Research Resources
Information Literacy Guide for Students – Learn how to find, evaluate, and cite trustworthy sources of information for school assignments and your personal learning endeavors.
Biography in Context – Thousands of online full-text biographies from Gale reference books. Includes Encyclopedia of World Biography, Who’s Who Among African-Americans, Maclean’s, Contemporary Authors, and many more important biographical reference sources. Search by name, occupation, ethnicity, and more.
Brainfuse – Live Online Homework Help – Free live help for students and learners of all ages, available from any computer! HelpNow provides live tutoring in English, math, science and social studies, writing help including help with student papers and resumes; SAT/ACT Spanish-speaking tutors available. Remote access available to Springfield City Library cardholders only.
Encyclopedia Britannica High School Edition – This comprehensive encyclopedia provides the ability to browse articles and media, compare countries, find primary sources, and search a local and world atlas. Plan your research paper with the easy to use Research Guide or browse the How To tips.
InfoTrac (Gale) Student Edition – Provides access to magazines, newspapers, books, and other reference content. The database offers information on current events, the arts, science, popular culture, health, people, government, history, sports, and more.
Khan Academy –Khan Academy is a non-profit educational organization created to provide “a free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere.” Khan Academy offers practice exercises, instructional videos, and a personalized learning dashboard that empower learners to study at their own pace in and outside of the classroom. They tackle math, science, computer programming, history, art history, economics, and more. All resources are available for free to anyone around the world.
New York Times – Search the full text of The New York Times back to 1985. Indexed coverage to 1965.
Language & Literature
Literature Resource Center – Included are biographical entries on more than 135,000 authors providing detailed biographical, bibliographical and contextual information about authors’ lives and works, more than 850,000 full-text articles, critical essays and reviews.
Mango Languages – Learn a new language with this interactive database that provides step by step lesson plans for over 60 languages, 17 ESL courses, over 20 specialty courses, and language learning through full length foreign films and mobile apps. Mobile apps are available. Remote access for Springfield City Library cardholders only. Quick Guide to Mango Languages
Science
Science In Context – An engaging online resource that provides contextual information on hundreds of today’s most significant science topics. Science In Context showcases how scientific disciplines relate to real-world issues ranging from bacteria to obesity and weather. The collection includes millions of full-text articles that includes national and global publications as well as 200+ experiments, projects, and top reference content.
Social Studies
CIA World Fact Book– Provides information on the history, people, government, economy, energy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for 267 world entities. The Reference tab includes: maps of the major world regions, as well as Flags of the World, a Physical Map of the World, a Political Map of the World, a World Oceans map, and a Standard Time Zones of the World map.
Digital Commonwealth – Provides access to photographs, manuscripts, books, audio recordings, and other materials of historical interest that have been digitized and made available by members of Digital Commonwealth, a statewide consortium of libraries, museums, archives, and historical societies from across Massachusetts.
Global Issues In Context – Integrating news, global viewpoints, reference materials, country information, primary source documents, videos, statistics, and more in a single search—Global Issues In Context is updated daily and offers 250 different country topic pages and more than 400 Issue pages.
Opposing Viewpoints In Context – Is a rich resource for debaters and includes pro/con viewpoints, reference articles, interactive maps, infographics, and more. A category on the National Debate Topic provides quick and easy access to content on frequently studied and discussed issues. Periodical content covers current events, news and commentary, economics, environmental issues, political science, and more.
U.S. History In Context – Is an engaging resource for those seeking contextual information on hundreds of the most significant people, events and topics in U.S. History. Topics range from the arrival of Vikings in North America all to the way to the first stirrings of the American Revolution and on through the Civil Rights movement, 9/11, and the War on Terror. Content includes reference works, millions of news and periodical articles, and more than 5,000 rare and vital primary source documents that range from slave journals to presidential papers.
Test Prep
Learning Express (Learn-A-Test) – Practice for such tests as the SAT and AP, ASVAB, Civil Service, TOEFL, and many others in the privacy of your home. Register with your library card number and a password of your choice. Springfield City Library cardholders only.
Massachusetts Driving License Instruction – Free practice tests for the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicle’s written examinations. Includes 10 car practice tests, 6 motorcycle practice tests, CDL (Commercial Driver’s License) practice tests, 3 online driver’s manuals (car, motorcycle, CDL), and more.
Computer
The Springfield City Library does not offer tutoring for teens. The Springfield Public Schools request that parents ask their child’s teacher about tutoring options available through the School Department.