December 6, 2016

Gale has partnered with Visual Learning Systems, an educational science publisher whose mission is to provide high quality, visual-based content that instructs, challenges, and inspires young learners. Approximately 750 brief videos have been added to Research In Context, the Gale database specifically designed for middle schoolers.

The videos cover topics frequently studied in middle school courses, including biomes, electromagnetism, force, fossils, genetics, geological time, geographical features, motion, natural resources, photosynthesis, properties of matter, tectonic plates, and weight and mass.

For details and screenshots, see the related Gale blog posting. FYI, the blog posting mentions Science In Context. That database is not part of the statewide contract with Gale. 

Recall that last month Gale added 600 science videos to Kids InfoBits, a database for K-5. Older elementary students might benefit from also using Research In Context, especially if they are not finding what they need in Kids InfoBits.

While all of the videos are in English, most include transcripts, and those can be translated into many languages using Gale’s Translate feature. Once you translate a Gale article, you can use the Listen feature to have it read aloud in the translated language.

For a quick way to find all of the videos, go to Advanced Search, type in Visual Learning Systems (no quotes) in the textbox, leave Keyword selected in the box next to it, click on Videos in the Content Type box, and click on Search.         

This bookmark leads to all of the new videos in Research In Context.

This bookmark leads to all of the new videos in Kids InfoBits. [Earlier, including the name of the company in the advanced search only brought up about 340 of the 600 videos, but Gale fixed that issue.]

If only a portion of the videos appear when you click on the bookmark, click on one of the Sort options to get the “see more” option to appear at the bottom.  

Questions? Please ask.

Thanks,
Jen

Jennifer Maurer
School Library Consultant
Oregon State Library