First of all, I have loved World Book since I was in grade school. In my mind, it's the best "brand name" for accurate information.

LESSON 1A - WORLD BOOK SCHOOL EDITION

The first thing I noticed is how bright and cheerful the pages are in World Book Kids, which makes you want to "dig in." I researched "skunk," mainly because we have a few in our area. I found out that they are active at night and sleep during the day--usually--we had one that apparently had its nights and days mixed up. Anyway, the bad-smelling liquid is called "musk," and before a skunk sprays, it stamps its front feet and hisses or growls. Another really neat feature in the Kids edition is all of the activities you can access (there's a square to click on at the top that says "Activities"). There are a LOT of useful ideas for both home and library. There are many times that I would use the Kids version when I just needed some very basic information. Lastly, the "Read Aloud" feature is outstanding. Technology keeps amazing me.

The Student edition is a very appropriate advancement from the Kids edition. It expands with additional information useful for older children. I learned that skunks spray up to 12 feet--I really thought it was farther than that. I also used the link for Magazine Articles and found that to be a good tool for additional info.

In the World Book Advanced, I researched Jamaica. It was very easy to navigate. I would definitely use Advanced to check out any possible vacation spot. I was even able to play some Jamaican popular music. Another nice feature of Advanced is the area entitled "In the Headlines."

World Book Discover's "Read Aloud" feature is wonderful for patrons who are not good readers of English. Also, I was amazed at the number of languages the text can be translated to.

LESSON 1b - WORLD BOOK PUBLIC LIBRARY EDITION

The Online Info Finder has a wealth of topics on the front page. I researched "skunk" again and found much more information than in World Book Online for Kids. I also noticed that Online Info Finder has an area for Current Events, which apparently is updated each day.

I think that patrons planning vacations would learn a lot from the World Book Online Reference Center. I again researched Jamaica, and you find solid, accurate information. There is also access to magazine articles about the country. It would be so much easier to research a country on this site instead of doing a general search on the internet.

LESSON 1c - WORLD BOOK FOREIGN LANGUAGE EDITION

I know very few Spanish words, but I was totally impressed with the Spanish edition. I tried the "Read Aloud," and again I was amazed. I check out animals simply going by the pictures. I think that our Spanish-speaking population would be amazed with this Foreign Language Edition, as well as anyone learning Spanish--even if you just wanted to know enough of the language to visit there.