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Additional Databases Licensed

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Middle School Resources

Multiple Database Search:

Menu of full text databases provided by EBSCO. Databases can be searched individually or (by marking the selection boxes) can be searched simultaneously in related groups. Audience: high school EBSCO Search (French) (German) (Spanish) (list databases) Literature Resources from Gale is a search environment, designed specifically for literature research, that searches several Gale Literature databases (Contemporary Authors, Contemporary Literary Criticism Select, Dictionary of Literary Biography, LitFinder, Merriam Webster Encyclopedia of Literature, Scribner Writer's Series, and Twayne's Authors) at the same time. Audience: high school through college, general public Literature Resources from Gale (list databases)
Gale's PowerSearch platform allows a user to search Gale's Professional Collection, InfoTrac OneFile, InfoTrac Junior Edition, InfoTrac Student Edition, LegalTrac, Expanded Academic ASAP, General Reference Center Gold, Gale Virtual Reference Library, and Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center at the same time. Audience: middle school through college, general public Gale PowerSearch (list databases)    Provides students with the most appropriate research tools for easily obaining the information that they need from their EBSCO databases. Users can easily pre-determine which content sources (e.g., Magazines, Newspapers, Biographies, Country Reports, Film & Video) will be included with their search. They can also search their databases by topic heading, make use of an online dictionary and encyclopedia, explore the top searches of the day, and even limit their search according to appropriate Lexile reading levels. Audience: middle and high school Student Research Center (list databases)          

Single Database Search:
Biography Reference Bank contains biographical information on approximately half a million people, from antiquity to the present, along with thousands of images. It contains the full text of the articles from more than 100 volumes of biographical reference books published by H. W. Wilson, including all the articles from all volumes of Current Biography, the World Author Series, Nobel Prize Winners, World Artists, World Film Directors, American Reformers, and numerous biographical books on musicians and composers throughout history. Also included are thousands of biographies from other respected publishers, including Macmillan UK, Greenwood, Houghton Mifflin, and Harvard University Press. Audience: middle school through college, general public Biography Reference Bank *** (available until 9/30/10)   Kids InfoBits features a developmentally appropriate, visually graphic interface, a subject-based topic tree search and full-text, age-appropriate, curriculum-related magazine, newspaper and reference content for information on current events, the arts, science, health, people, government, history, sports, and more. Audience: elementary school Kids InfoBits  
Britannica OnlineŽ School Edition offrs teachers and students access to three complete encyclopedias, the Encyclopedia Britannica, the Compton's By Britannica and the Britannica Elementary Encyclopedia that ensure consistency with classroom-topics and age-appropriate language. Teacher and student tools are also included such as video, media, journals, magazines, interactive activity guides, lesson plans, an Internet guide and downloadable student activities. The School Edition has 118,000 articles, 22,000 images, 2,000 video clips, 24,000 biographies and detailed maps of 196 countries. Merriam-Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus and Spotlight features are also a part of this resource. Audience: K-12 Britannica Online School Edition - Compton's By Britannica   This new interface is designed to offer elementary school students an easy-to-use and graphically appealing search experience, including improved functionality over Searchasaurus and Primary Search. It features better relevancy ranking, topic searching and access to a wide variety of source types. The Basic Search screen highlights Topics rather than Source Types, and includes the ability to search Images or Images/Videos, from the toolbar. Audience: elementary school Kids Search  
Enciclopedia Juvenil from Encyclopedia Britannica is a comprehensive reference resource for ages 6-12. The Elementary Encyclopedia, with more than 1,500 articles and 1,000 images, is age-appropriate and based on school curriculum needs. Audience: elementary school, middle school Enciclopedia Juvenil *** (available until 9/30/10)   Selective, interactive reference tool of full text articles, many with images, from 1,100 magazines for young readers. Discoverer helps students develop their research, writing, language, and computer skills. Site resources include Spotlight of the Month topics, The World Almanac for Kids, Merriam-Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus and the Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia. Audience: elementary through middle school SIRS Discoverer  
Free, online resource on Alabama history, culture, geography, and natural environment. This site offers articles on Alabama's famous people, historic events, sports, art, literature, industry, government, plant and animal life, agriculture, recreation, and so much more. Audience: All Encyclopedia of Alabama* This powerful yet easy-to-use online tool lets students analyze countries at a glance. World Data Analyst offers detailed statistical comparisons of countries around the world, using both the most recent statistics and historical figures. Plus, students can create tables, charts, and even export the information to a spreadsheet for printing and data crunching. Students can also link to country articles from the Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. It all leads to better understanding of our ever-changing world. Audience: middle school and above World Data Analyst *** (available until 9/30/10)  
Designed to help students complete school assignments and find general information on current events, the arts, science, popular culture, health, people, government, history, sports and more. The database offers full text articles from 325 magazines, newspapers, and reference books most often selected by libraries for this age group. Audience: middle through high school (InfoTrac) Student Edition  

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Almanacs

Selective, interactive reference tool of full text articles, many with images, from 1,100 magazines for young readers. Discoverer helps students develop their research, writing, language, and computer skills. Site resources include Spotlight of the Month topics, The World Almanac for Kids, Merriam-Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus and the Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia. Audience: elementary through middle school SIRS Discoverer

Current Events

Selective, interactive reference tool of full text articles, many with images, from 1,100 magazines for young readers. Discoverer helps students develop their research, writing, language, and computer skills. Site resources include Spotlight of the Month topics, The World Almanac for Kids, Merriam-Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus and the Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia. Audience: elementary through middle school SIRS Discoverer
  Current Events
Spotlight of the Month

Dictionaries & Encyclopedias

Literature Resources from Gale is a search environment, designed specifically for literature research, that searches several Gale Literature databases (Contemporary Authors, Contemporary Literary Criticism Select, Dictionary of Literary Biography, LitFinder, Merriam Webster Encyclopedia of Literature, Scribner Writer's Series, and Twayne's Authors) at the same time. Audience: high school through college, general public Literature Resources from Gale
Selective, interactive reference tool of full text articles, many with images, from 1,100 magazines for young readers. Discoverer helps students develop their research, writing, language, and computer skills. Site resources include Spotlight of the Month topics, The World Almanac for Kids, Merriam-Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus and the Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia. Audience: elementary through middle school SIRS Discoverer  
Provides students with the most appropriate research tools for easily obaining the information that they need from their EBSCO databases. Users can easily pre-determine which content sources (e.g., Magazines, Newspapers, Biographies, Country Reports, Film & Video) will be included with their search. They can also search their databases by topic heading, make use of an online dictionary and encyclopedia, explore the top searches of the day, and even limit their search according to appropriate Lexile reading levels. Audience: middle and high school Student Research Center  
 

E-books

Gale Virtual Reference Library is a database of encyclopedias and specialized reference sources for multidisciplinary research. These reference materials once were accessible only in the library, but now you can access them online from the library or remotely 24/7. Because each library creates its own eBook collection, the content you see may vary if you use the database at different libraries (your school, your public library, or your office). Audience: middle school through college, general public Gale Virtual Reference Library
Oxford Reference Online Premium brings together language and subject reference works from one of the world's biggest reference publishers into a single cross-searchable resource.The Core Collection contains over 100 dictionary, language reference, and subject reference works published by Oxford University Press. It is a fully-indexed, cross-searchable database of these books, giving subscribers unprecedented access to a comprehensive information resource.The Premium Collection offers all of the above, plus added functionality and more detailed information across a broad subject range from titles in the world-renowned Oxford Companions Series, to enhance the coverage already provided by the award-winning Core Collection. Audience: high school through college, general public Oxford Reference Online Premium
  See 'Subject Reference' categories.

Image Collections

Selective, interactive reference tool of full text articles, many with images, from 1,100 magazines for young readers. Discoverer helps students develop their research, writing, language, and computer skills. Site resources include Spotlight of the Month topics, The World Almanac for Kids, Merriam-Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus and the Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia. Audience: elementary through middle school SIRS Discoverer
Provides students with the most appropriate research tools for easily obaining the information that they need from their EBSCO databases. Users can easily pre-determine which content sources (e.g., Magazines, Newspapers, Biographies, Country Reports, Film & Video) will be included with their search. They can also search their databases by topic heading, make use of an online dictionary and encyclopedia, explore the top searches of the day, and even limit their search according to appropriate Lexile reading levels. Audience: middle and high school Student Research Center

Maps

Kids InfoBits features a developmentally appropriate, visually graphic interface, a subject-based topic tree search and full-text, age-appropriate, curriculum-related magazine, newspaper and reference content for information on current events, the arts, science, health, people, government, history, sports, and more. Audience: elementary school Kids InfoBits
Selective, interactive reference tool of full text articles, many with images, from 1,100 magazines for young readers. Discoverer helps students develop their research, writing, language, and computer skills. Site resources include Spotlight of the Month topics, The World Almanac for Kids, Merriam-Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus and the Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia. Audience: elementary through middle school SIRS Discoverer

 

*The Alabama Virtual Library's Internet website provides links to other Internet websites that contain information created, published, maintained, or otherwise posted by institutions or organizations independent of the Alabama Virtual Library. The Alabama Virtual Library does not endorse, approve, certify, or control those external websites and The Alabama Virtual Library does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, efficacy, or timeliness of information located at those sites. Use of any information obtained from those websites is voluntary, and reliance on that information should only be undertaken after an independent review of its accuracy. Reference at those websites to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, service mark, or otherwise does not constitute or imply endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by The Alabama Virtual Library.

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Last Updated on March 19, 2010