Biography+Bibliography

Biography Bibliography Resources for grades 2-5 This is a common topic for independent research in our library. There never seem to be enough print resources available on the right level, so I was looking for online resources that would support learning for this age range. [] Sweet Search: A Search Engine for Students: Biographies This is a subject directory that focuses on providing safe search results for students on the topic of biographies. There are a variety of topics along the left-hand side of the website, allowing students to filter down to specific topics that interest them. For example, they can pick a country, then a career designation and even if they want a male or female. Students are allowed up to three filters. Individuals are listed alphabetically by last name. Many of the biographies are provided by Finding Dulcinea: Librarian of the Internet [] Bio 4 Kids is a division of Biography.com that is appropriate for ages 8-12. This site includes biographies of 30 well-known individuals from past and present, as well as including links to related websites. There are a few brief videos, less than one minute, about some of the individuals. This site is free of advertising and is clearly geared toward kids, they are even warned if they try to leave the site to go to the “grown-up area_ of Biography.com. [] Internet Public Library 2: Information you can trust: POTUS (Presidents of the United States) This resource includes lists of facts about each president, as well as pictures. Key information about birth, death, family, education, politics, occupations, and specifics about their presidency are included. There is a category of "notable events", but it does not always contain information. There are links to internet biographies and media resources, such as audio files of important speeches. This is a great site to find basic information in a straight-forward manner. There is little detail and no details about their lives. [] Who2? This website set up like a search engine, with an alphabetical index across the top of the page where students can browse biographies by the name of the individual, or they can type in the name of the individual in a search box. There is also a highlight on people who are born today. Biographies can also searched by birthplace, birth year, category, birth or death date. Biographies are short, typically one large paragraph with a second paragraph of "extra credit" or trivia. There are also 4 links to further information about each individual. Information is easy to find. Unfortunately there are many ads on the pages, including distracting animations. [] America’s Story from America’s Library, provided by the Library of Congress. This is a basic, introductory level site for biographies, focusing on famous Americans. The left hand side includes a table of contents mainly by occupation. Selecting an area pulls up the names of applicable individuals. Each individual includes a timeline of their life compared to a timeline of key events in American History. There is also a short biography, and links to further stories about the individual [] Enchanted Learning Inventors and Inventions page. This is a great introduction for younger students, or perhaps a starting point for older students. The page uses an alphabetical, topical, and geographic index for topics. Each entry for an invention includes a picture of the invention, brief information about the inventor (name, birth/death dates, place, occupation) as well as information about the invention. Entries are about two paragraphs long. The site does include a few advertisements, members can access an ad-free version of the site. [] Fact Monster from Information Please This site has a People page that lists biographies grouped into 4 fun topics: People Fun Facts, Women of Influence, Biographies, and U.S. Presidents. Clicking on a president, for example, pulls up a child-friendly biography that shows a picture, lists some statistics and gives a biography of about 4-6 paragraphs. The language used is natural language for children, using “born” and “died”. Some articles also give links to an encyclopedia article about the individual. Some topics link to slideshows about influential individuals. The downfall to this site is the size and flashiness of some of the ads. This would be a good lesson in discriminating viewing. The site is maintained by Pearson learning. [] - dmoz open directory project is similar to a subject directory. It is maintained by human editors. This site provides a large page of biographies geared to kids and teens. Student can select by an alphabetical index, region, and occupation. Next to each category is the amount of available persons and next to each person is the number of available links. Selecting an occupation brings up a list of available biography links, for example, a search for Brian Jacques brought up four links including one to his website, one to a Scholastic.com article, an interview on his publisher’s website, as well as an unofficial website. [] Encyclopedia of World Biography is geared toward the upper end of this age group, 4th and 5th graders. Biographies are grouped alphabetically, clicking on a group pulls up a brief 2-5 sentence summary of the individual, and clicking on the individual’s name pulls up a more detailed lengthy biography. Students will find that this website is complete with many current authors, actors, athletes,and more. The bibliography with each article includes print and electronic resources. [] Academy of Achievement: a Museum of Living History will also appeal to the older students. This is a highly interactive website with audio clips, video interview/clips, many full-color illustrations of individuals in the areas of: The Arts, Business, Public Service, Science & Exploration, and Sports. Although the reading level may be a little high, the support of audio and video resources makes this a valuable site to visit. [] Kids’ Corner Famous People with Disabilities is maintained by the Center for Disability Information and Referral at Indiana University, it was last updated in 2008. I include this resource because it is provides an important area that is often overlooked and since I work with special-needs populations it is an area of interest. There are less than 20 biographies included here, including athletes, entertainers, and leaders and legends. Each biography is only about two paragraphs and missing details, but could serve as a starting point for further research.