Recommended Resources for Online Student Research
Principals,
One of the goals of the Edina School’s Information Literacy Skills curriculum is to educate students in how to locate and evaluate reliable information online. Below is a list of the many subscription databases students can access from home for timely, accurate, ad-free access to information written specifically for student research needs.
We encourage use of these databases over searching Google, since information on the ‘free’ internet can be inaccurate, biased, outdated or written for adults and not suitable for student research needs. When it is necessary to use a search engine, we recommend a search engine designed for students.
In addition, Wikipedia is not allowed as a primary resource by most teachers since it is a written collaboratively by anonymous volunteers and may contain false or debatable information.
The
databases below are accessible from your school media center web site.
Please visit your school media center for password information and contact your
school media specialist with any questions. By encouraging teacher and
student use of these databases you can help to ensure
Thanks!
Your School Media Specialists
All Schools
Destiny (online card catalog)
Students
and staff can access each school’s catalog of print materials from home and
write reviews as well.
ELM (K-12 electronic library)
Encyclopedias
Grolier's Online (All Schools) The Grolier website provides access to several different encyclopedias including:
- Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia - designed to provide quick reference with rich media for middle school and higher.
- The New Book of Knowledge - written especially for students grades 3 and above. When searching the Grolier database, look for articles marked with the icon for easier reading and larger text size.
- America the Beautiful - extensive information on each of the 50 states written particularly for elementary and middle school students. Especially valuable for 4th grade state reports.
- Amazing Animals of the World – created for students as young as 1st and 2nd grade who are interested in learning more about animals
- Encyclopedia Americana—college level encyclopedia
Newspaper Magazine databases (All Schools)
Kids InfoBits, Searchasaurs, Kid's Search and Infotrac Kid's Edition
These databases, especially designed for elementary school students, provide easy access to full-text magazines, newspapers, and reference books for information on current events, the arts, science, popular culture, health, people, government, history, sports and more. The articles come from such popular publications as Time for Kids, Scholastic News, National Geographic World and more. Several are searchable by lexile level.
Streaming Media (All Schools)
Discovery Streaming Video (formerly United Streaming)
Discovery Streaming is the largest and most current collection of educational videos and video clips available on the Internet today. Search the video collection by keyword, subject area or grade. A high-speed Internet connection is necessary for optimal viewing.
BrainPop Video (All Schools)
BrainPOP is an educational website with Flash-based movies about mathematics, technology, health, science, social studies, arts & music, and English. Most of the videos feature the site's recurring characters, Tim and Moby. Our username and password allows access until 5:30 p.m.
Teachingbooks.net (All Schools)
Author videos, discussion guides and book readings for teachers and students at all levels.
Other Databases
Additional databases for students, including Lands and Peoples and Literature Resource Center, are available free with a library card at the Hennepin County Library website (www.hclib.org). Click on Kidslinks or Teenlinks and then click on “Do Your Homework” to access them.
A pro/con research database that provides articles and reference works on both sides on a debatable issue. The "Leading Issues" section provides topic overviews, essential guiding questions and research tools.
Academic Search Premier (grades 9-12)
CultureGrams (grades 6-12)
Discovering Collection (grades 6-12)
Infotrac Junior Edition (grades 6-8)
Student Resource Center (grades 6-12)
Student Resource Center Gold (grades 9-12)
These databases geared towards secondary students offer the same quality resources as their elementary counterparts. Student Research Center and Student Resource Center Gold are great places to start for research projects. Articles from popular magazines and newspapers like Time and USA Today, as well as The Economist. Teachers can also search for articles linked to state standards.
ArtStor (All Schools)
Professional Resources—All Schools
Eric Educator’s Reference Complete
Professional Development Collection
EHS Only
A collection of reference books and articles designed for enriched and AP students to use in their Social Studies classes. It also includes a section for teachers with DBQ materials and questions.
An online collection of read along titles for elementary, middle and high school students. The collection features early readers, chapter books, YA/Teen novels, high interest/low level books for middle and high school, and classics of American and English literature. Text size is adjustable. Sentences are highlighted as read. Sound can be muted for independent reading practice
VV & ND Schools Only
World Book Online includes every article from the 22-volume print set plus thousands more, along with maps, charts, pictures, video and sound clips, and suggested lists of editor-reviewed web sites. Written for students typically in grades 5 and above, this is an excellent place to begin any research project.
World Book Online includes access to the following databases:
- World Book Kids – written especially for grades 2 and above.
- World Book Student – designed for students in grades 4 and above.
- World Book Advanced – for high school and college age students.
- L'Encyclopédie Découverte – for French speaking students
- Enciclopedia Estudiantil Hallazgos – for Spanish speaking students
Each of these online databases contain scholarly articles on topics of interest to educators. Great resources for reflective teachers, administrators, and communities of practice not to mention graduate work. Access articles from journals such as The Reading Teacher, Education Digest and Phi Delta Kappan.