Welcome to the tundra!
Retrieved from
http://www.worldbookonline.com/pl/forkids/article?id=ar834065

What's not to love about polar bears? They're white, furry, and (appear to be!) lovable. My 4-year-old son is particularly interested in bears right now, so we've been checking out bear books.

I researched polar bears on the South Dakota State Library's World Book Online Public Library Edition. First, I browsed information available on the World Book Online for Kids (grades K-5). Then I checked out the same topic on World Book Online Info Finder (grades 5-9). The first version doesn't include as many details, and it is written in a way that is comprehensible to elementary-age children. The latter version goes into greater detail, and uses bigger words for upper grade students.

Next, I perused the World Book Online Reference Center, which is research tool for high-schoolers and adults. I was amazed at all the information I discovered here. I checked the interactive maps for the Arctic (especially interesting to me right now, as with the current temperatures I feel as if I live on the tundra), where I viewed numerous pictures showing life in the Arctic. But, really, there is no end to the amount of information available on the Reference Center. I discovered a dictionary, an e-books center (where there are hundreds of poems and books available to read and research), primary sources center (with documents such as the Declaration of Independence and Martin Luther King, Jr.'s speech), and a pathfinder to all sorts of information. The Center also has links to current events.

The possibilities are endless for those library patrons who are researching topics.