The how, where, what of learning instruction this school year certainly spans a diverse landscape. Whether you are a parent, teacher, or student, we have curated a list of the library’s online resources to help ease your academic discovery.
Homework Help
HelpNow! (students of all ages) Live online homework help from an expert tutor. Includes a writing lab, test center, live skill building, foreign language lab and adult learning center. In English or Spanish, Monday – Sunday 1pm -10pm PST
New resources provided by the California State Library
Britannica Escolar the leading knowledge-building resource universally trusted for accurate and age-appropriate Spanish content
Britannica School Edition (all grades) the go-to site for learning about any subject, offering up-to-date, curated, and curriculum-relevant articles, images, videos, audio clips, primary sources, maps, research tools, recommended web sites, and 3 databases—Elementary, Middle, or High School
++Please note the following ProQuest resources require your library card barcode number:
CultureGrams (gr 3-12) concise cultural information on countries around the world
eLibrary (gr 6+) general reference collection of periodical and digital media content with editorial guidance for novice researchers. Includes newspapers, magazines, scholarly journals, books, videos and audios, dissertations and thesis, reports, blogs, and much more
ProQuest Academic combination of several databases including Coronavirus Research Database, eBook Central, eLibrary, Global Newsstream, LA Times, Publicly Available Content Database, SIRS Discoverer and SIRS Issues Researcher
School & Educators Complete (eBooks, *gr 9+) collection of 12,000+ eBooks supporting multiple subject areas: English Language Arts, Science, Math, Social Studies, Health, Physical Education, Information Literacy and Technology. (*some content possible for Middle School students, as well as professional development content for faculty)
SIRS Discoverer (gr 3-9) selected content for beginning researchers, especially elementary and middle school students and educators
SIRS Issue Researcher (gr 6+) curriculum-aligned database of content organized by complex issues, for middle and high school students and educators
Reading
Book Connections/TeachingBooks.net
A collection of instructional material about children’s and teen books and authors, including booklists, meet-the-author videos, and many other resources. A sampling of the extensive content for students, parents, and teachers:
Author and illustrator profiles for 24,000+ books includes Author background; Book Guides, Activities & Lessons; Audio excerpts; Book Trailers; Vocabulary Lists, and Awards
Example of information available for New Kid by Jerry Craft
Read-along audio for 11,000+ books includes Awards, Text Complexity (with Reading Levels), Grade level, Read-alikes, and more
Example of information available for Ghost by Jason Reynolds
Book Readings for 1300+ complete books and poems (English and Spanish)
Example of video book reading Wolfie the Bunny by Ame Dyckman
Reader’s Advisory (book recommendations) discover books similar to favorites, based on authors, subjects, series, or reading level
Homeschool support instructional materials and insights for select children’s and teen books
Overdrive/Libby app eBook and Audiobook recommendations in specially curated collections such as
Hoopla stream eBooks and Audiobooks with your library, 6 checkouts per month, and no wait! A few of the many categories to choose from
New Audiobooks released in the last 3 months
Video storytimes
MCFL YouTube playlist of video storytimes featuring MCFL librarians as well as guest performers, in English and Spanish
Kanopy Kids choose from popular, classics, historical tales, animals, friendship categories and more (library card number and password required)
Home schooling
MCFL YouTube variety of family programs from STEAM at home, Teen crafts, to Brain Breaks for spending time away from screens, and a tutorial for downloading Audiobooks using LIBBY, with new content added regularly
Kanopy Kids streaming videos to explore science and math, learn languages, examine historical leaders and events, raise cultural awareness through international stories, and more (library card number and password required)
Overdrive nonfiction eBooks and Audiobooks that cover biographies, history, sociology, science, nature, and more
Enki eBook website maintained by California state librarians, containing reference, nonfiction, and fiction titles for children and teens (available for adults too). Loan period is 21 days with a 10 book limit. (library card number and password required)
Be sure to check out other articles in the Back to Learning at Home series, and please contact us to voice what resources and materials would assist your student’s learning in the year ahead!
Photo by August de Richelieu from Pexels
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