I Need to Search

The following web sites will help you search for information on the internet. Remember that whenever you use information written by someone else, you must always cite your source and give credit to the author. ALSO...you cannot always trust information you find on the internet. Check out the sites in the Evaluating Web Sites section to see if the web sites you are using are trustworthy.

Search Engines and Other Research Tools	There are many types of search tools to research online. Some are keyword search tools where you have to type in what you are looking for. Some are arranged so you search by category such as sports, geography, or history.
	Ask Jeeves for Kids -- A keyword search engine. Type in the word or words you are looking for, or type in a question.
	Yahooligans -- Another keyword search for kids. If you scroll down, there are some categories you can click on, too.
	Kid's Search Tools -- Several different keyword search engines on one site. This way, you don't have to click around to others!
	Google -- Keyword or phrase search engine.
	SuperKids Directory -- Search by category.
	All in One Search Tool Site -- This site has searches for different subjects, dictionaries, thesauruses, biographies, authors, and maps.
	KidsClick! - Web search for kids created by librarians. Super Cool Guide for Finding Stuff on the Web - Search by key word or category. All in One Search Tool Site - This TekMom site combines great search engines for kids, as well as other search tools including science, history, pictures, dictionaries, biographies, authors, and maps.
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Evaluating Websites	Credible Sources Count! - A nice tutorial that goes through how to evaluate sites. Good example and non-example sites. From Acadia University in Nova Scotia, Canada
	Quality Information Checklist - Be sure to evaluate the information you find on the Internet for purpose, clarity, timeliness, bias, etc. Use this guide to help you out! CyberSmart! - This links directly to a great site evaluation form in PDF. Run a site through this checklist to see if it is a quality site for research.
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Encyclopedias	Little Explorers Picture Dictionary -- Great simple encyclopedia for beginning researchers.


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Topeka Public Library	Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library -- Search the Topeka l ibrary to see if books that you want are available.

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Other Research Tools	Go Grolier - A wealth of resources. You must sign up for a free trial to access this. Biography.com - Sponsored by A&E. Short bios on many famous people. Enclyopedia of World Biography - This features many world biographies. Harcourt Biographies - A selection of biographies with pictures and easy text. Academy of Achievement - A museum of living history from Washington, DC. Incredible interviews of each person. Yahoo! Kids Biography Directory - A quick look at various biographies of famous Americans. Biographies for Kids - Quick categories of admirable people.
	Library of Congress -- Search by browsing through the different category links.
	Smithsonian Education -- Search this cool site by clicking on a topic on the left side of the page.
	Internet Public Library -- Search by keyword or by browsing through the categories. To have more results on your keyword search, select All of the IPL on the pull-down menu next to the search bar.
	Gale Free Resources - Great biographies for the following groups of people: Women African Americans Hispanic Americans Biography.com - Sponsored by A&E. Short bios on many famous people. Science Superstars - Great bios on famous scientists. All About Explorers - This has great information about explorers. Smithsonian Wild - A site for researching animals - with great photos too! The animal categories include: bears, canids (dogs, wolves, coyotes, jackals, foxes), cats, other carnivores, deer & antelope, other hooved animals, large birds, small birds & other animals, unique mammals (Asian elephant, giant anteater, giant armadillo, tree shrew), primates, rodents & rabbits, marsupials (including opossums).
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Images	Pics4Learning -- Pictures for school use. Browse by topic or use the search bar in the right corner of the page.
	Library of Congress -- Linked to the Prints and Photos section of the Library of Congress website. Click the blue button that says Search the Catalog to start your search.
	Smithsonian Images - Good photos that can be used for personal or educational use. Wikimedia Commons - Most of these images are not copyrighted, but always check the description. Use caution as you would with Google Images. PD Photo - More copyright free images. Photos8 - Public domain photos - outstanding quality! US History Images - Most images are in the public domain, but read their terms of use. Scribble Maps - This is a great world map that you can move around in, view the terrain, zoom in, and save as a .jpg or .kml (to be opened in Google Earth). Dorling Kindersly - Free school type clip art - searchable. Discovery School Clip Art - More clips browseable by subject. School Clip Art - Various cartoon type clip browseable by subjects. Icon Finder - Searh for various types of clip art by subject. Philip Martin Clipart - School subject related clip art. Very cartoon-like.
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