Tag: first2know

Now that school is back in session, it is a great time to reintroduce Tutor.com. What is Tutor.com? It is an online tutoring service that connects library members with qualified tutors for on-demand tutoring in over 200 subjects. Tutor.com has resources for all ages and supports learners from kindergarten through college and into adulthood. Library members can connect with tutors between the hours of 2:00 PM and 9:00 PM daily and make use of other Tutor.com features 24/7.

How can Dauphin County Library System members find and use Tutor.com? It’s listed alphabetically on our research page, so it is easy to find. Just visit www.dcls.org/research and scroll down.

Tutor.com is completely free to use by all members. When you are outside of one of our locations, just enter your library card number and PIN to access.

Who can benefit from using Tutor.com? Well students, of course! Parents, too! Parents, if you find yourself struggling to remember basic concepts (like reducing fractions or dividing decimals) or want some tips for helping your children with their homework, you can find those in Tutor.com’s SkillsCenter Resource Library. Job seekers, you can benefit from using Tutor.com also. Its career resources include mock interview prep, résumé and cover letter review, professional development tips, and more. Adults, do you need help with financial literacy and U.S. Citizenship? You can get help with even subjects like these using Tutor.com’s SkillsCenter resources. Just select Adult Services under “Topic” and select the subject wanted. As you can see, Tutor.com has something to offer everyone!

Whether you’re new to Tutor.com or it’s been a while since you’ve explored its features, now is a great time to check it out and see all it has to offer. Tutor.com received a major upgrade earlier this year and now sports a refreshed new look featuring more color, easier navigation, and added features, including one that allows you to easily schedule sessions and request specific tutors. Additionally, its updated tabs make dropping off work for review, finding test preparation and self-study resources, and locating college and career tools much simpler than before.

Many of Tutor.com’s tools and resources are available to members, no account required. Members can connect with tutors (between 2:00 pm and 9:00 pm), use their career services resources, view videos, prepare for the AP^®, or get information about the FAFSA^® all without logging in.

Library members wishing to take practice quizzes, prepare for exams like the SAT^®/ACT^®, or use Tutor.com’s SkillsCenter will need to create a free account with Tutor.com and log in.

Tutor.com, through its website, provides a selection of free educational webinars and videos on topics like college readiness, study skills, and student success that even non-library members can access online, no library card or account needed. Its “College Readiness and Management” webinars are ones that I find to be incredibly helpful. To see a full list of their free-to-view webinars, visit https://www.tutor.com/webinars.

So, whether you need help with a single question, want tips on study skills from an online video, or require ongoing assistance, The Library and Tutor.com can provide that to you at no cost.

Ann Marie Megoulas
Information Services Supervisor

Fall is here, and so are new Library programs for every age! Here’s a quick peek at what we have to offer kids and families as the weather cools off:

Storytimes & Early Learning

preschooler (or all three!) thinking, learning, and building the foundation of their literacy development. We’ve even started doing a few story-times at offsite locations. Don’t miss:

• Stories at Sunset – East Shore Area Library (evening storytime)
• Mathamagical Storytime – Northern Dauphin Library
• Once Upon a Rainbow – 1st Saturdays at the LGBT Center of Central PA
• Stories at Midtown – 2nd Saturdays at Midtown Scholar Bookstore

After-School Adventures

• Owls are a Hoot! – Learn about owls & dissect pellets
• Engineering Simple Bots – Build & test mini-robots
• PA Geology Rocks! – Explore Pennsylvania’s rocks & minerals with DCNR

Check the Fall Compass or DCLS.org/Events for dates and locations.

Teens Take Over

Fresh looks & creative outlets await:

• Teen Fall Clothing Swap – Saturday, Sept. 20 (12–4 PM) at East Shore Area Library
• Coloring for Teens – Chill afternoons with color & creativity
• Zines for Teens – Create & share your own mini-magazines

There’s More!

This is just a sample of all the fun waiting for you at The Library this fall. Visit the DCLS Events page or stop by your local Library to explore the full calendar of programs and events.

By: Ann Marie Megoulas

¿Estudiarás español? Est-ce que tu vas étudier le français? Transparent Language Online can help. What is Transparent Language Online? It is an immersive, interactive language learning database available to all Pennsylvania residents through POWER Library, Pennsylvania’s portal to online library resources.

With Transparent Language Online, you can learn any of the more than 120 languages offered. Included are multiple dialects of commonly taught languages like Spanish and French, English for speakers of more than 30 languages, and American Sign Language.

Transparent Language Online’s language learning experience is fun, engaging, and effective. Each course offers a leaning path consisting of lessons, activities, and practice with listening, speaking, reading, and writing or typing. A strategic review system keeps track of your progress and provides motivation to keep you moving forward. Want to keep a record of that progress? Just sign up for a free account. To do so, you will need to supply a username and password, enter your email address, and agree to Transparent Language Online’s Terms of Use.

Not willing to create a free account? No problem! You can still use Transparent Language Online by selecting the “Continue as a guest” option. As a guest, you’ll have access to all the same lessons and courses. What you won’t have is the ability to keep a record of what you accomplished during your guest session once it ends. Exploring Transparent Language Online as a guest, however, can be a fantastic way to become familiar with what this resource offers. It allows you to explore without the hassle of remembering login details. If, as a guest, you later decide that you want to keep a record of your progress, Transparent Languages Online gives you the opportunity to create an account before you end your guest session.

So, where can you find Transparent Language Online? One place is on The Library’s research webpage: https://www.dcls.org/research/. Just visit this page and scroll down through the alphabetic list of databases until you find it.

Another place to look for the Transparent Language Online database is on POWER Library’s e-resources webpage or on POWER Teens. Start by visiting the POWER Library website. Click on the “List all e-resources” link under “Find,” or on the “POWER Teens” link at the very top of the homepage and browse through their list of e-resources. Below is an example of POWER Library’s Transparent Language Online link:

(Note: For easy access, links to the POWER Library e-resources page and for POWER Teens are available on The Library’s Research webpage.)

Whichever way you find it, within minutes you will have what you need to begin learning a new language anywhere, any time that you choose. Transparent Language Online is available for use on nearly all internet-connected computers, phones, or tablets, and mobile apps that provide offline and hands-free modes are also available.

Transparent Language Online offers lessons to meet the needs of learners of all ages and abilities, even children. For young users, Transparent Language Online offers six KidSpeak courses featuring English, Chinese (Mandarin), French, Spanish (Castilian), Italian, and German. Each of these courses use animations and more than 40 interactive activities, puzzles, and songs to teach kids foreign-language words and phrases. They are perfect for kids age 6 and above. An easy way for kids to find the KidSpeak courses is to use the POWER Kids link on The Library’s Research webpage. The POWER Kids portal displays colorful links for each of the featured KidSpeak courses there.

So, whether you are young or old, a beginner or an experienced language learner, give Transparent Language Online a try. It is free and easy to use. Buon apprendimento.