09/05/97

Got Questions?

When you've searched, seeked and pleaded for answers to your homework questions to no avail, who ya gonna call? Homework busters, that's who! Here's the scoop on real people (teachers, librarians, experts, authors, and fellow students) who will answer your most perplexing homework questions via email and Web bulletin boards.

Homework Help

Homework Help is a bulletin board system divided into five folders: English and Literature, Social Studies and Civics, Math, Science and Elementary School Topics (for K-6 questions that don't fit into the other categories). Within each folder are discussions started by kids. Teachers check in daily to answer questions, and guide the student discussions. For example, in the Science folder, you'll find an astronomy discussion with sixteen messages. Navigation is very straight forward, as you point and click your way through the discussions. A form for submitting your own questions is at the bottom of each discussion page.

Kids Connect: Ask KC

At Ask KC there are no previous questions and answers to peruse, just a form to submit your own query. Questions will be answered via email by a school librarian in a couple of days. Most likely, the volunteer will point you to Internet resources where you can find your own answer. What else would expect from a librarian? Ask KC reminds us that our own school librarians are terrific (and live) resources that should not be overlooked.

My Virtual Reference Desk: Ask an Expert

Wouldn't it be wonderful if your class could submit questions to a real astronomer while studying the solar system? Or how about an entomologist to answer your bug questions? This site contains the Web addresses of fifty experts who are willing to answer questions. It is not as extensive a list as the Pitsco site (see below), but it is a good starting point.

Pitsco's Ask an Expert

Ask an Expert is like a Yellow Page directory of experts, listing more than three hundred volunteers able to answer questions from artificial intelligence to zoo keeping. Click your way through twelve categories to find your subject matter (for example, under Science and Technology I found seven astronomers). To avoid bothering the volunteers with repeat questions, you should first review each expert's Web page, where you just might find the answer you are looking for. If not, you can email your question directly to the expert. Bookmark this site.

Wonder Korner

Wonder Korner calls itself "The Question/Answer Place for Curious Kids." It is a great site to browse, because all the previous questions are listed, with answers in the form of a link to a Web site. "When did Cincinnati become a city?" "How do Amish people live?" Find out by following the links that author Bonnie Bruno has uncovered. Still need an answer to your burning question? A submission form can be found at the bottom of the page.

The following links are either new discoveries or sites that didn't make it into my newspaper column because of space constraints. Enjoy!

Find Out Ask Us Page

Freezone Homework Help

Homework Helper

Please send questions or comments to feldman@surfnetkids.com.