General Homework Help
SOUTH PLAINFIELD PUBLIC SCHOOLS website
Quick Reference: Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, etc.
Bloomsbury Research Centre - Free on-line database of reference books on literature, art, myth, and human thought, plus quotations and a thesaurus. Over 17,000 entries, searchable and cross-referenced. Enter your keyword(s) and use the drop-down menu to choose the book you want to search. (Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, UK)
Conversion Maestro - This tool will quickly convert measurements to or from metric units of length (feet/meters), area (square feet/square meters), mass/weight (ounces/grams), liquid volume (pints/liters), and temperature (Fahrenheit/Celsius) (University of Washington). Online Conversion offers many additional conversion calculators: 'over 5,000 units, and 50,000 conversions' (personal / commercial site, by Robert Fogt, a website / software developer).
Dictionaries and Thesauri [UPDATED LINK!] - Links to general dictionaries and thesauri. Use the tabs to access subject-specific dictionaries for art, business, clothing, computers, education, food, humanities, language, law, medicine, health & psychology, photography, science, sign language, social sciences, and technology. Some resources are available only to University of Wisconsin students.
Farlex Free Reference - 'English, Medical, Legal, Financial, and Computer Dictionaries, Thesaurus, Acronyms, Encyclopedia, a Literature Reference Library, and a Search Engine all in one!' (Commercial site)
Guiness World Records 
- A selection of Guiness World Records, with related facts and photos for each entry. Includes 'amazing videos capturing the world of record-breaking facts and feats.' SITE DOES NOT WORK IN INTERNET EXPLORER 6. (Commercial site)
Homework Spot Reference Desk - Links to a multitude of reference sources and educational aids such as almanacs, calculators, dictionaries, encyclopedias, libraries, quotations, statistics, style guides, thesauri, and more; mostly for middle school and up. (Commercial site: StartSpot Mediaworks, Inc.)
Merriam-Webster Online 
- Free online dictionary, thesaurus, Spanish - English dictionary, plus word games, puzzles, and other features. English dictionary includes pronunciation audio. (Commercial site)
Statistical Data - Selected links to statistics on a wide variety of subjects (South Plainfield Public Library).
Virtual Reference Shelf - Almanacs, associations, clocks, calculators, dictionaries, encyclopedias, maps, quotations, statistics, and other online 'Reference Books'. (Library of Congress)
Wordsmyth - An easy-to-use online English dictionary and thesaurus; includes a separate children's dictionary (beneath the general search box). Some features are available only to registered users.
Online Learning Materials
See also:
Audio/Video Resources
Education Place Online Schoolbooks - Online learning materials for pre-K through grade 6, covering all school subjects. Class Zone 
offers online learning materials for middle school and high school students, covering Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies, and World Languages; includes tutorials, templates, animations, links, and much more. (Both sites from Houghton Mifflin Publishing Company)
Enchanted Learning - Geography, science, animals, dinosaurs, inventors, explorers, crafts, and more. For elementary school students. (Commercial site, by educational web / software developers Jeananda Col and Mitchell Spector)
Fathom - An archive of online learning resources on various topics such as Jewish studies, women's studies, African-American studies, biodiversity, Shakespeare, and more. Includes lectures, articles, interviews, exhibits, free seminars, and a collection of instructional video. High school and up. (Columbia University et al.)
The Field Museum
- Offers a great collection of online exhibits and
interactives exploring a wide range of subjects, including biodiversity, ancient civilizations, the prehistoric world, natural disasters, maps, baseball, and... chocolate! (Field Museum, Chicago IL)
Glencoe Online Learning - Select your state and school subject to access a great collection of free online learning materials in all school subjects; includes quizzes, flash cards, and more. For middle school and high school students (and teachers). (Glencoe / McGraw-Hill)
Learner Interactives - Interactive presentations designed to enhance and improve your skills in math, science, language, history, and arts; mostly for high school students (Annenberg Media). Knowitall.org has a collection of fun, interactive websites for K-12 students, teachers and parents (ETV).
Open Courseware Consortium - Free online college-level course materials covering a broad range of topics, from universities around the world. Includes course overviews, assignments, readings, handouts, practice exams, and related resources. (Nonprofit educational consortium)
Research Assignment Guides - Information and links on many academic subjects, with outstanding sections on literature and on American cultural history by decades. (Kingwood College Library)
Scholastic Interactive Learning Activities - Get excited about History, Reading, Writing, Science, and Math, with interactive games, explorations, and other interesting and fun activities. Activities are organized by grade level (pre-K through Grade 12) and subject. (Commercial site: Scholastic Inc. publishing company).
Smithsonian Education - Dozens of Smithsonian Institution websites for students, featuring art and design, science and nature, and history and faraway places (age level varies). A related site, Encyclopedia Smithsonian, offers A-Z links to information from the Smithsonian and other sources on many subjects, arranged alphabetically.
Standard Deviants - This companion site for the PBS education series offers lots of helpful information, quizzes, funny 'Top Ten' lists, and more, on topics including Shakespeare, Astronomy, American Government, Spanish, English Grammar, Public Speaking, French, Geology, Internet, Marketing, Business Law, and HTML. For middle school through college level.
World Book Student Resource Center - Offers a monthly featured topic, quizzes, science projects and more. (World Book Encyclopedia)
Search Tools & Databases
DATABASES & Free Premium Resources - Search magazines, newspapers & more in our online databases & research tools: Access Science, EbscoHost, Kids InfoBits, New York Times Opposing Viewpoints, Infotrac, Facts on File, Salem History, and more! You'll need your South Plainfield Library Card to log in. See also JerseyClicks.
Google News Archive Search - 'An easy way to search and explore historical archives. In addition to helping you search, News archive search can automatically create TIMELINES which show selected results from relevant time periods. You can also use the Advanced Search to enter more specific search terms and limits. There may be a fee to view the full-text articles, but many may be available through our free databases, described above, or JerseyClicks.
Google Scholar - A Google search engine which searches only scholarly literature, including peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, preprints, abstracts and technical reports from all broad areas of research, as well as patents and legal opinions/journals. For upper-level students. NOTE: Many of the resources which Google Scholar searches are not available for free.
MagPortal - A large database of free online magazine articles. You can search by keyword or browse by broad subject (By Hot Neuron LLC, a website / software developer; commercial site).
Research Beyond Google - Guide to searching the 'invisible web' to find authoritative information sources on a variety of subjects. High school and up. (Online Education Database)
Click here for more SEARCH ENGINES & WEB DIRECTORIES.
Study Aids
Academic Success Center - Tools to help you organize your time, study efficiently, improve your memory and score higher on tests (George Washington University). See also Study Tips (Ohio University). These sites are designed for college students, but college-bound high school students should find them useful as well.
Big 6 - Presents a simple step-by-step problem-solving process which can help you with schoolwork as well as everyday information problems. There are separate versions for grades K-2 and grades 3-6. (Created by Michael Eisenberg, University of Washington, & Robert Berkowitz, Syracuse University)
Create A Graph - Choose the type of graph to create, enter your data, and this site will create a printable chart or graph for you. Includes a tutorial for beginners. (National Center for Education Statistics)
Critical Thinking Web - Online tutorials, quiz, and other materials will help you understand what critical thinking is, why it is important, and how to develop your critical thinking skills. (University of Hong Kong). See also Logic and Argument (University of Victoria) and Mission Critical (San Jose State University). High school and up.
Doing Research - This animated, interactive tutorial guides you through the process of online researching; click on the title to start the presentation. High school and up. (University of Illinois)
Electra Guide Thesis Builder - This interactive tool asks you a few simple questions to help you create a thesis for an essay and generate an outline; the 'Topic-O-Rama' will suggest some good topics if you don't have one. For high school students. (Personal site; by Tom March, a web-based educational designer and former classroom teacher)
How to Write a Paper & Cite Sources - Links to selected websites that will guide you through the process of planning, researching, and writing your school essay or term paper. (South Plainfield Public Library)
Quizzes - Fun quizzes to test and improve your knowledge of math, vocabulary, geography, history, or an assortment of other subjects; quizzes are presented in easy, medium and hard versions. (Commercial site; Sheppard Software). Dozens of challenging quizzes are also available at
ACES Interactive Quizzes (American Copy Editors Society).
Scholastic Homework Hub - Advice & resources for research projects, activities & quizzes, study & test-taking tips, and more. For elementary and middle school students (Commercial site: Scholastic Inc. publishing company).
Spark Notes - Free online study guides for literature, math, science, history, and more. NOTE: For access to some parts of the site, you must register for a free membership. (Commercial site: Barnes & Noble)
Standard Deviants - This companion site for the PBS education series offers lots of helpful information, quizzes, lists, and more, on topics including Shakespeare, Astronomy, American Government, Spanish, English Grammar, Public Speaking, French, Geology, Internet, Marketing, Business Law, and HTML. For middle school through college level.
StudyStack - Interactive site provides online 'flashcards' and other tools to help you learn facts in history, geography, math, science, language, and medicine. (Commercial / personal site, by computer programmer John Weidner)
Zotero - 'A free, easy-to-use Firefox browser extension to help you collect, manage, and cite your research sources.' (Center for History and New Media)
Web Directories
4 - 2 Explore - A directory of educational websites offering basic learning materials for all ages, arranged by subject. A brief definition or introduction and suggested learning activities are given for each topic. (By two educators, Larry Johnson, Ph.D. and Annette Lamb, Ph.D.)
Beehive Elementary School Homework Help - Links to homework help especially for younger kids, covering math, reading, social studies, science, art, and music. The Beehive also has good homework help links for Middle School and High School. (One Economy Corporation, a nonprofit organization)
Exploratorium: Ten Cool Sites - Features ten great websites each month, covering a variety of subjects. You can browse the archives for previous selections using the subject menu on the left side of the screen, or search by keyword. Grade level varies. (Exploratorium Museum)
Homework Center - A great assortment of annotated links arranged by subject. Grade level varies. (Multnomah County Library. NOTE: Live Homework Help is only available to Multnomah County Library patrons.)
Homework Spot - Selected homework-related materials specifically aimed at elementary, middle, and high school students. For each age group, resources are arranged by subject. (Commercial site: StartSpot Mediaworks, Inc.)
Internet Public Library - Another megasite, arranged by subject, with separate
Kidspace (K-8) and Teenspace. Also features an Ask a Librarian service. (University of Michigan)
KidInfo Homework Help - Lots of helpful links arranged by school subjects for grades K-12. (Personal / commercial site; by Linda Guterba, a middle-school computer teacher)
Kids Click - Links galore for kids in grades K-7. Arranged by subject. (Ramapo Catskill Library System)
Kids.Gov - An easy-to-use collection of websites that have information of interest to kids, arranged by subject. Includes links to kids' sites of government agencies as well as some educational, non-profit, and commercial sites; mostly for middle school and up. For kids' sites only from federal government agencies, see FedStat Kids' page.
Kids' Info Guides - Guides to books & other library materials, web sites, and additional resources on specific topics, including arts, history, holidays, people, science, and more; for various ages. Formerly Pathfinders. (Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library)
Thinkquest Library - A directory of award-winning websites designed and maintained by students with the help of teachers, parents, and other adult 'coaches'. Covers a wide variety of topics, arranged by subject. You can also search the site by keyword. (Oracle Education Foundation)
Time for Kids Homework Helper - A directory of great sites selected by kids, for kids. Grades 4 - 7. (Time Magazine; commercial site)
Click here for more SEARCH ENGINES & WEB DIRECTORIES.
Audio / Video Resources
Annenberg Media - Dozens of online video courses for teachers and students, on a variety of topics in history, language, literature, culture, science, and more; for high school and college students, and teachers K-12. Use the dropdown menus at the top to browse by subject & grade, or search by keyword. Requires free registration.
BBC Audio Interviews - An assortment of mostly brief audio recordings of prominent writers, artists, filmmakers, political activists, philosophers, religious thinkers, scientists, and sports figures. High school and up.
BBC Motion Gallery - A searchable video archive of over 20 years of BBC and CBS News.
Library of Congress Webcasts - Another great site to find online videos on a wide range of topics, including biography, history, culture, education, government, literature, religion, and science & technology.
Research Channel - More online educational videos including lectures, symposia, and interviews in arts & humanities, business & economics, science & technology, health, social sciences, and more. High school and up. SITE DOES NOT WORK IN INTERNET EXPLORER 6. (By a consortium of research universities and corporate research divisions)
Stanford on iTunes - Download free audio recordings of faculty lectures, plus interviews, music and sports, to play on your iPod, Mac or PC, or to record on a CD; requires iTunes software (free download). High school and up (Stanford University). See iTunes U [UPDATED LINK!] for lectures and other audio & video files from many universities and educational institutions (scroll to the bottom of the page to find ).
Pictures
CalPhotos - A searchable collection of nearly 50,000 images of plants, animals, fossils, people, and landscapes. (University of California)
Census Photo Services - A limited but good collection of photos of people, places, & lifestyles, and business & industry (US Census Bureau). For many more photos from the U.S. government, arranged by subject, see Uncle Sam's Photos (commercial site).
LIFE Photo Archive - Search millions of historic photographs from the LIFE Magazine photo archive, most previously unpublished. (LIFE Magazine and Google)
National Geographic Photo Gallery - Photos of animals, plants, natural scenes, science, history, culture, weather, and more. (Commercial site)
New York Public Library Digital Gallery - Over 450,000 images from primary sources and printed rarities in the library's collections, including illuminated manuscripts, historical maps, vintage posters, rare prints and photographs, illustrated books, printed ephemera, and more. You can browse by subject or search by keywords. High school and up.
Old Pictures - Extensive collection of great historical photographs spanning the years 1850 to 1940. You can search by keyword, or browse by Picture Collections (broad subject), Themed Collections (narrower subject), or Defining Moments (specific events). (Commercial site)
TimeLife Pictures - Pictures on current or historic events. NOTE: Images have 'Time & Life Pictures' stamped across them. See also Time News Photos; covers 1999 to present (commercial site). VII Photo Agency is another good place for photos of current events (from a group of professional photojournalists). CAUTION: Some photos may be disturbing or otherwise unsuitable for children.
Visual Resources Online - Annotated links to about 20 web sites offering high-quality digital images of photographs, maps, and other primary materials. High school and up. (Association of College & Research Libraries)
