Resources to help inspire lessons and activites, and to help students build important skills or complete research projects.
Tutorials: How to Use These Resources
This image indicates a resource that may only be accessed from Lake County Public Library's public computers, located at each of our branches.
Comprehensive information on just about any famous person, including inventors, politicians, celebrities, and many others.
Thousands of illustrated biographical profiles of children's authors and illustrators, all in an easy-to-use interface. Handy features include the ability to print, e-mail, download and access content by "Inside this Entry" and "Inside this Volume."
If you can't find what you're looking for in any of our databases, give your local library a call. They can help you figure out which databases would be most helpful to you to further research your topic.
If you'd like to ask a librarian, but it's after library hours, just head over to our Ask a Librarian page! This form lets you contact us at any time of day or night. We'll get you an answer within 24 business hours. Happy researching!
Search multiple databases at once, including play indexes and recommended reading lists by age group.
Search for academic articles, essays, and topics about literature. Includes items from Literature Criticism Online, Literature Resource Center, Gale Virtual Reference Library, and more.
Browse articles about authors and their works, or browse by topic. Also includes a search engine that allows you to search for articles by year (helpful if you're required to have more recent sources!) Results from this resource are also included in Gale Literary Sources.
Contains full-text articles from journals and lit magazines, as well as critical essays, full-text works, and biographies. Designed to give the researcher contextual understanding of their topic. Results from this resource are also included in Gale Literary Sources.
If you liked X, read Y! This database contains recommended reading lists based on interest and also allows you to search by keyword, genre, and author to find your next great read.
Thousands of illustrated biographical profiles of children's authors and illustrators, all in an easy-to-use interface. Handy features include the ability to print, e-mail, download and access content by "Inside this Entry" and "Inside this Volume."
Search for an author or book and get thousands of multimedia resources and lesson plans to enhance students' reading experiences. (via INSPIRE)
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A catalog for plays and textbooks/articles about plays. This database does not contain full text, but will direct you to the appropriate book.
Monthly live chats with some of your favorite authors! Participants will have the chance to ask questions. You can also explore the archive to watch past talks!
National Geographic Virtual Library
A complete archive of National Geographic magazine - every page of every issue - along with a cross-searchable collection of National Geographic books, maps, images and videos.
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Presents different perspectives on world issues side-by-side. Includes biographies of important world players and overviews of major historical eras.
National Geographic Virtual Library
A complete archive of National Geographic magazine - every page of every issue - along with a cross-searchable collection of National Geographic books, maps, images and videos.
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In-depth articles, experiments, broad overviews, and biographies in every area of science from life sciences to space to technology. Tips for Using
iPad/tablet ready science! Explore units on Earth Science, Technology and Engineering, Space, Biology, and Physics, each complete with articles, videos, quizzes, and experiments.
An excellent place for beginning research. General information on a variety of topics.
Explora for Middle/Secondary Schools
Mobile-friendly topic search - an excellent starting point for research. Read reputable articles on any subject, or just browse for ideas. (via INSPIRE)
Mobile-friendly topic search - an excellent starting point for research. Read reputable articles on any subject, or just browse for ideas. (via INSPIRE)
Mobile-friendly topic search - an excellent starting point for research. Read reputable articles on any subject, or just browse for ideas. (via INSPIRE)
Contains articles from newspapers and magazines from around the world. Searchable by audience, keyword, or publication title.
Periodicals contained in MAS Complete cover a wide range of subject areas that are of interest to high-school students including art, history, sports, music, film, travel, science, the Internet, fashion, religion, nature, hobbies, current events, fiction and much more. (via INSPIRE)
Full text for more than 140 popular middle school magazines. All full text articles are assigned a reading level indicator (Lexiles). (via INSPIRE)
Opposing Viewpoints in Context
Presents the different sides of current events from several magazines and newspapers.
Full text for more than 140 popular middle school magazines. All full text articles are assigned a reading level indicator (Lexiles). (via INSPIRE)
Explore social, political & economic issues, scientific discoveries and other popular topics discussed in today's classrooms including controversial opinions and viewpoints. Full text articles from diverse sources. (via INSPIRE)
Over a thousand classes for makers, crafters, learners, and hobbyits! Learn to knit a new stitch, make a holiday wreath, sew a pie carrier, paint with acrylics, and much, much more.
Education Resource Information Center. Provides access to information from journals included in the Current Index of Journals in Education and Resources in Education Index.
Curriculum standards, lesson plans, student tools, and helpful articles on topics like differentiated instruction and adaptive learning.
A searchable database of databases, free to all Indiana residents. INSPIRE works at any LCPL location, but you can also create an account confirming your Indiana residency for home access. More info on home access
Our very own catalog contains helpful materials for getting started in your research. Find Indiana-specific records and indexes, encyclopedias, newspapers, and more!
LinkedIn Learning (Formerly Lynda.com)
A library of video courses taught by industry experts. Learn business, software, technology, and creative skills! Take courses in 3D animation, music production, marketing, programming languages, and more. View tutorial
Full text for nearly 2,300 periodicals covering general reference, business, health, education, general science, multicultural issues and much more. Also contains full text for more than 350 reference books, over 55,000 primary source documents, an image collection of nearly 1.9 million photos, maps and flags and more than 75,000 videos from the Associated Press. (via INSPIRE)