Here is a selection of online proprietary resources that are particularly useful. This is by no means a comprehensive listing, rather a place to start. For assistance using these resources,
please contact Cheryl Sikora or your school's library technician.
NetTrekker is a search engine that limits the search to websites that have been selected by
educators for their quality, content, and relevance in an education context.
- Features include customizable searching, ie. if you only want lesson plans and
multimedia sites, just set these limitors (just under the orange search results bar). Use the
portfolio option to conveniently share websites with your students.
- Check out the read aloud feature (top right), once activated, will read the text you
highlight. You can change the speed, the voice, etc.
- Remember that the readability rating (to the right of each hit) is based on a five point
scale, 1 (primary) through 5 (senior high).
Learn Alberta provides access to a wealth of multimedia and interactive resources, most of
which are not freely available elsewhere. If you log in from school, the user name and password
will automatically appear. However, if you log in from home, you will need to supply them.
- Features include a database that can be searched by keyword or can be browsed grade
and then by subject.
- Check out the Hand Washing Challenge in the Health and Life Skills section. It includes
a brief video that details how to wash your hands and why followed by an interactive
activity to reinforce learning. It is very visual and does not require much reading.
- Remember that site is based on the Alberta curriculum. If you don't find what you are
looking for in the grade you are searching, be sure to try a grade above or below.
Online Reference Centre provides access to online encyclopedias and other databases that are
not freely available elsewhere. Access is through the Learn Alberta website for authentication
purposes. If you log in from school, the user name and password will automatically appear.
However, if you log in from home, you will need to supply them. Once you get past the
password page, choose link to Online Reference Centre (blue rectangle, top right). This is where
you'll find resources like Grolier Online Kids, World Book Kids, and Teaching Books.net.
- Features include very visual and brief articles at various grade levels.
- Check out Grolier Online Kids (purple, in the centre) which gives access to The New
Book of Knowledge, Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia, Amazing Animals of the World,
and Lands and People. The results from these results include beautiful pictures, great
links, and a few videos.
World Book Kids (blue, bottom right) which provides access to well written encyclopedia
articles perfect for this level. The 'Think it,' 'Make it,' 'Be it' activities are also
wonderful for extending learning through easy experiments that require items that are
likely to be readily available in the school.
TeachingBooks.net (book, centre near bottom) which is an excellent support for ELA.
Here you’ll find information about authors including video interviews, book readings
frequently by the author, unit plans, theme suggestions, links to great websites, etc.
- Remember that these resources are equivalent to print resources. In many cases, they are
exactly the same as the print encyclopedia just adapted to the online format.
Encyclopedia Britannica is an the traditional Encyclopedia Britannica in online format. On
the map of Saskatchewan, hover the cursor over Region 6 until the yellow box appears, choose
Encyclopedias and then Encyclopedia Britannica. Choose Britannica elementary (purple, right).
This resource is only accessible from school.
- Features a keyword search or a browse feature that allows the topic to become gradually
more and more focused – perfect for those who aren’t exactly sure what they are looking
for.
- Check out the video collection (purple box, bottom) where you’ll find short clips and
well as extended play videos.
- Remember when citing an article this resource counts as a print resource because it is
simply a digital ‘copy’ of a print resource. Click on the cite article button (top right
within a specific article) to cut and paste all the information you need (and it’s already
formatted!).
The Canadian Encyclopedia - Youth Encyclopedia basic encyclopedia with great Canadian
content that is written using vocabulary accessible to youth. When searching for Terry Fox, use
Terrance Fox.
- Featrues a table of contents for the longer articles that allows you to jump directly to the
part of the article that is of interest to you.
- Check out the Explore tab (purple tab near the top) for great interactive resources,
quizzes, etc.
- Remember that the regular edition provides more detail but the wording is not as
accessible.
Kids InfoBits is a wonderfully visual resource that includes reference material, magazine
articles, newspaper articles, maps, charts, pictures, etc. To access this resource, on the map of
Saskatchewan, hover the cursor over Region 6 until the yellow box appears and choose Region 6
Infotrac and then K 12 interface. Scroll down to the bottom and look for a green icon with a boy
in it.
- Features symbols that indicate reading level of the articles.
- Check out the backpack feature which allows you to select articles and save them for
later. If there is a yellow i in a blue circle, it is a static link which means you can cut and
paste the url into your portfolio NetTrekker and share the items in your backpack with
your students.
- Remember to use the description (found beside each article) that indicates the kind of
information and format of the article. Descriptions include topic overview, brief article, flag, map, etc.
