States & Countries
FACTS ON FILE WORLD ATLAS - Combines detailed, printable, full-color maps of countries, states, and provinces, plus up-to-date information on geography, weather & climate, history, population, culture, government, society, flags, state symbols, mottos, nicknames, famous people, facts & figures, images, and more. Login to FACTS ON FILE from our DATABASE LOGIN PAGE to access the World Atlas. If you're using FACTS ON FILE on your home computer, you'll have to enter your library card barcode to begin.
Assignment: New Jersey - A good basic history of the state, arranged by time periods, plus a timeline, fast facts, maps, symbols, and famous firsts. Middle school and up (State of New Jersey). For more on New Jersey, as well as information about South Plainfield, see the South Plainfield Public Library's Local Information page.
Canadian Encyclopedia - The complete illustrated text of The Canadian Encyclopedia and related resources, including a Junior Encyclopedia, Encyclopedia of Music in Canada, and a selection of articles on Canadian politics and arts from Maclean's magazine. 'A first source for information on all Canadian topics.' (Historica - Dominion Institute; commercial site)
Cities Around the World: Photographs - Thousands of photographs from the slide collections of the American Geographical Society. (University of Wisconsin)
Country Studies - In-depth descriptions and analysis of the history and the social, economic, political, and national security systems and institutions of many countries throughout the world. Does not include Canada, France, the United Kingdom, and other Western nations, as well as a number of African nations. You might also want to check out Portals to the World, described below. High school and up. (Library of Congress)
County & City Data Book - Official population, housing, business and other data for all U.S. counties, cities with 25,000 or more inhabitants, and places of 2,500 or more inhabitants. Includes links to additional information on US states and counties. In PDF format. See also Census FactFinder; enter a zip code to get a quick population data fact sheet for any community. High school and up.
Cultural Profiles Project - This Canadian website explores the life and customs of other countries, with information on history, holidays, family life, food, arts & literature, communication and more. Middle school and up. (Citizenship and Immigration Canada / University of Toronto)
European Union at a Glance - Explains what the European Union is and how it was formed. Also includes Key Facts & figures about Europe and the Europeans, and maps and brief descriptions of each member country. (European Union official site).
The Fifty States (TeachersFirst.com) - Quick facts, maps, famous people, places to visit, brief economy, history & geography info, and links for each state; for upper elementary students (nonprofit site; The Source for Learning). See also 50States.com (Commercial site; by Marchex, Inc., an advertising company).
Flags and Maps of the World - Flags for each country. Use the dropdown menu to select a country and you will also get a map and a basic overview of geography, people, government, economy, and more. (CIA)
Flags of the World - Official flag for each country, with explanations of symbols, as well as historical flags, military flags, coats of arms, and lots of other flag-related info. Also includes flag outlines you can print and color in. All ages. (Volunteer-maintained site)
Geography Dictionary & Glossary - Defines hundreds of terms used in geography and related disciplines; high school and up. (ITS Tutorial School, Hong Kong)
Geography Web Games 
- Play these free games to test and improve your knowledge of geography (Sheppard Software; commercial site). Test your knowledge of capitals around the world by playing the Country Capitals Memory game
(Michigan State University).
KidInfo Geography links - Links to state homepages, maps, capitals, cities, flags, and more. Middle school and up. (Commercial site, by Linda Guterba, a professional educator)
Maps: Finding Our Place in the World - Uses text and images to explore the history of maps and mapmaking. (Field Museum)
Maps Online - A huge collection of online maps of the world and specific regions and countries, including relief maps and historical maps, as well as maps related to current events; high school and up. (University of Texas)
Mexico for Kids [UPDATED LINKS!] [ARCHIVED SITE] - Colorful pages on the history, government, and environment of Mexico, plus a section about holidays, music, stories, traditions, games, and more. Elementary and middle school students. (Presidency of the Republic of Mexico)
Outline Maps - Printable map outlines of the world, regions, and countries, in PDF format. (Houghton Mifflin Company)
Oxfam's Cool Planet - Introduces you to the history, geography, environment, people and society of more than a dozen countries, including Afghanistan, Bolivia, Ghana, India, and Viet Nam. Also provides a map and basic data for each country. Cool Planet's Wake Up World stories show a typical ' day in the life' of children from Ghana, Brazil, Russia, and India; middle school and up. (Oxfam GB)
Pictures of Places - Need a picture of the Eiffel Tower, the Lincoln Memorial, the Taj Mahal, or the Leaning Tower of Pisa? This site links to thousands of great printable pictures of places all over the world. Arranged by state / country / region. (MindTravellers Inc.; commercial site)
Population Clocks (U.S. and World) - Population clocks on the US Census Bureau's Web site will update continuously for one minute and then will update once per minute after the first minute a web page is displayed. The U.S. POPClock is consistent with Census 2000 data and the most recent national population estimates.
Printable Maps - Click on the world map or drop-down menu for the region or country you want, then click on 'Enlarge (GIF) for a nice printable map. (National Geographic)
Portals to the World - A map, plus links to detailed information on population, history, language, resource, media, education, travel, and much more, for each country. High school and up. (Library of Congress)
State Maps in Color - 'Each state link brings up a menu of links to maps and other online information about the state.' Includes relief maps, satellite images, historical maps, and maps with county outlines. (Johns Hopkins University)
United Nations CyberSchoolbus - Learn about the UN and world issues. Features include Country at a Glance, offering a statistical overview plus data on economy, environment, health, and technology; middle school and up. The advanced InfoNation feature lets you create charts comparing data for different countries (high school and up). Also offers curriculum resources for teachers.
US National Atlas - Interactive maps of the US on a variety of topics including environment, agriculture, history, people, geology, and climate, and printable US reference and outline maps. (US Department of the Interior)
World Fact Book - Flags, maps, and up-to-date overviews of all countries, plus statistics on geography, environment, government, economy, people, transportation, communication, and the military. Maps and flags for all ages; text and data for high school and up. Use the drop-down menu to choose a country. (CIA)
World Leaders - This site lists the names of current foreign government leaders; arranged alphabetically by country and updated weekly. (CIA)
World License Plates - Photos of license plates from all US states and countries around the world; includes specialty plates, historic plates, and links to Motor Vehicle Departments and related sites. (Personal website, by Michael Kustermann)
World Mapper - 'A collection of world maps, where territories are re-sized on each map according to the subject of interest.' Includes a brief explanation for each map. Provides quick visual representations for topics such as total births, total elderly population, religion, exports / imports, forest growth / loss, tourism profits, and many more subjects. High school and up. (University of Sheffield, UK)
World Region & Country Maps - Printable maps in PDF format. (United Nations)
World Wide Panorama - Rotating Virtual Reality photographs from around the world. Pick an Event theme (scroll down to see a list of previous Events) for a map to choose your location. When the photo has loaded, drag your mouse across it to make it rotate; requires QuickTime software. (University of California)
