Writer's Choice Grade 9

Web Resources

Writer's Choice Online provides you with many outside resources.

IMPORTANT NOTE: The Internet sites referenced here are not under the control of Glencoe/McGraw-Hill; therefore Glencoe makes no representation concerning the content of these sites, their ongoing availability, or links their hosts and/or sponsors may choose to add or delete. We encourage teachers to preview the sites before students access them.

COMPOSITION
Creative Writing for Teens
This huge collection of online writing resources covers everything that young writers may need to know. Just click on a topic listed in the left column—such as Writer's Block, Story Development, or Editing/Revising—and you're on your way to better writing.

Paradigm Online Writing Assistant
This interactive writer' guide provides step-by-step instruction for writing different kinds of essays from the informal to the argumentative. The site also includes information on the stages of the writing process. Studying the examples and completing the activities in each stage will certainly help you develop your writing skills.

The Purdue Online Writing Lab
The Online Writing Lab strives to provide you with the resources you need to become a better writer. This site' online handouts are indexed by topic and include spelling, punctuation, sentence construction, parts of speech, and research papers. Scroll down to the Spelling handouts, and try the interactive exercises to learn about spelling rules, noun plurals, and suffixes.

St. Cloud State University Literacy Education Online
Having trouble with a writing assignment? This site is loaded with solutions to common writing problems. Whether you have a question about commas or clarifying ideas, the suggestions offered here will help you feel more confident about your writing skills.

GRAMMAR
Community Learning Network
This English grammar and style "theme page" offers links to a variety of curricular resources and reference materials—from grammar and punctuation help to style guides and reference works. Are you an aspiring journalist or just curious about common errors in writing? Do you need a thesaurus or want to read a classic book online? There seems to be something for everyone in this comprehensive Web site.

Grammar Bytes
Are you looking for an interrupter, a collective noun, an appositive, or a gerund phrase? You'll find them here, along with a study of irregular verbs, four ways to correct comma splices and fused sentences, and a host of other grammar rules, definitions, and explanations. Test your grammar knowledge with fun, interactive exercises!

Guide to Grammar and Writing
This site provides a broad base for the study of grammar, with abundant information to help you craft scintillating sentences, powerful paragraphs, and entertaining essays. You'll also find sentence diagraming instruction and practice and more than 160 interactive quizzes to test your skills and help you hone your use of the English language.

The Writing Center
The Writing Center is designed to help you through the process of writing a research report, from choosing a topic to the final stages of editing and presenting. You'll need a strong foundation in grammar, of course, and this site contains plenty of information on parts of speech, sentence construction, spelling, punctuation, and more.

PUBLICATIONS
Arts & Letters Daily
This site includes an abundance of links to important newspapers, magazines, journals, news services, book reviews, columnists, search engines, utilities, and amusements. Lead- ins to articles of note, new books, essays and opinions—with links to the online source page—are updated daily. This is an invaluable source for keeping up with what is happening in the world of language, literature, the arts, criticism, and culture.

Merlyn' Pen Magazine
Visit this online magazine, written exclusively by teens, to find great essays, poems, and stories. If these young authors inspire you, submit your own work to the editors and receive feedback on your submission.

LITERATURE
Poetry Center
At this site, you can read poetry by both classic and contemporary poets, read essays and advice from the poets themselves, discuss your favorite writers and poems, and share your own writing with other students from all over the world.

University of Virginia' Modern English Collection
This site gives you access to a collection of over 51,000 works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, letters, newspapers, manuscripts, and illustrations from the year 1500 to the present. You can search through the texts by subject area, such as Women Writers and African American or Native American literature.

LIBRARY AND REFERENCE SITES
Bartleby.com
Through this site, you can access a wide variety of novels, plays, poetry, and nonfiction essays. You can also find the ninth edition of Bartlett' Familiar Quotations and other reference books, such as The American Heritage Book of English Usage, Strunk's The Elements of Style, and Oxford Shakespeare.

Britannica.com
This is an invaluable site for internet research. Through this site, you can access the entire Encycloæpdia Britannica, read articles selected from more than seventy of the world' top magazines as well as daily news postings from the Washington Post, and link to thousands of the Web's best sites.

Cornell Theory Center Arts & Social Sciences Gateway
This language arts page provides links to a variety of online reference works, including dictionaries, biographical encyclopedias, thesauri, and Virtual Facts on File. Also included are links to excellent elementary, middle, and high school literature book lists.

The Internet Public Library
With an extensive selection of reference tools, online exhibits, and online texts, this site is a great starting point for any research or writing project. Through this site, you can access newspapers from every state and many countries as well.

Library Spot
Browse the stacks of the world' libraries at this Web site. In addition, you'll find links to school libraries, presidential libraries, and specialized libraries, as well as a nicely stocked Reference Desk.

The New York Times Learning Network
Here you can reflect on the past with daily historical facts, stay current with news summaries, and test your knowledge with current events quizzes.

Refdesk.com
With hundreds of sources of information, this award-winning Web site claims that it' the "single best source for facts on the Net"—and you just may agree. Links to newspapers and magazines from all over the world give research a worldwide perspective. And if you can't find what you're looking for on this page, Refdesk.com provides links to the Top 10 Search Engines.

VOCABULARY SKILLS
The Language Center at Merriam-Webster Online
You'll find more than just word definitions, synonyms, idioms, and related words using this online dictionary and thesaurus. Have some fun while improving your vocabulary, spelling skills, and knowledge of the English language with Word Games, Word of the Day, and transcripts of the daily radio broadcast Word for the Wise.

Vocabulary University
Earn your diploma from the Vocabulary University by playing SAT-type word puzzles. This site aims to blend fun and learning into vocabulary-building exercises. Visit Word City, a "city" of root-word buildings, or travel to the Championship Playoffs for some challenging word puzzles.

STUDY SKILLS
The CalREN Project Study Tips
The CalREN Project Study Tips Web site is loaded with advice on how to make the most of your study time. Here you'll learn ways to conquer procrastination, enhance your listening, and improve your test-taking skills. If you think your study skills could use improvement, this site can help you detect the habits you need to change.

Help With Your Studies
This site can help you develop great study skills, prepare for tests, improve classroom concentration, and improve your memory. If English is your second language, there' even a section of study tips especially for you.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS
International Listening Association
Sponsored by the International Listening Association, the site is dedicated to the study, development, and teaching of listening skills and techniques. Practice your listening skills with exercises and learn ways to identify and improve poor listening habits.

Seven Keys to Listening
This site contains an outline of seven techniques to improve your ability to listen well and wisely; anecdotes and stories reinforce the suggestions.

Speaker' Anxiety
Making a presentation before an audience can be intimidating, but using specific strategies can alleviate the nervousness associated with speaker' anxiety. Go to this Web site to learn more about these techniques, and turn apprehension into confidence.

TECHNOLOGY SKILLS
Interactive Demonstrations of Electronic Research
This interactive Web site hosted by Colorado State University offers tutorials on locating resources on the Internet. Topics include tips for refining searches, evaluating sources, and searching online databases. You'll also find links to selected library catalogs available online.

Learn the Net
This Web site teaches Internet basics in everyday language. From plugging in a modem to designing a Web page, you'll find help on just about every Internet topic. Access resources, articles, and tutorials about the Internet; a helpful Net Glossary is just a click away if you run across an unfamiliar term.

CAREER AND COLLEGE PLANNING
CampusTours
This site allows visitors to take virtual tours of college and university campuses using Live College WebCams. Sites for Students provides links to a number of Web sites and services for students, and at the College Admissions Message Board, you can read others' comments and share your own experiences about college admissions and campus tours. This site also has helpful links to Other College Resources.

The College Board
There' no question about it—the more you know about college board tests, the better prepared you will be to take them. This site' SAT Learning Center allows you to practice for the SAT with real test questions and tutorials. Click on For Students to begin your search for information on the AP, SAT, PSAT/NMSQT, and CLEP exams.

CollegePrep - 101
If you're starting to think about college, be sure to spend some time at this site. It' packed with information on a wide range of topics, including admission standards, financial aid, and the application process. Click on the Standardized Tests link for answers to frequently asked questions about the SAT and ACT tests. The discussion includes information about how to prepare for the tests and what to expect on test day.

Colleges and Universities
Narrow the field of choices for a college or university by reviewing the resources available at this site. Schools are ranked in a variety of orders, including academically by subject, best value, and location. You can also find information on community colleges as well as tips on identifying interests and skills, obtaining financial aid, and finding internships.

The Employment Guide' CareerWeb
This site offers a job database as well as career advice on everything from choosing a career path to writing a résumé, interviewing, and conducting a job search.

Job Corps
Visit this site to learn more about Job Corps, the nation' largest education and job training program for at- risk youth, ages 16 through 24. Find out whether Job Corps' academic programs—sometimes leading to a GED - and vocational training are right for you.

Military Career Guide Online
With the offer of free training and the experience that follows, the United States Military is one post- graduate option to consider. At this Web site, you'lll find descriptions of 152 enlisted and officer occupations and the training, advancement, and educational opportunities that come with each job type. Click on the links to go directly to the home page of each branch of the military.

Student Financial Assistance
At this site, the U.S. Department of Education provides information about how to secure financial aid for college. You may even complete an application online.

Virtual Interviewing Assistant
Learn about strategies for taking part in different types of interviews, read articles about interviewing from a variety of respected publications, and link to a number of job- related Web sites.

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