School is about to start and with it comes something dreaded by students, parents, and caregivers alike: homework. With some helpful, free tools that you can access at home, we can make it a little easier.

Whether your student needs a little extra math practice, needs to research a topic, or your grade schooler is having difficulty finding accurate information for a report, Reed Memorial Library has a database or online tool that will fit their needs. It’s actually difficult to tell you about all of the resources available because there are so many tools. Today, we’ll focus on tools for younger students, although some of them will apply to older students as well.

Where to find it

All of the tools can be accessed from the RML website. If you’re at home, you may be prompted to enter your library card for access to a particular tool, so have it handy. If you’re here in our building, using our internet, you don’t need a library card. Go to reedlibrary.org/games-learning or navigate from the reedlibrary.org main menu to Use the Library / Youth / games & learning tools.

From this page you can select a variety of resources. You may end up using just one, you may use a few, depending on what assignment your child has brought home.

Find what you need quickly

By hovering over an icon, you get a short descriptor of what kind of help a site offers. For example, hover your mouse over the Kiddle icon and a short message pops up: “safe visual search engine for kids.” Starting with this step may help you find the right homework help quicker.

A few with very deep (educational) pockets

INFOhio has what feels like bottomless educational tools, broken into age categories. The information you’ll find ranges from thousands of ebooks to topical videos to illustrated biographies and too much to talk about here.

If you’re using INFOhio at home, you will need to find your school to login. Simply click the “find password” link at the login prompt and type your zip code. Choose your school from the list of Ohio schools in your zip code. Selecting your school will automatically give you the username and password to log in as a student from that school, with no separate account needed. INFOhio can be a deep-dive resource, so starting at the Parents & Families icon may answer a lot of questions to help you navigate and find what you need quickly.

Instead of purchasing a set of encyclopedias (yes, they still print them) or paying to subscribe to a digital encyclopedia, you can use our four World Book subscriptions: Early Learning, Kids, Students, and Timelines, free with your library card. Each has a wealth of information that you can access by searching or navigating through topics. Just use your library card number to log into World Book at home.

Time for Kids provides articles about current world events by grade level, while National Geographic Kids has videos, games, and information about animals and the natural world. Smithsonian has information and learning divided by subjects, similar to the Smithsonian museum divisions.

If your kryptonite is remembering math concepts so that you can help your student with their nightly assignment, IXL might be what you’re both looking for. You can browse by grade level or use the search function to find videos and examples of math problems on a specific topic.

Students may click on any skill to get 10 free questions per day in each subject area. These free practice questions could make all the difference for you and your student. IXL offers help in language arts, science and social studies, too. Some school districts subscribe to IXL, so checking with your district may unlock an unlimited membership for you.

Other free tools include identifying Ohio trees, snakes, and flint artifacts and learning through educational games from ABCYA, Highlights, and more. Some resources will require you to use your library card number, some your school district, and some don’t require any login at all. If you have any difficulty getting access to a resource or finding what you need, please give our friendly youth services staff a call. They’ll walk you through how to find the right tool. They’ll probably have some helpful suggestions for you, too.

As the school year builds, get some free homework help for your student (and yourself) with the tools provided through Reed Memorial Library. You’ll both be more successful and hopefully a little less frustrated with homework this year.