Newsflash: Kids Search is the cool way to research!

Did you know that BHMS has a database called EBSCO Kids Search?

Sophie and I decided to do a Kids Search public service announcement for all the eager researchers and readers out there who might not know about this tremendous resource.

Kids Search is a database of magazine articles, encyclopedia entries, and images.

If you’re looking for information about simple machines, dinosaurs, or even candy, you’re sure to find it at Kids Search! Actually, if you’re trying to look for information on just about anything, start with Kids Search, for magazine articles and encyclopedia entries.

Upper Elementary students are currently studying simple machines. We decided to use simple machines as an example.
Sophie went to Kids Search, and typed “simple machines” into the search bar.


Sophie: When I typed “simple machines” in the search bar, I saw all the different articles on simple machines. I chose How Do Simple Machines Work? from Weekly Reader (12/1/06; Vol.76, Issue12).


To see the article, I clicked PDF. PDF is the full color, scanned version of the article from the magazine.


Rebecca: So, when you choose PDF, it actually looks like the real magazine article. Sometimes you only have the option of HTML-Full Text; that will give you the article in writing, but you won’t see any pictures. I prefer PDF when I have the choice.


Sophie: The article shows pictures of, and describes, a wheel and axle, a wedge, a pulley, a screw, an inclined plane, and a lever.

Rebecca: It also shows pictures of each: like the base of a light bulb is a screw--I like that illustration, it helps me to visualize different simple machines in real life.
How can students use Kids Search generally?

Sophie: I think it can be useful because you can find an article about mostly anything on the topic you’re trying to look up.

Rebecca: I think so too. Basically any study unit can be supplemented with Kids Search--science, math, history, current events.
One thing I like about Kids Search, is that you can start reading something because you're looking for specific information, and then you might find something related that piques your interest. For example, at the bottom of this article is a little extra piece, about Mary Lou Hedberg and her successful experiment with simple machines.

Sophie: Yeah, Mary Lou Hedberg is a kid who won an award for proving that using paddles with flat blades was not the fastest way to paddle through water! She figured out that the fastest way to get through water is a spoon shaped blade with bent handles. A paddle is a kind of lever; I never knew that!


You can use Kids Search at school or at home--wherever you have a computer.
Why watch tv when you can read magazine articles all night long?!?!

You can get to Ebsco Kids Search by going to our library homepage, scrolling down to Online Resources, and selecting Ebsco databases.

If you want to try Kids Search for school or for fun, email Rebecca for our username and password!

Shug

by Jenny Han



Shug is a great book about a teenage girl entering middle school. She has a great big sister and a mother who only cooks when her husband is home (which isn’t very often).
I think that any teenage girl with an amazing, caring, and sometimes annoying family would really like this book. Every girl in middle school should read this book.

Review by Sarah J

Shug trivia: Jenny Han is a local Brooklyn author!

The Day of the Dragon King

By Mary Pope Osborne


This book is a great book for people who love adventure stories. This book is about two kids named Jack and Annie who have a magic treehouse filled with books. The treehouse takes them to the places in the books when they point to a picture. In this adventure, they went to China to try and rescue a book before the emperor, called the Dragon King, burned all the books.
It is very exciting when they sneak into the palace and have to find the Imperial Library. Along the way they meet a scholar, a silk weaver, and a cowherd who help them find their way. Jack and Annie get chased by soldiers, but they manage to escape and rescue the book. I felt like I was in Ancient China when I read this book!

Review by Isabel, UE

The Tale of Emily Windsnap

By Liz Kesller



This fantastic story is about a girl named Emily Windsnap. She one day finds out she is a mermaid when she is taking swimming lessons with her class. Then one day as Emily was swimming by her house, she noticed another mermaid named Shona. They got to know each other and became friends. Most of the time Emily would sneak out and meet Shona at Rainbow Rocks and they would go on sneaky adventures. Emily always wanted to find her father who is a merman.
Her father’s name is Jake. When she would ask her mother about her father, her mother would not remember much about him. Emily soon found that her mother’s memory was getting zapped by her friend Mr. Beeston. Emily did all she could to get her mother to remember. She even took her to the place where she met him. Once her mother got her memory back, Emily and her mother both went on a search to find Jake.
Emily found out that her father was in a prison by great Mermer Reef. Emily snuck into the prison and got to see her dad. Her dad was so happy to finally see her, and he still loved Emily’s mom. Mr. Beeston has Emily and her mom arrested, but Neptune, the King of the Sea, felt bad for them and set them all free!

Review by Isabel, UE