It’s hard to believe that school bells are about to ring again. Summer seems to go by faster than a lightning bug flash. But here we are, and next week we’ll have to drive slower through the school zones. For students and parents, the task of gathering supplies and buying new clothes is at hand.
While you’re out rushing around with last-minute tasks, make sure your library card is up to date. Knox County Public Library has some excellent tools for school to start the year off on a smart foot.
Brainfuse Help Now is an online, live tutoring service for help with math, reading, science and social studies. You can get feedback on a writing assignment, take practice tests and more.
Gale Power Search allows students to search an enormous collection of newspapers, magazine/journal articles and books simultaneously. In this day and age of misinformation, it’s critical to trust your sources.
Opposing Viewpoints provides contextual information and opinions on hundreds of today’s hottest social issues, with viewpoint articles, topic overviews, full-text magazines, academic journals, news articles, primary source documents, statistics, images, videos, audio files and links to vetted websites. Opposing Viewpoints is a rich resource for anyone who debates politics or just wants to consider different arguments.
Transparent Language Online builds all four core skills of a language: listening, speaking, reading and writing. Students can choose from 100+ languages including English and American Sign Language.
World Book Encyclopedia provides resources for all ages with video, activities, games and other information. It’s also available in World Book Advanced for high school students, World Book Discover for an easy English for reluctant or new readers, World Book Early Learning for pre-K to grade 2, and World Book Kids for elementary students.
The McClung Digital Collection is full of photographs, manuscripts, documents and scrapbooks from East Tennessee. These primary sources are invaluable in learning about the local role in women’s suffrage, the early effort to create the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the 1982 World’s Fair, the George Barber architecture catalog and more.
These are just a few of the online resources available to help students succeed this year. There are dozens more including historic newspapers and test prep courses.
Mary Pom Claiborne is assistant director for marketing, communications and development for Knox County Public Library
