Learning Express Library

Registering for the Learning Express Library was very easy and the site was very easy to navigate while just browsing the different levels and types of tests. The toolbar at the top was divided into the different sections: Elementary School, Middle School, High School, College Preparations, College Students, GED Preparation, Job Search and Workplace Skills, Jobs and Careers, Skill Building for Adults, US Citizenship, and Recursos para Hispanohblantes.

Each tab was divided into different sub-sections such as reading writing, math, social studies etc. and then each of those sub-sections had either individual tests or were broken into more sections of tests. Some were general tests, practice tests, or preparation tests while others were specific to states or were a specific test such as the COOP High School Entrance Exam. By clicking on the titles, it gives a brief description of the test, the number of questions, and the approximate test duration.

I chose to take the 4^th Grade Math Practice: Number Sense and Operations

1 test. I chose this one because I have played “Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?” and let’s just say that this seemed a more appropriate level for me to start on.

It took me a minute to realize that you had to “Add to my Center” in order to take the test. Once I got started, it was just like any other multiple choice exam. Even though I only answered 5 questions before I chose “Score My Test” it asked me several times if that is what I wanted to do and the consequences for doing so. It also was very positive even though I left 15 items blank. Based on my performance, it listed other tests and practices that would be beneficial to me. I was glad to see that it also gave me the correct answers and explained why it was correct and why the others were wrong. The site also kept this record in “My Center” for future reference.

As evident by my inability to spell giraffe correctly in the first lesson, I am a horrible speller, so I wisely chose the Vocabulary and Spelling Course 1. There was a long description, and then the topic was broken into different lessons. They listed the how’s and why’s and then listed tricks and tips such as using index cards, having a study buddy, and coming up with lists of words you want to know. Then there was a self-analysis and a 3 step list for learning and remembering words. This all was introduced before the course actually started. At the beginning of the course, it listed the course outline on the left side where you were able to move from section to section without completing each one in order to get to the next one. The course gave a lengthy explanation, strategies, lists of words, and you were able to check the words that you knew. Even though it was a lot of reading at times which might discourage some reluctant readers, the course was very thorough and covered a lot of material.

I had a hard time finding my way back to the home page without starting over. Once I did, I clicked the list of ebooks in the lower right hand corner. The list was divided up by the same 11 tabs from the beginning. Although some of them had several ebooks to choose from, the elementary only had one: Getting Ready for the 4^th Grade Assessment Test. It consisted 198 pages of sections

on Math Practice, Open-ended Math questions, English/Language Arts Practice, Short and Extended Responses for English/Language Arts, and Scores Studies, Lists and More. These ebooks would be very helpful, especially to homeschooling families and children who are looking for a little more practice with basic skills.

Lesson 1b - World Book Public Library Edition

1. The bright colors, large icons, and pictures on the World Book Online Kids (K-5) home page instantly caught my attention.  Any youngster would be immediately drawn in.  When I misspelled the word giraffe it recognized what I was looking for and brought me to the correct link anyway.  This would be very helpful for children (and someone who did not win the 3rd grade spelling bee – me!).

The information consisted of approximately one page of larger print at an elementary reading level and several pictures and videos.  The videos were very brief but informative, included sound, and were easy to access.  Although there was plenty of useful information, (did you know a giraffes tongue can be as long as 21 inches) there was only one short line about the giraffe's habitat "Giraffes live in Africa south of a large desert called the Sahara".  There was however, a little trivia question and link to more information about the Sahara off to the left side with more information.

2.  Once again I was intrigued by the bright and eye catching colors on the home page of the World Book Online Info Finder (5-9).   It was filled with many more options than the site for the younger children.  For some, it may have been a little too congested, but none the less it was very easy to navigate and full of the helpful information.  Once I typed in giraffe, (with the correct spelling this time) I was given several choices for finding information from encyclopedia articles, maps, back in time articles, dictionary entries, pictures, videos, tables, and special reports.  Choosing the first item on the encyclopedia articles page brought me to a similar version of the younger site only with much more information.  The page used much smaller text that would have covered about 2-3 pages and included the same pictures and videos from the previous site along with a map.  The information given went into much more detail and included a short outline of the article for quick reference.

3.  Even though the home page of The World Book Online Reference Center was not as eye catching as the others, it was clean and orderly with several options and links.  I chose to search for Bolivia, just because it sounded exotic and fun and because I still remember a little bit of Spanish from high school and college.  “Hola Senorita! Como te yamas?” 

Three columns appeared on the screen.  The column on the left was a quick reference to the two columns on the right and more.  It included the links to Encyclopedia Articles, US Presidential Papers, Maps, Tables, Dictionaries, Sound, Historical Maps, Pictures, Back in Time Articles, Special Reports, Web Sites and Research Guides.

When I clicked on the first encyclopedia article with the map and the word Bolivia, I was taken to an article that was about 8 pages long with several pictures, a sound bite, a map, and a table of brief information about Bolivia.  On the left, there was on outline of the article with links for quicker reference to the main topics.  On the right hand side near the top were links to related Encyclopedia Articles, Books to Read, Back in Time Articles, Web Sites, Magazine Articles, and an Interactive Map for Bolivia.

The quick links to other information was what I thought would be most valuable to my patrons.   The other thing that caught my attention was the tools at the top of the articles.  Later when I went back, I realized that they were also available on the World Book Online Kids (K-5), and the World Book Online Info Finder (5-9).  The cleverest of these tools included hearing the text aloud, translating the text (into 30 or more languages), being able to save to my research, and the definition finder for unknown words.  These would be very useful tools and very fun to use when exploring far-away exotic lands such at Bolivia!