I'm trying to catch up, but in the words of my mother, "the hurrier I go, the behinder I get!"
I've been looking at the Enciclopedia Estudiantil Hallazgos, but since I don't know Spanish, I am not learning too much. I typed the word "house" in the search box and got eight results which are biographical in nature. To get similar results in the browse feature, I clicked on the picture of people (gente). On the next page I had choose one of the many options in the sidebars. I clicked on "biografias" and was rewarded with short articles of many famous people. I could also use the sidebars to refine my search further by selecting a specific type of biography I wanted (artist, educator, historical figure, etc.).
However, none of this is helpful if a want information on houses. To get useful results, I need to use Spanish terms when searching.
If I have a patron who needs information in Spanish, they will either need to provide the appropriate Spanish terms for searching, or perhaps I could find the information by using the browse feature if I know the correct category. Or I could use another English edition of World Book (such as the Online Reference Center), look of the information, and click the option to translate the article into Spanish.
I like having options!
Monday, February 4, 2013
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Challenge 1b - World Book Public Library
My initial opinion of the World Book Public Library Edition is that is it very similar to the School Edition. The information in the Online Kids Special Features is virtually identical. The crafts, science projects, maps, and animals are the same in both editions.
One difference I did note is that there are different games. I think I like the games in the Public Library edition best. The spelling and history mazes were fun! Most of my patrons are more interested in computer games than research, so I think I will show them these games: kids can have fun while reviewing what they have learned!
All the special features should be popular with our many home-school patrons. They can be used to supplement lessons and provide information for various projects.
In the Info Finder, I checked out the Virtual Tours. I liked them! These are similar to the World Book Explains videos in the World Book Discover, although there are more videos on a wider range of topics in Discover. Visual learners will appreciate these short videos. One of my teacher friends does a Titanic unit with her students. I'll make sure she knows about the Titanic Virtual Tours.
The E-Book Center in the Online Reference Center is the same (or nearly the same) as in World Book Advanced. I looked at several books in the "juvenile literature" genre. I recognized some that I borrowed from my local library when I was little (like the "Twins" series by Perkins)! They were old then, so by today's standards they are practically ancient classics! Having access to classic titles could be helpful to a student who has a report due tomorrow and the library is closed! I did look up Emma by Jane Austen. I followed a trail of articles and ended up looking at a slide show of her home in England! How cool is that!?!
One difference I did note is that there are different games. I think I like the games in the Public Library edition best. The spelling and history mazes were fun! Most of my patrons are more interested in computer games than research, so I think I will show them these games: kids can have fun while reviewing what they have learned!
All the special features should be popular with our many home-school patrons. They can be used to supplement lessons and provide information for various projects.
In the Info Finder, I checked out the Virtual Tours. I liked them! These are similar to the World Book Explains videos in the World Book Discover, although there are more videos on a wider range of topics in Discover. Visual learners will appreciate these short videos. One of my teacher friends does a Titanic unit with her students. I'll make sure she knows about the Titanic Virtual Tours.
The E-Book Center in the Online Reference Center is the same (or nearly the same) as in World Book Advanced. I looked at several books in the "juvenile literature" genre. I recognized some that I borrowed from my local library when I was little (like the "Twins" series by Perkins)! They were old then, so by today's standards they are practically ancient classics! Having access to classic titles could be helpful to a student who has a report due tomorrow and the library is closed! I did look up Emma by Jane Austen. I followed a trail of articles and ended up looking at a slide show of her home in England! How cool is that!?!
Monday, January 28, 2013
Here We Go Again... Challenge 1a World Book School Edition
The Electronic Resources Challenge is up and running again, and I am behind already! Maybe it's because I've been spending too much time playing with my new iPhone! I went from sharing a "dumb" phone with my husband (he usually carried it...) to my own iPhone! There's something new to learn every day!
But back to the business at hand: World Book Student Edition.
After exploring most of the special features in World Book Kids (looking at different animals, comparing states, playing several games, putting puzzles together), I have decided that using these features is more like play than work. You can learn all sorts of things painlessly!
Our Story Time theme this session is wild animals. So I will be using the "World of Animals" feature to learn quick facts about the animal of the week. If our Children's Room was open, I would also have this feature open on the computers for the kids to explore before and after Story Time. One of these weeks I hope to do a demo for the Story Time parents and show them this site. I know the kids would enjoy looking at the pictures and videos.
When we have school classes visit the library, I show them the World Book Student. We look up topics that they are currently researching. I usually don't use the Special Features, but after exploring them today, I will remember to point them out to the kids. I had fun taking several trivia quizzes in the "Quizzes and Activities" section. I confess I did not do too well. Guess I don't know as much trivia as I thought! "Surf the Ages" was fun as well. The brief bits of information are a jumping off point for kids wanting to learn more about periods of history.
In the "E-Book Center" of World Book Advanced I looked up both of the assigned texts. I know ebooks are the wave of the future, but I prefer my fairy tales to have beautiful illustrations, which this ebook edition of Andersen's Fairy Tales did not have. I did like the fact that I could click right over to an article about Andersen and then go even further with articles about Denmark and Copenhagen.
For fun I perused some of the other titles available and found a book from my youth: The Adventures of Reddy Fox. My dad had a copy of this book when he was young, along with other Thornton W. Burgess titles. When my siblings and I learned to read, dad's old books were always available to us. So this blast from the past was a fun diversion. Unfortunately, the related article was less than helpful. It was a "back in time" article which was a list of children's books from 1960. Old Mother West Wind, by Burgess was listed way down in the article under New Editions of Old Favorites." That's all there was - no other information about the book or author. I actually went to WorldCat to see when Reddy Fox was first published (1913).
I'm not sure how I will use this with my patrons, but it's a feature I was unaware of previously. So I did learn something new today.
I wasn't sure I would enjoy World Book Discover "Reference Tools," but then I found the World Book Explains Videos. I spent quite a bit of time looking at different videos that answer all sorts of questions. (Can penguins fly? Who was the messiest president? Was there a point where the south could have won the American Civil War?....) I can see students using this feature to get answers to their questions - and maybe even answers to questions they didn't know they had!
So this is all for today. Tomorrow I will try to tackle World Book Public Library (in between sessions of Story Time).
But back to the business at hand: World Book Student Edition.
After exploring most of the special features in World Book Kids (looking at different animals, comparing states, playing several games, putting puzzles together), I have decided that using these features is more like play than work. You can learn all sorts of things painlessly!
Our Story Time theme this session is wild animals. So I will be using the "World of Animals" feature to learn quick facts about the animal of the week. If our Children's Room was open, I would also have this feature open on the computers for the kids to explore before and after Story Time. One of these weeks I hope to do a demo for the Story Time parents and show them this site. I know the kids would enjoy looking at the pictures and videos.
When we have school classes visit the library, I show them the World Book Student. We look up topics that they are currently researching. I usually don't use the Special Features, but after exploring them today, I will remember to point them out to the kids. I had fun taking several trivia quizzes in the "Quizzes and Activities" section. I confess I did not do too well. Guess I don't know as much trivia as I thought! "Surf the Ages" was fun as well. The brief bits of information are a jumping off point for kids wanting to learn more about periods of history.
In the "E-Book Center" of World Book Advanced I looked up both of the assigned texts. I know ebooks are the wave of the future, but I prefer my fairy tales to have beautiful illustrations, which this ebook edition of Andersen's Fairy Tales did not have. I did like the fact that I could click right over to an article about Andersen and then go even further with articles about Denmark and Copenhagen.
For fun I perused some of the other titles available and found a book from my youth: The Adventures of Reddy Fox. My dad had a copy of this book when he was young, along with other Thornton W. Burgess titles. When my siblings and I learned to read, dad's old books were always available to us. So this blast from the past was a fun diversion. Unfortunately, the related article was less than helpful. It was a "back in time" article which was a list of children's books from 1960. Old Mother West Wind, by Burgess was listed way down in the article under New Editions of Old Favorites." That's all there was - no other information about the book or author. I actually went to WorldCat to see when Reddy Fox was first published (1913).
I'm not sure how I will use this with my patrons, but it's a feature I was unaware of previously. So I did learn something new today.
I wasn't sure I would enjoy World Book Discover "Reference Tools," but then I found the World Book Explains Videos. I spent quite a bit of time looking at different videos that answer all sorts of questions. (Can penguins fly? Who was the messiest president? Was there a point where the south could have won the American Civil War?....) I can see students using this feature to get answers to their questions - and maybe even answers to questions they didn't know they had!
So this is all for today. Tomorrow I will try to tackle World Book Public Library (in between sessions of Story Time).
Monday, March 19, 2012
Wrap Up
When I first started this challenge it was almost overwhelming. I was a bit late signing up, so I was behind when I began. I didn't see how I would ever catch up and complete all the assignments! But here we are, at the end already! There were a few frustrations, but on the whole, exploring the databases was fun!
Perhaps the biggest discovery for me was the variety of information available. It was so easy to get distracted from my assignment and go looking at other things! I am reminded of the Family Circus cartoon where the little boy has to go from point A to point B. Instead of going in a straight line, you see his footprints going in a circuitous route all over the page. That's me with these databases! I kept forgetting my mission and going off on other tangents!
I have used World Book with students who have come for library tours. I will continue to do that, but will also make it a point to show them other databases as well. World Book and SIRS Discoverer have some features I can use with library programs.
I will also these databases myself when I need information. I don't how it is with other families, but my relatives regard me as their personal reference librarian and frequently call with questions. Now I have a new source for answers!
This Challenge has been a challenge! But it's been a lot of fun too. Thank You!
Perhaps the biggest discovery for me was the variety of information available. It was so easy to get distracted from my assignment and go looking at other things! I am reminded of the Family Circus cartoon where the little boy has to go from point A to point B. Instead of going in a straight line, you see his footprints going in a circuitous route all over the page. That's me with these databases! I kept forgetting my mission and going off on other tangents!
I have used World Book with students who have come for library tours. I will continue to do that, but will also make it a point to show them other databases as well. World Book and SIRS Discoverer have some features I can use with library programs.
I will also these databases myself when I need information. I don't how it is with other families, but my relatives regard me as their personal reference librarian and frequently call with questions. Now I have a new source for answers!
This Challenge has been a challenge! But it's been a lot of fun too. Thank You!
Friday, March 9, 2012
Sanborn Maps
I love maps! When we travel, I usually have a map open on my lap so I can see where we are and where we are going. My techie husband loves his GPS, but I maintain that a map is less expensive and has no annoying beeps! And you nver have to replace the batteries!
Looking at the January 1917 and November 1923 maps of Aberdeen was a mini local history lesson. I found the Alexander Mitchell Public Library at it's original location on the corner of 6th Avenue and South Lincoln Street. The library had steam heat and electric lights! Although the library is no longer there, the Methodist Church and Masonic Temple, also shown on the maps, are still in use today.
I know at least one third grade class that does a unit on Aberdeen. I am going to show their teacher this site. I think the kids will have fun looking at the maps and seeing how the city has changed over the years.
Looking at the January 1917 and November 1923 maps of Aberdeen was a mini local history lesson. I found the Alexander Mitchell Public Library at it's original location on the corner of 6th Avenue and South Lincoln Street. The library had steam heat and electric lights! Although the library is no longer there, the Methodist Church and Masonic Temple, also shown on the maps, are still in use today.
I know at least one third grade class that does a unit on Aberdeen. I am going to show their teacher this site. I think the kids will have fun looking at the maps and seeing how the city has changed over the years.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
HeritageQuest
After spending time with AncestryLibrary yesterday, HeritageQuest today was sort of a disappointment. It seemed really slow, and the results were not so helpful. It does have the advantage of being accessible from home, so that's good.
I searched for my hometown (Doylestown, Ohio), figuring there would be a town history or two recording it's 175 year history. I didn't find any. But Doylestown was mentioned in some family histories, so I looked at one of those.
The book mentioned how a local church is known as High Church rather than its "real" name, Emanuel United Church of Christ. High Church sits on a hill about a mile from town. Surrounded by trees, it looks like a picture postcard, especially on a beautiful clear autumn day. At night, it is lit, and visible for miles. As kids, when we'd be driving home from somewhere, we would watch for High Church. As the car would round the curve, whoever saw it first would call out, "High Church," and we knew we were almost home. I admit, on my last trip home, I still watched eagerly and called out "High Church," as my husband and I drove around that curve....
So even though I'm not so fond of HeritageQuest, I am thankful for this little jaunt down Memory Lane.
I searched for my hometown (Doylestown, Ohio), figuring there would be a town history or two recording it's 175 year history. I didn't find any. But Doylestown was mentioned in some family histories, so I looked at one of those.
The book mentioned how a local church is known as High Church rather than its "real" name, Emanuel United Church of Christ. High Church sits on a hill about a mile from town. Surrounded by trees, it looks like a picture postcard, especially on a beautiful clear autumn day. At night, it is lit, and visible for miles. As kids, when we'd be driving home from somewhere, we would watch for High Church. As the car would round the curve, whoever saw it first would call out, "High Church," and we knew we were almost home. I admit, on my last trip home, I still watched eagerly and called out "High Church," as my husband and I drove around that curve....
So even though I'm not so fond of HeritageQuest, I am thankful for this little jaunt down Memory Lane.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
AncestryLibrary
Searching for your roots is easier than ever when using AncestryLibrary. From the comfort of your local library you have access to all sorts of information. Some people may feel it's an inconvenience to have to come to the library to use AncestryLibrary, but it's easier to come to the library than to have to travel to distant cities and/or states to obtain information!
I did find myself listed in the U. S. Phone and Address Directories 1993 - 2002. The neighbors were listed as well! In a way, it's a little scary that all this information about a person is so accessible. Makes me feel like I'm living in a glass house with no curtains!
On the other hand, it was sort of fun to look up my parents and grandparents. I found them all listed in the 1930 Census. I wasn't sure how to spell my maternal grandfather's name, so I used the ? feature (Thornd?ke), which resulted in records for both Thorndike and Thorndyke. I will need to do more research, but I think I found his baptismal record, his name on the passenger list on a ship from England, Census Records from 1900, 1910, and 1920, and his Word War I draft registration! Who knew all this was available?!
One thing I did discover is that spellings and dates are inconsistent. Both his and his mother's names were spelled differently on the various records, and his birth year was listed as 1887, 1888, and 1889, depending on where you looked. The month and day were the same on all the records. So I can't say for sure that I found him, or maybe someone else?
The Picture search for South Dakota yielded over 3,000,000 records! I'm assuming that the terms were searched separately, as some of the photos were from South Carolina, North Dakota, or even elsewhere. Using Quotation marks ("south dakota") resulted in 412,442 records, which is still a lot to look through if you are looking for something specific. Adding more details could help narrow the search further.
It was interesting to look at the various photos of South Dakota towns from the 1930s and 40s. Some looked pretty bleak.
I don't usually encounter library patrons doing genealogical research in my area of the library. But if someone does ask me, now I know where to point them!
I did find myself listed in the U. S. Phone and Address Directories 1993 - 2002. The neighbors were listed as well! In a way, it's a little scary that all this information about a person is so accessible. Makes me feel like I'm living in a glass house with no curtains!
On the other hand, it was sort of fun to look up my parents and grandparents. I found them all listed in the 1930 Census. I wasn't sure how to spell my maternal grandfather's name, so I used the ? feature (Thornd?ke), which resulted in records for both Thorndike and Thorndyke. I will need to do more research, but I think I found his baptismal record, his name on the passenger list on a ship from England, Census Records from 1900, 1910, and 1920, and his Word War I draft registration! Who knew all this was available?!
One thing I did discover is that spellings and dates are inconsistent. Both his and his mother's names were spelled differently on the various records, and his birth year was listed as 1887, 1888, and 1889, depending on where you looked. The month and day were the same on all the records. So I can't say for sure that I found him, or maybe someone else?
The Picture search for South Dakota yielded over 3,000,000 records! I'm assuming that the terms were searched separately, as some of the photos were from South Carolina, North Dakota, or even elsewhere. Using Quotation marks ("south dakota") resulted in 412,442 records, which is still a lot to look through if you are looking for something specific. Adding more details could help narrow the search further.
It was interesting to look at the various photos of South Dakota towns from the 1930s and 40s. Some looked pretty bleak.
I don't usually encounter library patrons doing genealogical research in my area of the library. But if someone does ask me, now I know where to point them!
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