LearningExpress Library is making upgrades to improve your user experience. As a result, all LearningExpress websites will be unavailable beginning 3:00 PM Saturday, November 5th through 7:00 AM, Monday, November 7th.
We thank you for your understanding and patience. Please Contact Us if you have any questions.
The BadgerLink team was busy this summer. Read more about what we were up to, and be sure to click the links to read the full Badger Bulletin articles:
Changes to EBSCO’s Whitelist for Firewalls & Proxy Servers
EBSCO made some changes on their end that may have an effect on how schools and organizations access BadgerLink resources.
New Content in Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers
The Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers added a collection of historical content.
New Resource: Wisconsin Historical Society Family History Records
The Wisconsin Historical Society is now offering access to Wisconsin family history records through Ancestry, with authentication provided by BadgerLink.
New content in LearningExpress Library
New resources are available for continuing education, test preparation, and more.
New & Coming Soon: MLA 8 Citations
MLA 8 was released in April, and BadgerLink vendors are adjusting their citation features.
Back to School with Google Classroom in EBSCO and LitFinder
Google Classroom functionality is now available in EBSCO and LitFinder.
Virtual drop-in Office Hours are back for the new school year. Check the article for the schedule and directions for joining.
New & Improved BadgerLink Lesson Plans
See new lesson plans and updates to the existing ones in this Badger Bulletin article.
Some of BadgerLink’s authenticated resource URLs have changed. Make sure yours are up to date!
BadgerLink held a series of Health Classes for those looking to use BadgerLink for health research or preparing for health-related careers.
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BadgerLink's authentication provider, AutoGraphics, will push out updates on September 27 between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. During the updates, there may be downtime to BadgerLink's resources and Super Search, but the BadgerLink website and any related training materials will still be available.
Please contact us if you have any questions!
The 8th edition of the MLA (Modern Language Association) Handbook was published in late spring of this year, and BadgerLink's vendors have been working to update their citation tools to provide MLA 8 citations.
See below for a list of vendors and their timelines for MLA 8 citation availability:
Britannica Digital Learning: Currently available!
EBSCO: Currently available!
LitFinder: Currently available!
TeachingBooks.net: Currently available!
As always, please contact the BadgerLink team with any questions!
Fall is just around the corner. Time for apple picking, raking leaves, and helping students get back on track! BadgerLink plays a big role in students’ lives by providing reliable online information that isn’t available through free search engines. Educators and librarians are welcome to link to the BadgerLink website or directly to any of our resources on your website!
To better serve your users, it’s important to have the correct BadgerLink URLs. We use special authenticated URLs to our resources, to ensure that only Wisconsin residents are using our resources. If you aren’t using the correct link, you and your students won’t have access!
If you already link to BadgerLink resources on your website, you should know that some URLs have changed. But don’t worry, the updated URLs are easy to find! In the blue menu bar at the top of the BadgerLink website, click on Get the Word Out!. Then select, BadgerLink on your Website. On the BadgerLink on Your Website page, you can find a Google sheet for all of our current direct links. You can go ahead and bookmark this Google sheet so you can always access the most current URLs.
Contact Us if you have any questions!
BadgerLink's authentication provider, AutoGraphics, will push out updates on September 15 between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. During the updates, there may be downtime to BadgerLink's resources and Super Search, but the BadgerLink website and any related training materials will still be available.
Please contact us if you have any questions!
Google Classroom is a free web-based platform that allows educators to integrate their Google Apps for Education account with other Google Apps services, including Google Docs, Gmail, and Google Calendar. Classroom provides educators with an easy way to create classes, distribute assignments, communicate, and stay organized.
The BadgerLink team, in cooperation with the content vendors, have put together some tip sheets to help educators use this valuable resource:
Are you already using BadgerLink resources with Google Classroom? Do you have other ideas for using BadgerLink in the classroom? Share your success stories with us!
Join the BadgerLink librarians on the last Tuesday of each month at 10am for a 30 minute, agenda-less, virtual meeting. Stop in and ask any questions you have about BadgerLink, and see what others are curious about! These sessions are free and open to all.
Mark your calendars!
Tuesday, August 30th at 10am
Tuesday, September 27th at 10am
Tuesday, October 25th at 10am
Tuesday, November 29th at 10am
There will be no office hours in December!
Ask questions like...
How can I make virtual "clippings" of newspaper articles in Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers?
Where can I find information on auto repair?
How can I save my favorite articles to view later?
Interested? Here's how to join!
Ask a Librarian if you have any questions!
One of the most common feedback BadgerLink staff get from educators is that it takes too much prep time to begin using BadgerLink in the classroom. In response, the BadgerLink team created lesson plans that allow educators to easily incorporate BadgerLink into their curriculum. The lesson plans cite national and state standards for a variety of subject areas and use ideas and concepts that teachers already teach.
Presented in a Google Docs format, you can now access 6 BadgerLink Lesson Plans from the BadgerLink website.
Back in 2014, the BadgerLink team presented 4 lesson plans at the WEMTA conference. In this new release, we decided to nix a lesson plan that was no longer relevant and update the existing plans.
In this lesson plan, students will use BadgerLink to analyze and respond to a novel.
In this lesson plan, students will use BadgerLink to complete a the BadgerLink Scavenger Hunt.
In this lesson plan students compare Wikipedia to Britannica School (available through BadgerLink).
Evaluating Website Google Slides
We wanted educators to know that BadgerLink seamlessly can be incorporated into every subject, not just the English Language Arts classroom.
In this lesson plan, students gather information about a controversial topic, develop a stance on the topic, and then write a persuasive communication (letter, email, etc).
In this lesson plan, students will use practice tests and ebooks to learn content and test taking skills for the ACT test by using LearningExpress Library College Preparation Center, available through BadgerLink.
ACT Practice Test Improvement Spreadsheet
In this lesson plan, students are contributing columnists to the Time Travel Tribune.
All of our supplemental materials (lesson plans, research guide, Google Slides) were created because an educator suggested it. Please let us know how we can help you!
Do you have a lesson plan that incorporates BadgerLink? Do you have an idea for using BadgerLink in the classroom? Share your successes with us!
