Join Britannica’s Summer Reading Challenge for Elementary Readers! Kids who read over the summer have an easier time launching back into fall learning. We’ve outlined 5 simple steps toward a successful summer reading program to help students stay engaged, have fun, and continue to develop their reading skills. Step 1:… Read More

Britannica Celebrates Star Wars Day with K-12 Science Activities May the 4th be with you!  Don’t be surprised if you hear this pun several times this week, because Thursday, May 4, is Star Wars Day. Here at Britannica, we are channeling our inner Jedi and focusing on science and science… Read More

Earth Day activities allow students to travel the world through geography exploration, track weather patterns, learn about different biomes and their climates, and discover ways that everyone can take better care of our planet. Grades Pre-K-2 Activities 1. Be a Biome! Activity: Explore the major biomes of the world and… Read More

Why are metaphors considered to be the basic language of poetry? Which poet was asked by a U.S. president to write a poem for his inauguration and was later awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by another president? Why was Langston Hughes an important poet during the Harlem Renaissance? All… Read More

Download our latest white paper, Weaving Literature into Social Studies: Pairing Literary Works with Nonfiction Content.  The white paper includes: 1. How to identify and choose a literary work 2. Reading comprehension strategies and skills    3. Three specific examples for using literary works (a realistic fiction picture book, a… Read More

Britannica ImageQuest is changing the way that students interact with the world and with history. Now, with nearly 3.1 million rights-cleared images from 62 leading collections available in eight languages, ImageQuest is setting the bar for image searching. 1. Make History Come Alive. Discover civil rights movements, archaeological finds, and… Read More

The third part of our activity series, exploring women’s movements through primary source ImageQuest photographs, is for high level students. It focuses on the influence of the civil rights movement on the women’s liberation movement and how they intersected. Of all the forces for change happening in the United States… Read More

The second part of our activity series, exploring women’s movements through primary source ImageQuest photographs, is for middle level students. It focuses on women in the workforce and feminism after enfranchisement. With the economic depression of the 1930s, women’s right to work and earn money was challenged. Women workers, especially the… Read More

The first part of our activity series, exploring women’s movements through primary source ImageQuest photographs, is for elementary level students. It focuses on women’s suffrage at the turn of the 20th century. By 1910 the term feminism had arrived in the United States. Feminists wanted to change women’s roles at… Read More

To celebrate Women’s History Month, we’re taking an in-depth look at primary source photographs within Britannica ImageQuest. We’ve gathered images from women’s movements throughout U.S. history and paired them with supportive content, activities, and questions to help students analyze, evaluate, and draw their own conclusions about significant moments on the… Read More

In honor of National Women’s History Month, we’re sharing our top ten women’s history e-books that feature fierce females. From amazing women in the STEM fields to the story of Malala Yousafzai to the amazing accomplishments of Venus and Serena Williams…we have titles for all ages for your March reading… Read More

Women’s History Month Activities for Your K-12 Students The month of March is a time to reflect on, celebrate, and recognize women who have made great strides in the world. The honorary observance of National Women’s History Month in March was declared in 1987 by the U.S. Congress, and we are… Read More

Annotation is a skill that allows readers to interact and connect with text. It elevates readers from being third-party observers to becoming part of the story, which supports a deeper understanding and improved retention. Instead of simply reading the text, readers who annotate learn to question, analyze, and think critically… Read More

Did you know that Presidents’ Day is actually a holiday that honors George Washington and Abraham Lincoln? Or that its official name is “Washington’s Birthday”? Many people, however, consider the holiday a celebration of the birthdays and lives of all the U.S. presidents, and “Presidents’ Day” has become the name most people use.… Read More

The Meet Britannica blog series takes you behind the scenes to Britannica’s colleagues who have made significant impacts on how we create and deliver products for all ages. Our last Meet Britannica blog featured Kenny Chmielewski, Britannica’s in-house cartographer, who develops maps and charts for Britannica’s products. This month, we’re introducing… Read More

Strengthen Middle and High School Students’ Literacy Skills with This Valentine’s Day Annotation Strategy. What’s not to love about a new annotation strategy? A purposeful annotation will answer the first question students often ask about a text: Why are we reading this? It will also inspire meaningful engagement with a text… Read More

What’s not to love about Valentine’s Day annotation activities? When students read and take notes with a purpose, they have a dialogue with a text, track their thinking as they read, and engage  more meaningfully with their reading. The activities below have students focus on just one type of note,… Read More

While Black History Month began in 1976, its inspiration dates back to 1926 when Carter G. Woodson and members of his Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (now the Association for the Study of African American Life and History) organized an African American History Week. They selected… Read More

Britannica LaunchPacks: Social Studies, Britannica Digital Learning’s newest digital classroom resource, has rolled out some major updates as teachers jump into the second half of the school year. Along with giving teachers the ability to customize content and differentiate instruction, LaunchPacks can now be annotated by teachers and students, and… Read More

Free Activities, Primary Sources, and Fun Facts for Your Inauguration Day Classroom! This Friday, January 20, marks the 2017 inauguration for the 45th President. We’ve put together ten helpful must-haves for your inauguration day classroom or library. Student Activities 1. Compare two inaugural speeches. Choose two inaugural addresses from past… Read More

Britannica Launches an Expert Educator Community, Britannica PIE! At Britannica, one of our resolutions for 2017 is to bring together engaged educators to share ideas, feature our community’s work, and build a dynamic collective of Britannica users. We’re calling our new group of education experts “Britannica Partners in Education,” or… Read More

Do your New Year’s resolutions include reading new e-books, diving in to exciting subject areas, or infusing more digital resources into your classrooms and libraries? Britannica’s new e-books have you covered. To celebrate the start of 2017, we’re introducing over 130 new titles across 19 new subject collections. There’s something for… Read More

The holidays are around the corner! We at Britannica want to wish you a relaxing winter break, a joyful holiday season, and a happy New Year. To all of the educators, students, new friends, and old friends…we’re grateful that you are a part of our Britannica family.  To say “thank… Read More

You asked, and we listened! Download your Britannica Symbaloo icons today! As teachers incorporate an ever-expanding repertoire of digital resources into their classroom mix, figuring out ways to organize those resources and disperse them to students has become a challenge. Symbaloo, a free social bookmarking tool, is one way that… Read More

The holidays are rapidly approaching, and we know teachers and parents are looking for gifts that are meaningful AND educational. From a new line of engaging children’s books, to challenging STEM puzzles, to posters and printed canvases, to a huge collection of e-books… this holiday gift guide is a great… Read More

152 years ago today, on November 21st, 1864, President Abraham Lincoln sent the following letter to a Mrs. Bixby of  Boston, Massachusetts, whose five sons were killed in the Civil War: Dear Madam, I have been shown in the files of the War Department a statement of the Adjutant-General of… Read More

Britannica has launched into social studies classrooms full force with Britannica LaunchPacks: Social Studies and Britannica Original Sources. These products empower teachers and engage students, bringing history to life and helping to make lessons relevant and experiential. LaunchPacks: Social Studies saves teachers planning time and makes students’ learning more productive with ready-to-use content… Read More

The Meet Britannica blog series takes you behind the scenes to Britannica’s colleagues who have made significant impacts on how we create and deliver products for all ages. Our last Meet Britannica blog featured Henry Bolzon, our very own head librarian, who has seen library work change dramatically with the… Read More

The word election is derived from the Latin verb legere, meaning “to choose.” On November 8th, people across the United States will exercise their right to cast votes in #Election2016 and choose the 45th president and 48th vice president. Filled with shocking rhetoric and controversy, this election season has been tricky… Read More

In my second year of teaching, I was overjoyed to discover that my new principal would be providing me with a key piece of technology for my classroom—an overhead projector. How things have changed! Technology has rapidly transformed the classroom, something that can be equally exciting and overwhelming. Today, one… Read More

The British Embassy in Cairo, Egypt, recently celebrated the launch of the Egyptian Knowledge Bank (EKB). In a giant step at democratizing information, the EKB is a new portal that provides all Egyptian citizens with universal access to quality research and educational resources. The project is an ambitious online initiative, with participation from some… Read More

Starting this week, Britannica is saluting top-notch principals across the country for National Principals Month (#ThankAPrincipal). The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP), and the American Federation of School Administrators (AFSA) have designated October as National Principals Month to honor principals nationwide for… Read More

Happy #NationalCoffeeDay If you have visited our booth at a conference, met with a Britannica rep, or entered one of our giveaways—you’ve probably received a Britannica Loves Teachers -or- Britannica Loves Librarians mug! But like most, you probably have a ton of mugs. The problem with that is, well, even if you loooooove coffee… Read More

The Meet Britannica blog series takes you behind the scenes to the Britannica colleagues who have made a significant impact on how we create and deliver products for all ages. The inaugural Meet Britannica blog featured Pam Renfrow, our Curriculum Specialist whose unique background as a library media specialist and classroom… Read More

The digital age is here to stay, and more teachers are taking advantage of e-books in their curriculum. Here are some of the advantages of e-books and how teachers are infusing them into lessons to provide a more dynamic learning experience. 1. Universal Access. With e-books, students have access to every… Read More

History tells us not only who we were but helps us to understand who we are today and how we got here. The historian acts as a guide and interpreter, leading the student or reader on carefully chosen routes through the past.  Often the road is well-traveled, with predictable stops… Read More

Britannica ImageQuest is enabling educators and students worldwide to bring projects, classroom activities, presentations, and Web sites to life. Today we are diving into the top 5 ways that ImageQuest can take your programs and projects to the next level! 1. IMAGE VARIETY ImageQuest gives you access to over 3 million rights-cleared… Read More

Educators have told us that they spend too much time searching for engaging, quality resources that they can use immediately in their social studies lessons and that students can use to enhance their learning experience. In response to these needs, we have recently launched Britannica LaunchPacks: Social Studies, a comprehensive online… Read More

Over the past few months, you have had a chance to meet some of the great minds of Britannica: John Rafferty, the Associate Editor for Earth and Life Sciences and Melissa Petruzzello, our Assistant Editor of Plant and Environmental Science. This week’s focus is on our Executive Editor and Chief… Read More

Britannica Moderna was just launched with a new design! This dynamic new platform makes Moderna’s age-appropriate, Spanish language resources easier than ever to use. The fresh and engaging new user interface includes improved search capabilities and a cleaner overall design. With a new search widget, finding specific content is simple and effortless. And as with all… Read More

Last month you met John Rafferty, the Associate Editor for Earth and Life Sciences at Britannica. This week’s focus is on our Assistant Editor of Plant and Environmental Science. Meet Melissa Petruzzello! She has her MS in Plant Biology and Conservation from Northwestern University. She has also studied plant-pollinator interactions in… Read More

We typically think of our public school learners as “digital natives” since they have grown up immersed in various technologies. In my experience, it is rare that students are proficient in using technology to retrieve credible information during research. As educators, we should work to teach these best practices to… Read More

With the American Library Association (ALA) Orlando Annual Conference around the corner, I thought it would be fitting to introduce you to a key member of our team, who’s unique background as a library media specialist and classroom teacher allows her to know the day-to-day struggles and triumphs that educators… Read More

Great question, right? If only there was a magic spell that we could cast on students to ensure that they were being safe, kind, and responsible online (as well as in their real lives!). Since there isn’t, we have to teach students these things, and as the digital world grows,… Read More

As mentioned in our previous blog The Britannica Tradition of Quality, it takes a collection of great minds—including Britannica’s in-house editorial staff and the expertise of curriculum specialists, contributors, designers, and Web developers—to deliver high-quality resources that make teaching and learning easier and more effective. Over the course of the next… Read More

When we talk about wanting to build “good digital citizens,” we’re also talking about the need for students to be information literate—the two go hand in hand! As a result of this connection, information literacy and digital citizenship instruction often intersect. So we asked some of our favorite colleagues: “What… Read More

Once Again You Spoke, We Listened, We Updated. Since the inception of Britannica Academic, we’ve worked closely with universities and academic libraries across the globe to understand their needs. I’m pleased to announce that in response to their feedback and suggestions, we have made major changes to our highly acclaimed… Read More

We all talk about wanting students to be information literate—but what does that mean? “Information literacy” is a great thing to aspire to on behalf of our students—and it’s a lot easier to hope for something that we can really define. Since there are numerous definitions out there, we thought we’d ask… Read More

A new look and new content makes Britannica’s Pathways: Science more engaging than ever! Pathways: Science uses an inquiry-based approach to help middle school students tackle tough science concepts. These are topics that students consistently struggle with like understanding what causes the earth’s seasons or why some objects sink while others… Read More

What do YOU wonder? I have found that asking this simple question promotes inquiry, curiosity, and engagement in my classroom. While the question is simple, the journey to guide students into wonderment is not as simple. Many learners are disengaged with content learning and are therefore sadly empty of wonder.… Read More

We’re delighted to announce a brand new look and feel—and increased access—to our highly acclaimed Britannica’s Original Sources. Until now, this unique and essential resource has only been available to colleges and universities. But as of this month, we are making the site available to the K-12 market as well.… Read More

Rigorous lessons are ones where big things are expected of students. In rigorous lessons we as teachers set the bar high, but we also provide the structure and support students might need to meet and even exceed our expectations. My favorite way to do this is by adding images into… Read More

We are delighted to announce the official launch of our newly designed Britannica Digital Learning website, britannicalearn.com. It has been crafted to provide the very best in digital educational materials that students seek and educators require. Take a look around and let us know what you think! Immediately you will… Read More

Inquiry is a style of teaching and learning in which the process of learning is valued as much, if not more, than the end product. When students learn through inquiry they practice asking questions, thinking critically, and productive collaboration all while deepening content knowledge and learning through experiences that can… Read More

The month of March and its celebration of Women’s History offer educators a variety of opportunities to keep students interested in biography study. This is the second post in our series about using e-books for delving into thought-provoking, page-turning biographies, we highlight some ideas for introducing students to the amazing… Read More

The Value of Inquiry is a process of learning that involves a number of important activities for students, including asking their own questions, investigating multiple sources of information for a purpose, thinking critically to make sense of information they’ve found, and establishing and communicating new understandings and knowledge. When students learn… Read More

Digital Learning Day 2016 is just a week away! DIGITAL LEARNING DAY 2016 (#DLDay) provides an opportunity to share ideas, collaborate with peers, try new digital tools, and celebrate education innovation. This year it’s celebrated on Wednesday, February 17th. How will your school or library participate? If you are looking… Read More

Are your students familiar with this quote which has been attributed to the beloved author Dr. Seuss: “Why Fit In When You Were Born to Stand Out?” Its message—focuses on what makes you unique instead of simply blending in or following others—is a great way to thematically convey the value… Read More

While e-books have become an exciting learning medium for students, they also pose one of the greatest challenges school libraries have experienced in many years. Readers of all ages can access a plethora of content to suit their interests and needs using laptops, smartphones, and tablets—a boon for cultivating motivated… Read More

Does it seem, at times, like people are speaking in a foreign language? If so, it may be an indication that your everyday vocabulary needs a little updating! However, you needn’t worry. The editors at Merriam-Webster have added these 10 words among the 1,700 new entries and 3,200 examples to… Read More

Remember how much fun it was to spend the summer at the playground, find the tallest slide, and then go from the bottom all the way to the top? Sure, it was easier to climb the ladder and slide down like you were supposed to but the kids who craved challenge… Read More

If there’s one thing we care more about than our award-winning, trusted, and relevant resources, it’s listening to our customer’s needs and giving educators the tools necessary to make teaching and learning more effective. You wanted a faster and easier way to quickly expand your research… you got it! Britannica School and Britannica Library… Read More

Our senior vice president, Michael Ross, recently attended an educational summit and visited K-12 schools in Istanbul, the largest city in Turkey. The city has seven hills, requisite for Constantine’s “New Rome,” but Ross didn’t know it at the time of his visit. He refused to rent a car and… Read More

Earth Day is a global annual event. It is estimated that more than a billion people around the world now celebrate Earth Day each year. If you are looking for ways to participate, Britannica Digital Learning has some ideas for students, educators, and library patrons of all ages. Classroom Activities… Read More

Will you be participating in the 2015 National Library Week, which runs April 12–18? We hope so! It’s a great opportunity to bring your community or school together for some fun events that showcase the remarkable evolution of the library. How can you join in the celebration? Here are some… Read More

As I accepted a LinkedIn request from a former colleague, I thought about how important connections are. Essential to networking, connections are also a powerful and positive part of our education world: Students connect the dots to understand a new concept. A teacher connects with his or her class. We… Read More

From science fair talk to the fascination with this winter’s wild weather, February seems to be all about science! For a limited time, we’re inviting schools to collaborate with us by using Pathways: Science at no cost to your school or district. This supplemental online resource provides 100 lessons that… Read More

What are you looking forward to the most at the 2015 American Library Association: Midwinter Meeting in Chicago—hearing about the latest innovations and new technologies, networking, having some fun with colleagues? The excitement for ALA Midwinter is contagious at Britannica Digital Learning! Chicago is our hometown, so we have some great… Read More

We’re often asked… How does an article make its way from concept to publication?  Who actually writes the articles?  Why is Britannica so trusted? This new infographic, The Britannica Tradition of Quality, explains it all through a behind-the-scenes look at our rigorous publishing process. Over the course of more than… Read More

Thanksgiving hasn’t changed much over the years, but the way we can teach it has changed—thanks to technology. If you are looking to try something new in class this month, visit an online resource to find Thanksgiving photos and build some activities around them. Students will develop visual literacy skills… Read More

Oh, yeah? Prove it!” You normally hear children saying that on playgrounds and in backyards. Now, students are hearing that in classrooms across the country as their teachers focus on revised standards for grades K-12. The ELA Common Core and other State Standards are moving students from an emphasis on… Read More

Hopefully you’re refreshed and ready for back to school! Here, we are busy conducting workshops for educators across the country (and across the world!), sharing our services and showing how they relate to today’s most important topics, including standards, project-based learning, assessments, and beyond. We truly feel that we have a… Read More

Make the most of your summer school and summer library programs with these ideas that will ignite curiosity in students, reinvigorate educators for the upcoming school year, and reduce the summer slide. 1. Try A New Approach Summer school is a great opportunity to try something new and see how… Read More

Earth Day is an annual event that raises awareness of the importance of protecting the environment. It is celebrated each year on April 22 in the United States and across much of the world. In some countries, it is celebrated on the day of the spring equinox in the Northern… Read More

In March, we celebrate women—those who inspire, heal, compete, entertain, create, protect, discover, rule, lead, or break barriers. Some might be a household name; others might be relatively unknown. Yet all women have shared the struggle for rights and recognition for many years, a fact that many libraries, schools, and… Read More

Every four years the finest athletes in the world gather in one location to compete against each other and to determine who best exemplifies the Olympic motto—Citius, Altius, Fortius—meaning “faster, higher, stronger.” This gathering, known as the Olympic Games, is the most celebrated sporting festival in the world. The games attract… Read More