Name ____________________________________________________________ Period _________
REFERENCE SOURCES STUDY GUIDE
Print Resources
1. An almanac contains facts from a particular year. Ex. Movies that earn the most money, final scores and statistics from professional and college sports leagues, and data about jobs, taxes, and other statistics for states and countries.
2. An atlas contains many types of maps, from maps of the entire world to maps of cities and towns. Use an atlas to find the following:
· correct spellings of place names
· location of borders and boundaries
· location of bodies of water (oceans, glaciers, rivers, lakes, and so on)
· location of land features (continents, mountain ranges, deserts, plains, and so on)
· lines of latitude and longitude, which divide the Earth into a sort of grid
3. A dictionary contains facts about words including the spelling, meaning, origin, pronunciation, and part of speech.
4. Use an encyclopedia to find general facts about many topics. Entries are arranged in alphabetical order. Because encyclopedias contain so much information, it usually takes many volumes to cover all of the topics. Ex. If you are looking for “motion picture,” look in the “M” book.
5. Periodicals are reference sources that contain information about recent events. They are printed daily, weekly, or monthly.
· Newspapers are usually printed daily or weekly. They contain current news articles, interesting feature stories, opinion pieces by the editors (called editorials), and letters to the editor from community members who have something they want to say to the public. Newspapers are divided into sections based on the types of articles that appear in them.
· Magazines are usually printed weekly or monthly, though some are published four or six times a year, and focus on a particular topic, such as auto racing, celebrities, cooking, or current events.
You can expect news articles, public service information, and feature stories to be factual. Editorials and letters to the editor state opinions and are persuasive.
6. A thesaurus is a book that lists synonyms and antonyms for common words.
7. A table of contents is a directory in the front of a book. It lists each chapter by its title or subject.
8. An index is directory at the end of a book. The index lists specific names and subjects in alphabetical order and the page or pages on which information about them can be found.
9. A glossary is a specialized dictionary. It is usually at the back of a specialized reference book and has words pertaining only to the subjects covered in the book. The words are arranged alphabetically as in a dictionary.
Electronic Resources
10. The Internet is a computer network that provides access to information by using the World Wide Web. Some information may be true and accurate. Other information may be full of errors and opinions presented as facts.
11. CD-ROMs are electronic versions of references such as dictionaries, encyclopedias, or atlases. (computer discs) Some CD-ROMs may also include programs designed to help you learn or practice a skill, like typing or speaking a foreign language. They usually have information that has been well researched by the publisher. CD-ROMs are often more trustworthy than many websites. The facts have been checked.