Homework & Research Help for Kids

Homework Tips

There are loads of resources to help you with your homework. Library databases have lots of useful information that’s not necessarily available through Google. Plus, you know you can trust this information. Many websites can also help you with your homework, but make sure you’re safe while surfing the Internet, that the websites you find are from reliable sources, and learn how to cite those sources.

Library Databases

The “databases” here have lots of information not typically available through the Internet. You’ll need your library card to log in.

World Book – Kids – Younger children will enjoy searching for information by keyword or topic. A special feature includes fun hands-on learning activities for elementary school age children. Categories include: Make It! activities (e.g. making recycled paper), Think It! activities (e.g. puzzles) and Be It! activities (e.g. pretend to be a geologist). Video Tutorial [13:43 minutes]
World Book Online – Student – This is a great place for students or anyone to start their research on almost any topic. Includes full-text articles, web links, videos, animation, and sound. Video Tutorial [12:07 minutes]
Khan Academy – “Learn almost anything for free.” 3300 videos explain many subjects.
  TumbleBooks is a collection of animated, talking picture books with interactive puzzles and games. HAPPY TUMBLING!

Websites

Websites change all the time, so ask your librarian!

We’ve also created a list of recommended fun websites for kids.

Can You Trust That Website?

Ask yourself questions when using websites for your research:
  • Who wrote it? Does the author have training or education in the subject? What is the source of the information?
  • Does the site come from a well-known organization or news source?
  • How does this compare to other information? When evaluating websites it’s important to look at multiple sites so you can compare information.
  • When was this updated? Has the site been updated recently? If not, move on.
  • What is the site linked to? Was the site linked from another webpage that you trust? If so, that’s a good sign.
  • Is the site filled with advertising? This could mean that it was created for you to look at the ads more than the content of the writing.
A checklist:

Internet Safety

  • MediaSmarts Games - Educational computer games that introduce kids to key ideas in media and digital literacy. These games are a great way to start a conversation on media issues in the home or classroom, and you can play most of them right here on our website.
  • RCMP - Internet Safety Resources – Centre for Youth Crime Prevention.

Citing Sources: Writing a Bibliography

Writing a Bibliography
A Bibliography is a list of all the books, articles, websites, interviews or movies that you used to create your project or report. It’s important to give credit to the people whose work you used for your report. And it gives you, your teacher and anyone else who reads your report a chance to refer to those sources for more information. There are different ways you can do this and your teacher will tell you which they prefer (if they haven’t, just ask them).