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Enclosed is this month's free newsletter for SIRS Discoverer® subscribers. This newsletter is designed to help teachers, librarians, and administrators stay informed about the latest changes to their subscription(s), while providing classroom resources and giving tips for using their ProQuest solutions in a variety of settings.
Check out our online archive for access to past issues.
WHAT'S NEW @ SIRS
Our product development team is constantly reviewing customer feedback and making changes to our learning resources to meet your needs. Several updates to our SIRS family of products were recently completed and we wanted to bring them to your
attention.
Current Events
Our editorial team updates our SIRS products every day with new articles and resources.
Here's a short list of the timeliest and most topical articles added to your product this month. Publication dates may vary due to the editorial selection process.
March SIRS Podcast
Let’s face it--no matter how many times we visit our favorite online learning resources, we’re bound to miss a feature or two. This month, our free video podcast focuses on one of the least-known but most useful feature sets of your subscription:
Training & Support Resources @ proquestk12.com
When it comes to online research, no one does it better than ProQuest CSA. In tens of thousands of libraries, classrooms, and homes, researchers of all ages rely on eLibrary, SIRS, CultureGrams, ProQuest, and CSA online solutions to find answers to the most pressing questions of the day.
This short video will help you tap into our growing collection of training resources to help learners of all ages make the most of their subscriptions. Let’s get started!
Whether your school provides access to eLibrary, SIRS Knowledge Source or Discoverer, ProQuest Historical Newspapers -- or any of our other 30-plus research and learning solutions -- your first stop for help should be proquestk12.com.
Our training resources are just a click away via the black Training & Support tab.
To view this month's video, subscribe to a ProQuest CSA podcast channel today, or view the video via Google Video or YouTube.
Plus, don’t miss our free monthly Web training sessions, which are eligible for CEU credit!
Charts & Graphs Feature
Did you know that Discoverer offers charts and graph activities, geared for the younger researcher?
Students can learn how to read and decipher charts and graphs. Visit our new Activities category in the Database Features, “charts & graphs.”
Political Cartoons in Discoverer
Discoverer now offers political cartoons geared for the younger researcher, from noteworthy sources including Junior Scholastic, Scholastic News, New York Times Upfront and Current Events.
Students can learn how to read and decipher political cartoons, as well as understand the writing devices employed in them (satire, irony, metaphor, etc.). In a hurry? The quickest route to all of our political cartoons is Database Features, Activities, Editorial Cartoons.
Here's just a few timely examples to get you started:
Map Activities in Discoverer
Travel -- with Discoverer! We provide map activities geared for the younger researcher, from noteworthy sources including Scholastic News, Junior Scholastic, and Current Events.
With these new resources, your young students will learn how to read and decipher varied types of maps, and answer discussion
questions based on their observations.
Visit a sampling of the following articles to learn more:
Suggested Research Topics
Tens of thousands of students mine SIRS resources for the latest information on the leading issues of the day. To provide the most pertinent and safe content, SIRS Editors carefully research topics and issues each day to find age-appropriate materials that bring students to a better understanding of the topics taught in schools and classrooms across the U.S. and Canada.
Be sure to take a peek at some of SIRS Discoverer’s most searched topics and issues over the past 60 days, including:
Global Warming
Dogs
Rosa Parks
School Uniforms
Civil War
Harriet Tubman
Presidents
George Washington
Child Labor
Jackie Robinson
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DISCOVERER CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
At the times when the Sun is crossing the celestial equator day and night are of nearly equal length at all latitudes, we call these dates the equinoxes, meaning “equal.”
These equinoxes occur this year on March 21 (Vernal Equinox) and then again on September 23 Autumnal Equinox. Since December 22, 2006 (the Winter Solstice and the shortest day of the year), the Sun has been moving northwards, increasing the amount of daylight in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, the opposite is occurring. For them, March 21 is their Autumnal Equinox.
To the ancient elders, these times, equinoxes, were markers in which seeds would be planted and then harvested.
Activity: Students will be enthusiastic about learning all about the Vernal Equinox and the beginning of spring. Here are some examples of essential questions for critical thinking that teachers can assign to students. Teachers can create additional questions to assign based on these models. These questions ensure that students think about the topic “spring and vernal equinox” as more than a hunt for facts that usually results in essentially the same report by all students.
Students should type “vernal equinox” in the Keyword/Natural Language Search box.
- What special weather events happen in the spring?
- Why is spring a time for special celebrations? Name some?
- Why does spring happen each year at the same time?
- Why does the weather get warmer during the spring?
- How do animals react to spring? (Pick Two)
- What are your favorite spring activities and why?
Teachers should encourage two-minute oral reports so that students practice presentation skills and have an opportunity to learn from each other. These standards-based language arts skills are essential for success in school, higher education, and in careers.
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CULTUREGRAMS™ IN FOCUS
CultureGrams can help you broaden your students' understanding of the world and its peoples. The World Edition includes 190+ country profiles, written for junior high students and older. CultureGrams also has a Kids Edition, Provinces Edition, and a States Edition, geared for upper elementary students. These editions include kid-friendly profiles of 70+ countries, all 50 states (including Washington, D.C.), and the Canadian provinces.
CultureGrams goes beyond mere facts and figures to deliver an insider's perspective on daily life and culture, including the history, customs, and lifestyles of the world's people.
Kentucky: Did You Know?
- Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis, the Union and Confederacy presidents, were both born in Kentucky, less than 100 miles (161 km) apart.
- Two sisters from Louisville wrote the song “Happy Birthday to You” in 1893.
- Fort Knox's underground vaults hold more gold than any other place in the world.
Settling the Frontier
Some trappers explored Kentucky, but the Appalachian Mountains kept many settlers from entering the region. In 1750, Dr. Thomas Walker found a way through the mountains. The Cumberland Gap, as he called it, allowed people to get to Kentucky. Daniel Boone explored the area, and in the 1770s, he and another man named James Harrod began settlements. The colonists found the land rich and inviting, but the Native American tribes in the region didn't want to give up their hunting grounds. Each side fought fiercely over the land. During the Revolution, the British encouraged Native Americans to fight against the Kentuckians. Nine years after the Revolution ended, Kentucky became the 15th state.
The Civil War
When the Civil War began, Kentucky's citizens had mixed feelings. Slave owners wanted to secede (leave the Union) because they were angry about Lincoln's election. However, many others felt tied to the North. The legislature declared neutrality (didn't take sides), but the citizens didn't listen. Thousands joined the Confederate army, and about twice as many joined the Union army. Families were sometimes split by the issue, with brothers facing each other on the battlefield. In fact, the opposing presidencies were both run by men who were born in Kentucky. Abraham Lincoln led the Union and Jefferson Davis headed the Confederacy.
Cultural Note
Kentucky has long been known for its lightning-swift horses. The first thoroughbred horses were brought to the region in the 17th century. Almost a century later, a young American named Lewis Clark was touring Europe when an idea struck him. He would build a track in Kentucky to race the fine thoroughbreds raised there. When he returned, he raised some money and obtained 80 acres of land from his uncles, the Churchills. In 1875, the track, which came to be known as Churchill Downs, officially opened. The Kentucky Derby has been held in Louisville every year since then. Kentucky horses have won about three-fourths of all Derbys!
To find out more about CultureGrams, connect to our website today.
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TOP 3 WEBSITES
Each month, our SKS WebSelect™ and Discoverer WebFind™ editorial teams scour the Internet for top-quality sites that help teachers teach and students learn. Although no Internet site can supplant a quality research database, these vetted resources offer unique resources that are sure to be of interest.
Global Warming Facts & Our Future
Organization: Koshland Science Museum
"Is the climate warming? Are we the cause? These questions are at the heart of today's public debate about global warming. Conflicting opinions are everywhere, but now is your chance to cut through the noise and discover the facts." (KOSHLAND SCIENCE MUSEUM) Learn about the greenhouse effect, carbon cycle, and aspects of climate change through articles and online activities.
Kids Web Japan
Organization: Japan Center for Intercultural Communications
If you want to learn about Japan, this site is a great place to begin. The site covers many basic facts and features of Japanese life, from life in Japan to Japanese technology and economy. Learn about Japanese kids, culture, and language.
Riddle Interactive
Organization: ReadWriteThink
"The Riddle Interactive outlines the characteristics of riddle poems and provides direct instruction on the prewriting and drafting process for writing original riddle poems." (READWRITETHINK) Write your own riddles!
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FREE TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES
Our ProQuest product trainers are standing by to help you get the most out of your subscription--and learn more about our other digital learning resources! We offer a wide variety of online training sessions each month.
Plus, all attendees can easily obtain a Certificate of Attendance (right) for any of our online courses! The certificate documents the course name, amount of class time, date, and verifies attendance. You can use the certificate to document attendance in the class and submit it along with the additional documentation your school district requires to award you with continuing education credits.
Be sure to tell your trainer that you would like to receive a certificate via email at the start of each class. They’ll be glad to help!
You can download three ready-to-print versions of forthcoming training dates and times in PDF format.
Our training sessions cover after-school hours within several time zones. Best of all, there's no cost to participate. All you need is a computer with Internet access, a phone, and one hour.
Register for a SIRS or additional ProQuest solution course today!
You may also sign up for a timely enewsletter to receive training dates each month via email as soon as they're available.
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CALL FOR USER TESTIMONIALS
What features of your SIRS subscription do you and your students find the most useful? Have you recently used or are you planning to use SIRS as part of an assignment or student research project? How do you and other curriculum leaders in your institution use your ProQuest educational resources?
Share your experiences with peers working in schools across the country and around the world--through an upcoming Product News Bulletin! We're waiting to hear from you. Please send your ideas and stories to: tim.mclain@il.proquest.com
If we choose your submission, we'll contact you for additional information and permission to use your story in a future issue.
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FORWARD TO A COLLEAGUE + EMAIL SERVICE INFORMATION
Increase the usage of your digital learning resources! Our forward to a friend service makes it easy to instantly send this product bulletin--and all the great ideas and information it contains--to others in your subscribing institution with a click of your mouse.
Also, be sure to encourage them to sign up for our SIRS, CultureGrams, ProQuest, ProQuest Historical Newspapers, eLibrary, eLibrary Curriculum Edition, and additional enewsletters as appropriate.
To change your email address, sign up for additional newsletter titles, or modify your subscription settings, click here.
Cordially,
Your ProQuest CSA Team
Your SIRS license agreement gives us permission to send you email about product upgrades, special offers, and new services. If you'd like to discontinue receiving these messages, you may unsubscribe. If you have any questions or are having difficulty, please send email to Tim McLain. Thanks for your interest in SIRS and ProQuest CSA!
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