English/Language Arts Resources

NoveList Plus (log in with your Salem Public Library barcode)
This terrific collection of information about fiction and nonfiction books is searchable in a variety of ways, including by author, subject, title, series and genre, as well as by a variety of "appeal factors", including writing style (candid, compelling, dialect-rich, jargon-filled, lyrical, richly detailed, slang-heavy, stylistically complex, etc.), pace (fast or relaxed), and more. Retrieval can be limited by age of reader, Lexile and/or grade level, author's nationality and/or cultural ID, and other criteria.

Gale Virtual Reference Library
*Please stop by the library for the passwords needed to log in to GVRL & other online resources!
This ebook collection features general and content area encyclopedias in the following subject areas:

• arts
• biography
• business
• education
• environment

• history
• law
• literature
• medicine
• multicultural studies

• nation & world
• religion
• science
• social science
• technology

InfoBase eBooks
​*Please stop by the library for the passwords needed to log in to this & other online resources!
This collection of 90 ebooks includes coverage of the following subject:

• literature
• medicine & health

• military & war
• science & technology

• U.S. history

Salem Press
*Please stop by the library for the passwords needed to log in to this & other online resources!
This ebook collection features selected titles, including:

• Critical Insights: Authors
• Critical Insights: Works
• Critical Surveys

​(Other titles in the collection include coverage of history, science and health.)

Library of Congress: Poetry and Literature
There's just too much here to try to capture in a brief annotation. Visit this treasure trove.
(Be sure to check out Aesop's Fables (http://www.read.gov/aesop/001.html)!)

Literature Resource Center
This database features biographies, full-text literary criticism, overviews, reviews, news, primary sources, images and links to audio & video content about more than 150,000 writers in all disciplines, from all time periods and from around the world.

CommonLit
Guided by the belief in "the transformative power of a great text, and a great question", this superb free resource features:

• a terrific collection of hundreds of fiction and nonfiction reading passages, including news articles, poems, short stories and historical documents, searchable by Lexile, grade, theme, genre, literary device and common core standard, for students in grades 5 through 12;
• challenging text-dependent questions; and
• performance tracking in important reading and writing skills.

NEWSELA
This remarkable and growing library features texts in the following content areas and categories: Arts & Culture, Science & Math, Religion & Philosophy, Government & Economics, Geography, World & U.S. History, Primary Sources, Biographies and Famous Speeches. New features include Issue Spotlight, Careers and Myths & Legends, as well as text sets in literature, science and social studies. Engaging news articles in English and Spanish in a variety of student-friendly categories like War & Peace, Money, Kids, Science, Sports and more are also available. Each text is available in five reading levels (each is assigned a Lexile), and features a four-question multiple choice quiz and a writing prompt. 

Biography in Context
This superb resource features a wealth of information about notable individuals from throughout history and all fields of endeavor. Information sources include Gale's vast collection of subject encyclopedias, magazines, journals, primary sources, videos, podcasts and images.

StoryShares
is a "collaborative digital literacy hub" that offers readable, relevant and relatable content for middle and high school students who are reading below grade level. Among the partners/advisors included in this exciting initiative are the National Center for Learning Disabilities, Orca Book Publishers, and the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST). Check out the growing library, including the listening and word lookup features.

Bookshare
offers access to more than 500,000 ebooks to students with a qualifying print disability. The entire collection is also available in braille.

American Literature: Stories and Classic Literature
This free and easy-to-use resource aims to "awaken a life-long passion for literature and learning in your students", and includes a fine collection of novels, short stories, poetry, and children's (age-appropriate reading for students in grades K-5) literature.

Primary Source Sets from the Digital Public Library of America
Each set contains 10-15 primary sources, including letters, posters, oral histories, video clips and more, culled from libraries, archives and museums in the United States, a teaching guide, and links to related sites/resources. One example is the superb collection that supports study of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie.