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CalendarDatabases can be accessed from twenty eight workstations in the library. Printing cost is $.10 for black and white and $.25 for color, or you may download the results.
Academic Search Premier
This database is a leading resource for scholarly research. It supports high-level research in the key areas of academic study by providing journals, periodicals, reports, books and more.
ALLDATA
The leading provider of original equipment manufacturer (OEM) auto repair information for the professional automotive service industry. ALLDATA can only be accessed from the Prairie Trails Public Library.
America's News (Newsbank)
Explore and stay informed on local and national topics, people and events in areas such as business, health, education, jobs and careers, political and social issues and more. Features a wide variety of credible, vetted news sources spanning the U.S., including Daily Southtown. Also available remotely 24/7 on any device.
Ancestry
Ancestry Library Edition provides access to billions of historical documents, millions of historical photos, plus local narratives, oral histories, indexes and other resources in over 30,000 databases.
Ancestry Library Edition is available for in-library use only.
AR Book Finder
Students, teachers, parents, and librarians can search using criteria such as ATOS book level, interest level, title, author, fiction/non-fiction, subject, award-winners and more. There is no easier way to find books that are both appropriate and interesting to individual students. With more than 35,000 AR quizzes, students will never run out of books to read. You can also take myON quizzes on Accelerated Reader
ArticleFirst / FirstSearch
Full text articles and citations on a variety of subjects: business, current events, economics, education, environmental issues, humanities, law, politics, science, social science, sports, and technology.
ASL-LEX 2.0
ASL-LEX is a database of lexical and phonological properties of American Sign Language signs. It was first released in 2016 with nearly 1,000 signs. ASL-LEX was updated in Fall 2020 with greatly expanded information and an increased size of 2,723 signs.
ASL-LEX is available as a searchable web interface and as raw data in spreadsheet form. This website hosts the web visualization and provides instructions for how to use and download the database.
AtoZdatabases
AtoZdatabases is the premier reference and marketing database marketed to Library, Academic, and Government institutions throughout the U.S. This simple, user-friendly, web-based solution provides details on businesses and households within the U.S.
Auto Repair Source
Powered by the automotive experts at MOTOR, Auto Repair Source provides the most accurate, authoritative and up-to-date service and repair information for thousands of domestic and imported vehicles. All content comes from the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) and includes step-by-step repair information, diagrams, maintenance schedules, parts and labor estimates, service bulletins and recalls.
Biblioboard
BiblioLabs, LLC is a hybrid software-media company dedicated to keeping libraries at the forefront of their communities in an increasingly digital age. BiblioLabs offers patrons unlimited, multi-user access through BiblioBoard, the PatronsFirst® digital library, and provides tools that empower libraries to thrive as influential centers for creative community engagement.
Black Life in America (NewsBank)
The experience and impact of African Americans as recorded by the news media.
BookFlix®
Scholastic BookFlix is an online literacy resource that pairs classic video storybooks from Weston Woods with related nonfiction eBooks from Scholastic to build a love of reading and learning. The engaging way to link fact and fiction, BookFlix reinforces early reading skills and introduces children to a world of knowledge and exploration.
Business Source Premier
The industry's most widely used business research database, Business Source Premier (BSI) features full text and searchable cited references for top journals covering a variety of business disciplines. BSI provides an easy way to both browse and search for country economic data, company profiles, industry information and market research.
Chicago Sun-Times Collection (NewsBank)
Explore Chicago history through local news, events and people with the Chicago Sun-Times Collection. Search current and archived issues with full-color newspaper pages, full-text articles and content only published online. Available remotely 24/7 on any device.
Chicago Tribune
ProQuest 1849 - present: Each issue of every newspaper is indexed thoroughly, so your patrons have access to not only top news stories, but also detailed information on the arts, sports, business, and popular culture. Even such items as editorials, editorial cartoons, obituaries, and letters to the editor from well-known people are indexed. The complete text of recent articles is provided in the ASCII format. – Publisher.
ProQuest Historical Newspapers: Chicago Tribune (1849-1987): This historical newspaper provides genealogists, researchers and scholars with online, easily searchable first-hand accounts and unparalleled coverage of the politics, society and events of the time.
For access off-site from the library, click here.
ChiltonLibrary.com
ChiltonLibrary.com represents the most authoritative automotive repair information available to car owners. There are thousands of year, make and model combinations covering the most popular vehicles of the past 30 years, plus additional coverage of specialty models. ChiltonLibrary.com gives you the confidence to service or repair virtually any system on your vehicle. ChiltonLibrary.com can only be accessed from the Prairie Trails Public Library.
Consumer Health Complete
Consumer Health Complete (CHC) is the single most comprehensive resource for consumer-oriented health content. It is designed to support patients' information needs and foster an overall understanding of health-related topics. CHC provides content covering all areas of health and wellness from mainstream medicine to the many perspectives of complementary, holistic and integrated medicine. This full-text database covers topics such as aging, cancer, diabetes, drugs and alcohol, fitness, nutrition and dietetics, children's health, men and women's health, etc. CHC offers a unique search interface designed to call attention to the full-text content available from many important source-types, and provide an intuitive means for searching this specific information. Information provided in this database should not be viewed as a means for self-diagnosis or a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
ConsumerReports.org
Consumer Reports is the world's largest nonprofit product-testing organization and has been helping subscribers find better, safer products for 80+ years. Consumer Reports accepts no outside advertising and no free test samples, and employs shoppers and experts to buy and test the products reviewed.
In addition to product ratings and reviews, users will find in-depth advice, tips and trends written by Consumer Reports experts. Frequently updated articles, blogs and video content allow consumers to peruse the latest consumer news — whether they’re looking to learn more about budget-friendly home improvement plans, understanding the benefits and risks of retirement options or searching for the latest recalls of baby products.
Creativebug
Creativebug.com has thousands of award-winning art & craft video classes taught by recognized design experts and artists.
Daily Southtown (NewsBank)
Explore Chicago area suburban history through local news, events and people with the Daily Southtown Collection. Search current and archived issues with full-color newspaper pages, full-text articles and content only published online. Available remotely 24/7 on any device.
Demographics
Access census data dating back to 1970. Find population, age, housing, economic, and geographic data. FREE
Digital Library of Illinois by Overdrive
Digital Library of Illinois by Overdrive is a Web-based service that allows library patrons to check out and download eAudiobooks, eBooks, and eVideos any time of the day or night from the comfort of their own home. Digital Library of Illinois allows users to download to a personal computer, as well as enjoy digital content on a wide array of devices including MP3 players, CDs, Smartphones, and PDAs iPod®, iPhone™, and the iPod Touch. After the checkout period, title(s) will be automatically returned to the collection.
EBSCO Database Group
This allows you to select and search from EBSCO databases. The following products are available as part of our EBSCO Database Group:
Hobbies and Crafts Reference Center
Points of View Reference Center
Home Improvement Reference Center
Legal Information Reference Center
Small Engine Repair Reference Center
Small Business Reference Center
Click here to view EBSCO database usage tutorials.
Education Research Complete
Education Research Complete is a robust database for education students, professionals and policymakers. Providing hundreds of full-text education journals, it covers all levels of education, from early childhood to higher education, plus multilingual education, health education and testing.
Gale Database Group
Allows you to select and search from Gale databases. The following products are available as part of our Gale Database Group: ChiltonLibrary.com, Gale eBooks, Gale Literary Index, Gale Literature Criticism, and Gale Literature - Something About the Author.
Heritage Quest
HeritageQuest® Online is a comprehensive treasury of American genealogical sources—rich in unique primary sources, local and family histories, convenient research guides, interactive census maps, and more.
Hispanic Life in America / La Vida Hispana en América (NewsBank)
The experience and impact of Hispanic Americans as recorded by the news media, 1704 to today.
La experiencia e impacto de los Hispano Américanos como ha sido escrita por los medios de comunicación del 1704 al presente.
History Reference Center
History Reference Center is a full-text history reference database designed for secondary schools, public libraries, junior/community colleges, and undergraduate research. The database features reference books, encyclopedias, non-fiction books, and history periodicals as well as thousands of historical documents, biographies of historical figures, photos, maps, and over 80 hours of historical video.
Hobbies & Crafts Reference Center
This database offers detailed "how-to" instructions and creative ideas to meet the interests of virtually every hobby enthusiast. Full text is provided from leading hobby and craft magazines.
Home Improvement Reference Center
Through a collection of comprehensive full-text content, this database provides users with detailed, user-friendly “how-to” information covering a variety of home improvement and repair projects.
hoopla
hoopla is a groundbreaking digital media service that allows you to borrow movies, music, audiobooks, ebooks, comics and TV shows to enjoy on your computer, tablet, or phone – and even your TV! With no waiting, titles can be streamed immediately, or downloaded to phones or tablets for offline enjoyment later. hoopla has hundreds of thousands of titles to choose from, with more being added daily. All you need to do is create a profile using your library card information.
Illinois Catalog / FirstSearch
Illinois Catalog includes the location and status of books and other materials in libraries within the state of Illinois.
Online Computer Library Center's (OCLC) FirstSearch is an immense collection of electronic databases on subject matters relating to the arts, social and physical sciences, humanities, business, medicine, and general reference. This Web-based online reference service provides access to over 80 databases and more than six million full-text articles that the Secretary of State and State Librarian, Jesse White and the Illinois State Library provide to Illinois libraries and their patrons free of charge.
Illinois Legal Aid Online
Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO) is a free online resource designed to simplify the law so that people can seek justice and resolve their problems.
Inkie
Inkie.org is a suite of resources - available to everyone in Illinois at no charge - that support local authors with online creation and publishing tools and allow readers to access locally-produced content.
International Children's Digital Library
The mission of the International Children's Digital Library Foundation (ICDL Foundation) is to support the world's children in becoming effective members of the global community - who exhibit tolerance and respect for diverse cultures, languages and ideas -- by making the best in children's literature available online free of charge. The Foundation pursues its vision by building a digital library of outstanding children's books from around the world and supporting communities of children and adults in exploring and using this literature through innovative technology designed in close partnership with children for children. This link provides free access to high-quality digital books from around the world. Browse by age, genre, book length, character types, or even the color of a book's cover.
LearningExpress Library
LearningExpress Library features nearly 1,000 online tutorials, practice tests, and eBooks to help patrons of all ages. It offers job search and workplace skills improvement, skill building in reading, writing, math, and basic science, career certification and licensure exam prep, college and grad school entrance test prep, GED® test prep, and more.
Adult Learning Center - This center offers busy adults the resources to improve their basic skills in reading, writing, and math, prepare for the GED® test, or become a U.S. citizen.
Career Center - Are you preparing for a professional exam? Are you curious about a particular occupation or looking to improve your workplace skills? Choose the Career Center and begin your path to a bright future.
College Prep Center -Getting into college is an important step to building a strong future. First, you must do well on your college admission tests and write a personal essay that highlights your special talents. Use this center to get the resources you need to achieve your college preparation goals.
Computer Skills -Video courses are the fastest and easiest way to learn how to use a computer. Use the materials in this center to learn the basics of computers, from searching the Internet to using popular programs for word processing, creating spreadsheets and databases, implementing design, and more.
High School Equivalency Center - Earning a high school equivalency credential can open the door to better income, a more fulfilling job, and a college education. If you are preparing for the GED® test, HiSET® or TASC™ exams, our practice tests, interactive tutorials, and eBooks will help you reach your goal
Job & Career Accelerator™ -Whether you're looking to find a new job in your current field or pursue a career in an exciting new industry, Job & Career Accelerator™ has the powerful tools and expert guidance to help you through every step of the process.
School Center - The resources here can help students in elementary, middle, and high school prepare for important tests, get extra help with assignments, and boost their skills in important subjects.
Legal Information Reference Center
Legal Information Reference Center is an online database designed to assist the general public in legal matters of all kinds. It includes exclusive full text for many top consumer legal reference books, as well as thousands of legal forms.
Literary Reference Center
Literary Reference Center is a rich full-text literary database covering all genres and timeframes. It includes thousands of synopses, critical essays, book reviews, literary journals and author biographies, plus full-text classic novels, short stories and poems.
Literature Criticism Online Gale™
The 10 award-winning Gale series that comprise Literature Criticism Online represent a range of modern and historical views on authors and their works across regions, eras and genres. Imagine centuries of analysis — the scholarly and popular commentary from broadsheets, pamphlets, encyclopedias, books and periodicals — delivered in an easy format that matches the exact look and feel of the print originals. Gale literary references reach back 20 to 30 years and taken together as print, they could easily fill 230 feet of shelf space! Now, hundreds of volumes are digitized and ready to read 24/7 online.
Only Literature Criticism Online brings together the most acclaimed literary series from Gale: Contemporary Literary Criticism, Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism, Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism, Shakespearean Criticism, Literature Criticism from 1400-1800, Classical and Medieval Literature Criticism, Poetry Criticism, Short Story Criticism, Drama Criticism, and Children's Literature Review.
LOTE Online for Kids
LOTE Online for Kids is a new database of digital books in World Languages, created for children to enjoy books and learn language through storytelling. The platform provides over 1200+ digital books in 40+ languages together with English translations. New books and languages are released each month, so check back in frequently!
MasterFILE Premier
Designed specifically for public libraries, this database provides full-text magazines, reference books and primary source documents. It also includes an extensive image collection containing photos, maps and flags.
Medline Plus
MedlinePlus is an online information service produced by the United States National Library of Medicine. The service provides curated consumer health information in English and Spanish with select content in additional languages.
Middle Search Plus
Designed for middle school libraries, Middle Search Plus is a full-text database providing popular middle school magazines and reference books. Covering subjects such as history, current events, science and sports, it also includes thousands of biographies and primary source documents, plus over a million photos, maps and flags.
MyHeritage
MyHeritage is the leading global discovery platform for exploring family history and gaining valuable health insights.
NewsBank Chicago Area Newspapers/Access World News
With unmatched U.S. news content from local, regional, and national sources, and more, this resource is the largest of its kind. Its diverse source types include printed and online newspapers, blogs, journals, newswires, broadcast transcripts and videos. Explore a specific issue or event through the detailed coverage provided by local reporting or compare a wide variety of viewpoints from across the country on topics such as politics, business, health, sports, cultural activities and people.
NoveList K-8 Plus
NoveList K-8 Plus is a database about books specifically for younger readers. It helps kids find books that are just right for their reading level and interests. Parents, teachers, and librarians can also find tools to teach with books and engage young readers.
NoveList Plus
NoveListPlus is an advisory tool that helps readers find new books based on books they have read or topics in which they are interested. Provides access more than 29,000 full textbook reviews or annotations.
Points of View Reference Center
Points of View Reference Center™ (PoV) is a full-text database that offers students with a series of comprehensive essays with point and counterpoint arguments related to current issues in the news. Points of View is designed to assist researchers in understanding the full scope of controversial subjects. High school and undergraduate students can use Points of View as a guide to debate, developing arguments, writing position papers, and for development of critical thinking skills. Each Points of View Essay includes a series of questions and additional material to generate further thought. Also included are thousands of supporting articles from the world's top political and societal publications.
Primary Search
Designed for elementary school libraries, Primary Search is a full-text database providing popular children’s magazines, easy-to-read encyclopedic entries and a vast image collection. Students can learn about a variety of topics, including endangered species, famous musicians, fitness and space exploration.
Pronunciator
The world’s most comprehensive language-learning service. 164 languages to learn, 144 languages to learn them in. Create language courses that match your personal interests, occupation, learning goals, skill level, age, schedule and motivation. 1,300,000+ instructional phrases, 23,472 language permutations, 628 calendar years of audio lessons, content for all ages and skill levels. Designed by language teachers over 11 years.
PTPLD patrons also have access to ProCitizen, a citizenship prep course. Links to ProCitizen can be found below.
Read It!
Read It! is designed for middle and high school students and adults who have a basic foundation in English grammar and reading but need adapted reading material for a variety of subjects. It offers resources to help build background knowledge, conduct research and improve study skills.
Record Information Services
Record Information Services, Inc. has provided a wide variety of marketing-oriented data for the Chicagoland area for over 17 years. www.public-record.com is designed for individual professionals and businesses to access public record data for use in direct mail and telemarketing campaigns. Their targeted marketing leads allow businesses to focus their advertising dollars on customers who are most likely to buy their specific products and services.
To access: Click the "Record Information Services" link above. Once you're redirected to the website, click "log in" in the upper right hand corner. Then click "Library Patron Access", and you're in!
For access off-site from the library, click here.
Recursos en español
Este centro ofrece a los adultos que están muy ocupados los recursos para mejorar sus habilidades básicas, ganar sus credenciales de GED® o ser ciudadano estadounidense.
Science Reference Center
Designed to meet every student researcher's needs, Science Reference Center contains full text for hundreds of science magazines, journals, encyclopedias, reference books and a vast collection of images. These include, but are not limited to, biology, geology, astronomy, chemistry, environmental science, the history of science (including biographies), and physics.
ScienceFlix®
Offering more than 70 complete units of study with over 20,000 science-related assets in a variety of media, ScienceFlix® provides students with a better understanding of science concepts and ideas through hands-on projects, videos, multiple text types, interactive features and more.
Small Business Reference Center (EBSCOhost)
Small Business Reference Center offers exclusive full text for many top consumer small business reference books, as well as tools to address many small business topics. It includes business videos, a help and advice section and details on how to create business plans.
Small Engine Repair Reference Center
This reference database provides detailed yet user-friendly repair guides for all manner of small engines. All of the content is organized in a powerful, easy-to-use manner so that users can quickly find the information they need.
Something about the Author
Gale Literature: Something About the Author provides comprehensive online access to all volumes ever printed in Gale's long-standing Something About the Author series, which examines the lives and works of authors and illustrators for children and young adults and is the preeminent source on authors and literature for young people. The collection includes both the main series and Something About the Author Autobiography Series, totaling more than 217 volumes, 12,000 entries, and nearly 17,000 images - all delivered in an easy-to-use online format that matches the exact look and feel of the print originals.
SWAN
SWAN an online card catalog for the Prairie Trails Public Library District and 70+ member libraries. The catalog lists more than one million titles of books, periodicals, cassettes, videos, CDs, DVDs and other library materials. SWAN will allow patrons to view their current library record, renew items, and place holds.
ThomasNet
ThomasNet is the most comprehensive online resource for finding companies and products manufactured in North America.
TumbleBookLibrary
TumbleBook Library is an online collection of TumbleBooks – animated, talking picture books which teach children the joy of reading in a format they’ll love. TumbleBooks are created by adding animation, sound, music and narration to existing picture books in order to produce an electronic picture book which you can read, or have read to you.
TumbleMath
TumbleMath is the most comprehensive collection of math picture books you will find anywhere. All in the amazing TumbleBook format complete with animation and narration. The books are accompanied by supplementary materials such as lesson plans and quizzes.
United States Census Data
Data.census.gov is the new platform to access data and digital content from the U.S. Census Bureau. The Census Bureau is the leading source of quality data about the nation's people and economy.
Universal Class
Universal Class offers online courses in exercise and fitness, entrepreneurship, arts and music, home and garden care, cooking, computers and technology, health and medicine, homeschooling, job assistance, law and legal, parenting and family, pet and animal care, plus 100's more. These are non-credit courses and are provided for your personal enrichment. These courses are not intended to be a substitute for any state, government, licensing, or educational requirements.
These e-resources are for Prairie Trails Public Library District cardholders only. All e-resources are available for use within the library.
Weiss Financial Ratings Series Online
Weiss Financial Ratings Series Online includes important financial literacy tools from Weiss Ratings and Grey House Publishing.
With Weiss Financial Ratings, you can:
- Check the values and ratings of stocks, mutual funds and exchange traded funds
- Check ratings of banks, credit unions and insurance companies
- Compare Medicare Supplement Insurance Plans
- Download financial literacy & planning eBooks (PDF files to keep forever)
World Book
This site includes easy-to-read articles and engaging multimedia, games, science projects, interactive tools, activities, Biography Center, links to world newspapers, 21st century research guides, and much more.
World Book Activity Corner
Contains thousands of cross-curricular, low-cost, fun yet educational projects for the classroom, after school programs, and library programing. Activity Corner enables users to browse, save, and create activities for all ages.
World Book Early World of Learning
Emergent learners will engage in an interactive and playful environment that encourages reading comprehension and mastery of phonetic skills. Early World of Learning is full of stories, videos, songs, and games to provide a firm foundation for 21st-century learning and digital citizenship.
WorldCat Discovery
WorldCat Discvory lets you search the collections of libraries in your community and thousands more around the world. You can search for popular books, music CDs and videos—all of the physical items you're used to getting from libraries. You can also discover many new kinds of digital content, such as downloadable audiobooks. You may also find article citations with links to their full text; authoritative research materials, such as documents and photos of local or historic significance; and digital versions of rare items that aren't available to the public. Because WorldCat libraries serve diverse communities in dozens of countries, resources are available in many languages.
You can also search WorldCat using FirstSearch.
WorldCat FirstSearch
FirstSearch lets you search the collections of libraries in your community and thousands more around the world via WorldCat. You can search for popular books, music CDs and videos—all of the physical items you're used to getting from libraries. You can also discover many new kinds of digital content, such as downloadable audiobooks. You may also find article citations with links to their full text; authoritative research materials, such as documents and photos of local or historic significance; and digital versions of rare items that aren't available to the public. Because WorldCat libraries serve diverse communities in dozens of countries, resources are available in many languages.
You can also search WorldCat using WorldCat Discovery.
