info sheet with flash tutorials
coming soon]
Create login to archive research or use brief save feature
More info w/fact sheets and how to use – click on additional databases
 Issues & Controversies
o Hot topics both pro & con (updated weekly w/ 13 backfile
o Timelines, primary source documents, statistical tables
o Editorial cartoons w/discussion questions & activities
o National High School Debate Topics
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Today’s Science
o Weekly news/articles w/16yr backfile
o Pop glossary for instant definition of scientific terms see G symbol
o Editorial cartoons, photographs, diagrams & crossword puzzles
o Biographies
o National Science Education Standards and Science Fair guide
o Articles have related articles, overviews and National Science Standards
o Links to outside internet sites by categories
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World News Digest
o Authoritative World News fro 1940 to Today with searchable hourly news feed
o Primary source documents
o Timelines
o Editorial cartoons w/ discussion questions
o In-depth coverage guides to top ongoing stories
 Iraq War guide
o Includes Almanac and Encyclopedia
o Country profiles including “Background Notes” with key news events
o World Press Links
o Supreme Court Rulings
o Top Stories by decades
Gran Enciclopedia Planeta Planeta Saber(Britannica) link takes you to EB Spanish Reference
Center Click on the blue PlanetSaber to enter [http://info.eb.com/PDFs/spanish_tour.pdf for
information about the resource]
 Encyclopedia articles
 Compare countries
 Timelines
 Multimedia lessons
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NetTrekker safe internet browser than brings educational, authoritative websites (all level) [click
on help all the way at the bottom of the window, scroll down to Implementation and click on
Atomic Learning Tutorials]
 Teacher can save links in portfolio and point students to these websites
 How to use training through Atomic Learning
o From home click at bottom on help
o Under implementation look for Atomic Learning tutorials
 Read aloud capability (click on read aloud before opening site)
 Dictionary Hot key (to activate, click on dictionary to open site, words underline, double
click
 Readability Lexile and other types of measurement
 English Learners Channel
o ELL skill development
o Multicultural pavilion
st
 21 Century Skills Channel
 Famous Person Search
 Image search
Newsbank/Kidspage (secondary & elementary) [Blue column - Teacher/Librarian Resources,
click on Training and Support Center for factsheets and powerpoints]
Supports education standards
Lexile for kidspage
 Access World News – access to news publications from countries worldwide.
o Acceda Noticias = Spanish
 Archives of Texas History
o Lesson plans to guide through Archive of Texas History
o Texas Historical Newspapers (1836-1977)
o America’s Historical Newspapers (1690-2000)
o Texas in US Congressional Publications (1817-1970s)
 Newsbank Popular News Periodicals (1992-current)
 Newsbank ScienceSource Collection (1987-current)
 Dallas Morning News Historical Archives (1885-1977)
 Newsbank Kidspage – Elementary Resources for Homework & Research
 Special Reports – collection of news stories under a topic
 Maps
 The Curriculum Resource for secondary and elementary
o http://www.librarylink.info/dkc/
 click on TCR takes through steps of critical thinking
o Kidspage goes through projects ex. How do hurricanes form?
Science Online (Facts on File) (secondary only) database [click on FOF search portal and under
Science Online is an info sheet with flash tutorial]
 Only resource for Math with diagrams, activities, biographies
 Conversion calculator
 Supports National Science Standards
 Search by theme or subject or type of resource like diagrams
 Results presented with tabs for topics/principals, images/video, experiments,
biographies, news articles
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TeachingBooks.net (all levels) [On the top black bar, click on Training for demo and handouts]
Search by author, title, subject, quick searches, reader’s theatre scripts, grade level, curricular
area
Training resources for use of website
 Author resources – virtually meet authors and illustrators online
 Author name pronunciation
 Book guides – informative discussion about the book ( outside source)
 Book Reading – hear a portion of the book being read
 Thematic booklists – can contribute your own booklist to collection
Tumblebooks [Go to bottom of screen, and click on TumbleTour for virtual tour]
online library of animated picture books
Public library has, but doesn’t include the teacher resource section
Has animated tour for how to use (auto mode is the default or can be manual or turn off sound),
 Reading levels (Accelerated Reader info)
 Tumble quiz or audio quiz
 Book report
 Supports French and Spanish language
 Tumble readables = chapter books YA teen novels
o Pages turn automatically
o 3 text sizes
 Information about the author or illustrator
 New books section latest editions
 Puzzles and games that relate to the stories
 Language learning read in Spanish or French
 Audiobooks audio streaming
 Teacher guide for lesson plans
World Book (Elem., MS, HS) online tutorial for each level [once in the database, scroll down to
the bottom of the window and click on Online Tutorial]
World Book Kids (3rd grade level) trivia dog name is Atlas
 Type search or browse by subject
 Teachers can use activities Teach It
World Book Student (MS) 5th- 9th grade can search student & kids
Login to save research to backpack or create own timeline
 more than an encyclopedia/ uses outline form for quick access to facts
 includes magazines articles
 Biography center search name or by categories (Obama)
 double click on word for definition
 Timelines from World Book or create your own must be logged in
 atlas
 Explore the USA
 Explore Texas
 Surf the Ages
 Educator’s tools have state standards tied to articles
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How to do research (21st century skills) misinformation websites for demo
Feature of the month (archived)
Trivia quizzes
World Book Advanced (HS)
 double click on word for definition
 atlas & maps
 primary sources
 e-books genre Juvenile Literature aesop’s fables
 Teaching with documents (political cartoons)
 My research
 Pathfinders resource guides
 Citation builder
 Every 15 minutes news stories from Reuters
 Built in primary source documents: US History and Political Science/Law
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