Tool #7: Go-to Websites for Difficult Topics

To get more information on a topic, or an additional lesson to help you understand a tough concept, check one or more Go-To Websites. You may already know KhanAcademy.org, which is a must. This website has literally thousands of short teaching videos on every math and science topic imaginable. Type the title of the chapter or chapter sub-heading you're working on in math or science into the search field. Salman Khan teaches using a digital blackboard, and he's very clear and natural-sounding (he doesn't read from a script). You can take notes from his mini-lessons, which are usually 5 to 10 minutes in length, and pause the video or rewind as necessary.

There are plenty of other popular e-resources, such as SparkNotes (a website with more than 500 study guides about Shakespeare and English literature, plus history, math, biology and more) or NASA for Students (the educational website by the American space agency). If you feel like you want to try different websites, take a look here to find a list of 200 free Educational Resources categorized by subject (Free Audiobooks, Art, Geography, History, Maths, Science...) 

Sometimes you will also find yourself searching for ideas on any essay you have to write. If that is the case, TED Talks are an excellent source of inspiration. With almost 3000 short talks (and counting!) on multiple topics, it is very likely that you will find ideas for creative essays. As an example, you can watch the video below, which is a TED Talk delivered by Salman Khan, the creator of Khan Academy.  

Last but not least, keep in mind that not all online resources are equally reliable. Some teachers, for instance, would recommend Wikipedia, but others will not since anyone can edit wiki pages. The Internet is the most amazing tool ever created to search for some information, but sometimes it is possible to find false information or, more frequently, information that is not objective enough.

What is your experience with online resources? Let us know with a comment about your favorite Go-To Websites and how you usually take advantage of them!