Finding Information

The Internet is a never-ending maze of web sites, search engines, directories, research, and online experts that can make even the most accomplished Internet surfer overwhelmed at times. Because there is such a huge amount of information, it is often difficult for teachers to know exactly where to begin looking for online resources to use with their students.

In order to save teachers valuable time, we have compiled the best sites within four distinct Internet categories: Search Engines, Web Directories, Research and Reference Sites, and Experts. Simply point and click to start using these Internet tools right away. But first, let's explore how search engines work and specific searching strategies.

Searching Strategies

Before teachers and students begin using search engines, it is important that they know how search engines work. Below are resources to help understand search engines, the differences between various types of search strategies, and the results they deliver.

Sites That Matter

Finding the Trees in the Digital Forest
This is a creative comparison drill that illustrates the vast differences in results yielded by the major search engines. It is an excellent exercise to use with your students to point out the differences among search engines.
www.janetsinfo.com/forstwk2.html

The Animated Internet: How Search Engines Work
This animation tutorial illustrates how search engines operate. After taking this tutorial, you can also discover how all the major components of the Internet work, including the Web, email, newsgroups, mailing lists, and more.
www.learnthenet.com/english/animate/search.html

Choose the Best Search for your Information Need
This chart from NoodleTools is used to determine the best search strategy to meet over 30 specific information needs, such as search engines to target searches, sites for beginners, and sites containing maps and images.
www.noodletools.com/debbie/literacies/
information/5locate/adviceengine.html

Internet Seek and Find—Using Search Engines Designed for Kids:
A Technology Lesson
This lesson plan is designed for grades 6-8 and 9-12. The lesson teaches students how to locate information on the Internet by selecting keywords that will yield the best results, evaluating numerous search engines designed for kids, and creating guides to help other students use search engines successfully. www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/19991007thursday.html

Successful Web Search Strategies
In this presentation, Kathy Schrock describes search engines and directories, how they work, how they differ, types of searches, search strategies, determining the best tool for one's searching needs, and the future of online searching.
kathyschrock.net/slideshows/searching.pdf

Search Engines

The most widely used Internet tool for finding information online is the search engine. While there are hundreds of search engines to choose from, it is important that teachers choose an engine that is safe for students. Safe search engines use a variety of filtering technology to comb the Web and select only sites that are appropriate and safe for students.

Since no single search engine has indexed every site on the Web, and different search engines yield different results, it is important for teachers and students to realize that they are only searching the sites contained in that particular search engine's database. For this reason, teachers should get in the habit of performing the same search using two or more search engines. This will enable teachers to be as thorough and accurate in their research as possible.

While there are many excellent search engines to choose from, below are our three favorite (and safest!) search engines for students.

Sites That Matter

Yahooligans: The Web Guide for Kids
This site is the first place students should go to search for information and resources on the Internet. This kid-friendly version of Yahoo, touted as the "Web Guide for Kids," is appropriate for kids ages 7-12. An educator has carefully reviewed every site before it is included in the search engine/directory. Yahooligans also provides a Teachers' Guide and activity ideas for using the Internet with students.
Visit the home page at: www.yahooligans.com, or go directly to the Language Arts section at: www.yahooligans.com/School_Bell/Language_Arts/

Brain Boost
Brain Boost is similar to a typical search engine - students look up information and receive a list of web pages that meet their criteria - except that students search by asking questions. Brain Boost allows students to search for answers to a specific question (i.e. why is the sky blue?) rather than using search terms (i.e., color of the sky). Brain Boost then provides students with answers to their question ranked according to which one is the most likely to be correct.
www.brainboost.com/

KidsClick!
This is another search engine plus directory that enables students to browse resources organized into over 600 alphabetical subjects, as well as search using their own words. All entries have been screened by librarians in the Ramapo Catskill Library System to be appropriate for grades K-7. KidsClick was developed in order to deliver age-appropriate web sites to younger users as they search for information.
sunsite.berkeley.edu/KidsClick!/

Speegle
Speegle is an Internet search engine that reads search results aloud to the user. After entering search terms and receiving results, the program will read through the list of results with descriptions of each page. Using a variety of keyboard shortcuts, students can navigate the results list without the use of a mouse.
www.speegle.co.uk/

Ask Jeeves for Kids
This site is specifically designed using natural-language technology so that students can ask questions in a similar way to how they would ask a teacher or parent. This search engine also offers study tools and news resources specifically targeted to middle school students.
www.ajkids.com

Still not sure which search engine to use?

Teachers should have their students use NoodleQuest, a quick survey that will help them determine which search engine will yield the best results given their experience with the Internet, the topic they are researching, their search criteria, the type(s) of media and timeliness of information needed, and other specific research needs. www.noodletools.com/noodlequest/

Web Directories

Directory web sites use a combination of filtering software and individual educators to carefully select student-appropriate web sites for inclusion in their directories. Directory sites offer two methods for finding information: 1) a search feature for conducting keyword and phrase searches and 2) a subject or category directory of carefully organized information found on the Internet (that students can search or browse through). A web directory can be thought of like a card catalogue found in a library. Below are our favorite web directories for teachers and students.

Sites That Matter

Education World
Educators can use Education World's search engine or browse its database of over 50,000 carefully reviewed web resources. The site contains lesson plans, articles, web site reviews, references, guides, and much more.
educationworld.com

Word Smyth
Word Smyth is an innovative online dictionary that provides extensive information about each word that is looked up including definitions, synonyms, related words, parts of speech, example sentences and more. It also enables users to look up any word on any Web site through the installation of its Word Smyth NOW program.
www.wordsmyth.com

Awesome Library
This site contains over 22,000 web resources that have been carefully screened and reviewed for content that is safe for children. Awesome Library provides multiple entry points to accessing information, including paths for students, teachers, parents, librarians, and more.
www.awesomelibrary.org/

Librarians' Index to the Internet
This site contains a subject directory of over 11,000 high-quality resources and more than 30,000 carefully reviewed web sites compiled by trained librarians.
www.lii.org/

The Internet Public Library
This web site contains searchable directories under the following broad categories: Reference Center, Youth Resources, Subject Collections, Reading Room, Special Collections, and Searching Tools. There are also KidSpace, TeenSpace, and Ask a Question sections, as well as guides on web searching and conducting online research.
www.ipl.org/

Berit's Best Sites for Children
This site offers a searchable directory to over 1,000 reviewed sites appropriate for children up to age 12. Reviewed by a librarian following rigorous criteria for inclusion, each site includes a description and numerical rating. This site also includes a way for students to keep track of and share their favorite sites.
www.beritsbest.com

Virtual Middle School Library
Maintained by a school librarian, this site contains links to web sites designed for students, teachers, parents, and school librarians, and to literature sites, book reviews, online publications, and resources about the Web and using the Internet in the classroom.
www.sldirectory.com/virtual.html

Research and Reference Sites

Research and reference web sites are a specific type of web directory. They contain large collections of research specific to particular subject areas and audiences and also provide links to a plethora of other online libraries, reference materials, and research found on the Internet. Below are our favorite research and reference sites for teachers and students.

Sites That Matter

LibrarySpot
A virtual library connecting to more than 2,500 libraries around the world, LibrarySpot enables students to access the highest quality library and reference sites, each carefully assessed for its content, quality, and utility. Students can access reference materials and tools, periodicals, online texts, style guides, experts, public records, current events, statistics, images, and much more.
libraryspot.com

NoodleTools
NoodleTools provides a collection of research tools that enables students to determine the right search engine for their research needs. It also allows students to instantly create bibliographies in MLA (Modern Language Association) and APA (American Psychological Association) styles from resources they have used and to access a searchable database of academic bibliographies written by researchers. The site also provides teacher resources for teaching 21st Century Literacies.
www.noodletools.com

Writer's Companion Research Links
This section of the Writer's Companion web site contains extensive links to research, links, and other sources of information within 11 topics of interest.
www.writerscomp.com/Links_Set.htm

Encyclopedia.com
This web site features eLibrary, a "family-oriented" searchable library of over 13 million online documents (magazine articles, transcripts, newswires, literature, art, maps, images, photographs, and more). The site also provides over 57,000 articles from the Columbia Encyclopedia, supplemented by links and images provided by eLibrary. Students can sign up to track their topics and receive "Today in History" emails for free each week, access almanacs and dictionaries, and search other encyclopedias.
www.encyclopedia.com

OneLook® Dictionary Search
The OneLook® search engine searches for words and phrases among over five million words in more than 900 online dictionaries. This search engines also translates words and phrases and helps students spell words if they are unsure of the spelling.
www.onelook.com

Merriam-Webster OnLine
This site offers more than just the Merriam-Webster dictionary and thesaurus. It also provides Word of the Day, word and spelling games, and interesting facts about words and the English language.
www.m-w.com

The New York Times Learning Network (Grades 3-12)
This web site has separate sections geared specifically towards students, teachers, and parents. Students can access top news stories, participate in web tours, ask reporters questions, submit letters to the editor, learn new vocabulary words each day, and participate in online quizzes. Teachers and parents can access news, lesson plans, conversation starters, recommended web sites, and online discussions.
www.nytimes.com/learning/

iTools
This research site enables students and teachers to easily locate information, facts, theories, and maps for their research projects. The site allows users to search specific encyclopedias, magazines, biographies, search engines, directories, newsgroups, and quotation sites. It also provides an online thesaurus and dictionary, resources to look up technical and industry-specific terminology, and a language translator tool.
www.itools.com/

Web Resources Gallery
This section of the ReadWriteThink web site offers an outstanding list of links to English Language Arts resources. The list can be sorted by grade level and type of resource. All resources include a description and are selected following a strict review process.
www.readwritethink.org/resources/index.asp

Experts

Ask-An-Expert web sites provide students and teachers with a way to access and communicate with knowledgeable experts in their specific fields. Communicating with online experts is a great way to supplement students' online research, as well as build valuable writing and communication skills. Below are our three favorite (and completely safe!) Ask-An-Expert web sites that can be used with students.

Sites That Matter

AskAnExpert.com
Pitsco's Ask-An-Expert site connects students, teachers, and parents to hundreds of experts in different fields. Experts can be found by browsing 14 broad categories or searching by keyword.
askanexpert.com

AskA+ Locator
Specifically designed for students in K-12, this site provides links to high-quality Ask-An-Expert sites. The sites are organized alphabetically and by subject area. Students can also search the AskA+ Locator, a component of the Virtual Reference Desk (VRD), by keyword and by grade level.
www.vrd.org/locator/subject.shtml

Ask an Expert Directory
Yahooligans provides links to a variety of experts on the Internet who will answer students' questions. The sites are listed alphabetically. The directory can also be searched by keyword.
d5.dir.dcn.yahoo.com/reference/ask_an_expert/