Team+2,+ref+log+5a

Bois, D. (2010). //Distinguished women of past and present//. Retrieved April 3, 2010 from []
 * Team 2, Reference log 5a: Biographical sources ||  ||<   ||
 * Reviewed by Sarah ||

On the front page, the author states that her goal in starting this site was to acknowledge as many women as possible who have contributed to the culture of women. She plans for this site to grow and continues to add to it. I went first to the most popular section of the site and took at look at the information included on Anne Frank. Her information is quite short, but her life was too. Other biographies include more information or less, depending on what we know about that person, but all seem to include links to other websites that will give the reader more information for research. Put together by name or by subject, this site offers much information. The subject listing is a nice addition because it allows for students to see many names under one heading. Instead of thinking of Mary Cassatt just as a painter, she can be joined by Frida Kahlo and Georgia O’Keeffe and many others of whom I have never heard. Her premise behind starting it comes from reading about a woman of whom she had never heard; she then decided to get a list of women that we should all know of and I do believe she has succeeded in this endeavor. This is a great site that would be useful in many situations; to enhance a biographical unit, to show female students what other women are capable of or to use in conjunction with other famous figures would all work well. Some of the writing many not be easy to read for younger readers, but the links included lead to easier reading.

Grades: 3rd grade and up Subject(s): Any Rating: //9//
 * ||< //Sabrina's// comment : I also agree that this is a good reference source. It is very well organized and not too busy or overwhelming. I like the fact that there are multiple search options (most popular, women musicians, name, etc.) and I really love the fact that it seems to be kept very up-to-date. I was expecting it to be a site full of "classic" women and a site that was created and not maintained, but I noticed it even included Susan Boyle! I will definitely add this to my list of must-remember sites!

//Lisa's// comment : I really enjoyed this site and other women and female students will appreciate it as well. The designed of the site was very smart to provide links to wonderful biographical sites rather than rewrite them herself. The only thing I find unfortunate is her inclusion of the Wikipedia site in every biography I checked which looked foolish in lists of other sound, trusted websites. Great site though, thanks! || Mann, L. (2010). Dead people server. Retrieved April 8, 2010, from __ [] __  ||   || Using the word “interesting” to describe this site is an understatement! The purpose in itself is a very interesting idea, but add to that the light hearted, almost comical tone and the quality of information provided and you have an entertaining and somewhat useful site. As hinted towards by the title, this site is a reference source for “the dead”. “The Dead People Server is a database of interesting celebrities who are long dead or newly dead. They may be “retired” or spaced. DPS tells you who has Rung Down the Curtain and Joined the Choir Invisible, and Who’s Just Resting.” The home page is rather text heavy and a little “busy” but the search options and links are obvious. There is a sidebar that lists people who have recently died (within the past month or so), a basic search option to enter a name and search, or the user can Browse by Years, I found Farrah Fawcett by browsing the year 2009. Her information included cause of death, birth and death dates, claim to fame (ex. Charlie’s Angels, subject of a huge poster craze in the 70s, many made-for-tv-movies), and major relationships (marriage etc.) There are also links to IBDB, IMDb, Obituary, FindAGrave. IBDB is the Internet Broadway Database, and it gives basically the same information that we’ve already seen. IMDb is the Internet Movie Database, and this link is where the most information can be found. It contains images, mini-biography, awards, mews desk (articles), Filmography, etc. It even gives fun facts like STARmeter and trivia (for Farrah, it listed her measurements!!). This link would be the most useful for students because it offers a lot of very specific information. The Obituary link connects users to BBC News where they can read the actual prose version of an obituary. The FindAGrave link, which to me is unnecessary and a little obtrusive, provides actual photos of the tombstone and gravesite and gives users the opportunity to send “digital flowers.” It’s hard to determine just how useful this site can be. Unfortunately, the creator of this site does point out that the “interesting celebrities” included are based on __her__ sole definition of interesting. There is also a disclaimer stating that “information is provided by a variety of sources, not all of them reliable, and accuracy is not guaranteed. Obviously, this site wouldn’t be the first choice for a credible source, but on the other hand, it gives users an easy way to search for information on people who have “passed on” and it’s a great link to other sites with very specific information on that person. Since it is a free site, I would recommend this to other media specialists and teachers. It isn’t inappropriate and most information can be verified, so it’s at least a great tool to jumpstart someone’s research.
 * Reviewed by //Sabrina//

Grade Level: 6-12 Subject Area: History Quality Ranking: 7 ||  ||<  //Sarah's// comment : This site is total fun. It completely appealed to my dark(er) side and that extra large sarcastic vein I have running though my body. Like Sabrina said, it's usefulness is somewhat difficult to judge, but many students would find the information fun to read and to learn.

//Lisa's// comment : I agree with Sarah and Sabrina. The website is entertaining, but I don't know how useful it is. It kind of reminds me of Wikipedia, the site we all use for quick searches (come on, you know you do!), but no one completely relies on for substantiated research. Fun, definitely. Interesting for students, sure. But I would want to verify everything I find here, just because it doesn't seem "bookish" enough to me. || A&E television networks. (2010). //The biography channel: Bios search//. Retrieved April 5, 2010, from []
 * Reviewed by //Lisa// ||

I have always enjoyed watching “Biography” on A&E but was unaware there was a website for the show complete with full video episodes and written biographies for 25,000 people. While I was browsing the website, I came across a 5-part biography for Edgar Allan Poe, and before I knew it, I had spent a great deal of time watching it rather than doing work. It is, for me, an engrossing website, and I appreciate that one can access written biographies as well, published from Encyclopaedia Britannica.

The search page on this website is a lot less overwhelming than the main page which is why I chose to list it for the URL address. There are a couple of advertisements at the top of the page, but the main part of the page has search boxes and other options to browse for people. There is also a Born on This Day box highlighting the celebrity birthday for today as well as lists for the top 10 searches for celebrity biographies. Additionally, there are featured biographies and even games to play, such as “Dead or not?”

Students will enjoy this website and should refer to it for biographical studies and research. Most of the biographies seem to be for Americans, but there are other famous listings from other parts of the world. Not every listing has a video to match (I tried Nicola Tesla), but there is still written information for the individual. Teachers will like the site too, and they may even access it for videos of mini-bios or full biographies for units of study. Because of the adult reading level of the Encyclopaedia Britannica entries, I would recommend this website for upper middle school to high school, although any interested student in upper elementary would find the video biographies useful as well.

Grades: //7-12 (5-12 if video available for biography)// Subject(s): ALL Rating: // 10 //
 * ||< //Sarah's// comment : I reviewed this site too and was also unaware of it, even though I am a big fan of Biography. It's usefulness is quite good; students could find much information here about people they are researching. The video portion adds to the quality of the site.

//Sabrina's// comment : This is a really good site! Now that I have a Smart Board, I am always looking for videos or video clips that I can show straight from my computer. I, too, had not heard of this site, but I think it will be very useful, and like you said, for all subjects. It is easy to navigate, and the videos seemed easy to load and weren't delayed by commercials. ||