Team+2,+ref+log+3a

//Newslink//. (n.d.). Retrieved from []
 * Team 2, Reference log 3a: Indexes & abstracts ||  ||<   ||
 * Reviewed by Sarah ||

Newslink is a newspaper guide that covers almost 20,000 newspapers and magazines. It is currently in an updating status, which means that all the links are being researched and replaced with current links. Because of this, many of the links do not work. I first went to the “top sites” links which has an alphabetical listing of all the media listed. However, I clicked through the alphabet and none of the information came up. Clicking next on the newspapers, I found these: [|Daily], [|Business], [|Alternative], [|Specialty], [|Association], and [|Inactive]. Each links to at least one newspaper, the daily link being the smallest as USA Today is the only link there. Also included are links to magazines, of which there appears to be plenty, radio and television links, again plenty, other resources such as the Associated Press and journalism organizations among many others. By far, the most interesting aspect of this site is the NewsCircles. These are set up by patrons, based on whatever parts of the news in which they are the most interested. One can then name their NewsCircle and it is posted as a blog-type website. The top 100 are listed [|here]. Students can create their own news circles based on information they are studying, interests or many other topics. While not the most visually appealing website, the information included here is vast. I would imagine that after their complete update is finished, the site will have an amazing capacity for the study of current events.

Grades: Middle school up. Some links are for older students, and while the elementary grade levels could use this, the links could prove to be questionable.

Subject(s): Science, Social Studies Rating: 8
 * ||< //Sabrina's// comment : My first opinion of the site, like Sarah, is that it is not visually appealing, but it does seem to be a resourceful site. I encountered some of the broken links, but I think once everything is updated, this will be a great site for students because they can search newspapers, tv stateions, etc. I also think the newscircle idea will be great, if the links to that aren't blocked by the strict filters placed on the school computers.

//Lisa's// comment : I agree with all of Sarah's observations about this website guide to newspapers. The site is not visually appealing at all, but with the links to many, many various news websites, it does not matter. The news sites have their own graphics and photos, so visual learners will find what they need st individual sites. I had better luck with most of my choices of links working, so perhaps the update is going well? Great resource tool for current events, thank you for the review. || [|www.newspapers.com] || What I loved most about this source is that it is very straightforward in its purpose (to find newspapers, and very easy to use. There are at least five different search options including a search by a USA Map, International search, publication type search, etc. Whether users know where a newspaper is published or the actual name of the publication, they will have no problem finding newspapers to meet their needs. I like the fact that everything about the page is focused on searching. There is no busy text or cutesy images to simply decorate or take up space. There are several other features to this site: Job Finder which allows users to find links to employment opportunities and resume help, Sudokus, Crossword puzzles, daily cartoons, financial news, and college newspapers. Obviously this site would mainly be used by people searching for newspapers, but the newspaper could be used for a multitude of different purposes. This site could be considered a stepping stone but a very useful and necessary one. Grade Level: 7-12 Subject area: History, Journalism, English/Reading Quality Ranking: 9 ||  ||<  //Sarah's// comment : This is a nice site, and I agree, very straightforward. It would be great for current event references and general newspaper searching. Sabrina is right, the lack of cutesy in this site is part of what makes it so nice. Searching is easy, and students would be able to quickly find what they need.
 * Reviewed by //Sabrina// || Newspapers.com. (2007). Retrieved March 9, 2010, from

//Lisa's// comment : I really like this newspaper guide, it is much more user friendly than the one I reviewed. Again, advertisements were abundant, which I do not like, but still a good resource site. It is very useful for studying current events in social sciences courses. I agree with the middle school to high school levels. I think the USA map search is fantastic, and the straight-forward lists of papers by state so one can find town papers easily: I especially liked that most newspapers had a brief description beside its link. || //Searchasaurus powered by EBSCOhost//. (2010). Retrieved March 7, 2010, from []
 * Reviewed by //Lisa// ||

I accessed //Searchasaurus// through the middle school version of Galileo from the Cobb Virtual Library. The layout looks to be aimed at elementary students with the use of icons, colorful backgrounds, and large print. The categories on the homepage include: Animals; Arts & Music; Health; History; People & Places; Science & Math; Sports; Stories. Once the user chooses one of these icons, he or she is brought to a new screen with more options relevant to that category. From the homepage, the user can narrow down results by choosing a Lexile reading level range.

From the homepage, the user can also type in a term in the search box. There is also a list above the search box allowing the user to select dictionary, encyclopedia, pictures, and visual search. For each option selected, one must enter a search term for results. Each result contains information about the topic either in full-text form (dictionary and encyclopedia options) or abstract form with the option to see a full-text article (Pictures or visual search). However, for this purpose, the concentration will be on the main //Searchsaurus// screen.

I really like the icon –based searches that continue beyond the homepage. I chose animals, a favorite topic amongst the primary grades. The resulting choices are divided into ten categories, primarily family types such as reptiles and birds. I selected “Birds” but was brought to an overwhelming choice of over 16,000 articles. If the student can narrow down the search with a specific term such as “sparrow,” the results are much less daunting. The articles can be sorted by relevance or by publication date in descending order. Once the user clicks on an article, the user is presented with bibliographic information and an abstract, or summary of the article, with the option to view full-text. The user can choose to view the article in HTML full-text, print the article, or email the article. What is really useful with these abstracts is the option to select other subject terms to bring up similar articles. Additional information provided in the abstracts includes Lexile level and word count of the full article.

Although the layout looks to be for primary grades, the resulting articles one finds are for older students. Middle school students may feel childish when they first see the homepage for //Searchasaurus// but will feel quite grown up with the variety and advanced reading levels of the results of their searches. Students will find this abstract useful when performing research, and teachers should encourage the use of this type of index in order to help students learn a more advanced way of obtaining results for research, especially since the results represent a variety of resource formats, such as encyclopedia entries and periodical articles. Grades: //6-8// Subject(s): //ALL// Rating: 9 Searchasauraus is a favorite in elementary school. I agree with Lisa that this site looks juvenile, but the reading level tends to be for older students. It is an easy site to search and one that is used often in upper elementary school. I have seen many a student enjoy using the site but struggle with the reading needed to be able to feel accomplished. This is a site I had forgotten was available. Thanks for the reminder! //Sabrina's// comment : I do agree that the appearance of this resource is somewhat misleading. It definitely feels geared towards younger students, but as you point out, Melissa, the actual results from searches tend to be of a higher reading level- similar to results found in most Ebsco searches. It does seem very easy to use because of the visual icons, but media specialists and/or teachers do need to be aware of the actual level of the material. Over all, good source! ||
 * ||< //Sarah's// comment :