Welcome to the Student Portal. Here you will find recommended resources divided by grade level for research, homework help, and more. Don’t forget about our downloadable and digital eBooks, audiobooks, magazines, music, and more. View the “Read & Listen” section for links to those services. They’re also available as apps on your mobile device.
Borrow from thousands of ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, and more for free. Explore the collection through catalog guides, subjects, featured titles, and curated lists. Libby is great for users of all ages. Download up to 10 titles at a time.
Tags: Book, eBook, Audiobook, Magazine
Freegal is a completely free and legal way to access a collection of almost 7 million songs. Freegal offers many of today’s top artists, a fantastic retrospective collection, and music from around the world. With your CALS library card, you can join the millions of people around the world getting access to great music from Freegal. Download 5 titles per week and keep what you download for unlimited streaming.
Tags: Music
Borrow audiobooks, eBooks, comics, movies, TV, magazines, or music everywhere you have a screen. hoopla syncs across all your devices, so you can stream titles immediately or whenever you’re in the mood. Most titles can also be downloaded to your phone or tablet. Borrow up to 7 titles per month.
Tags: Book, eBook, Audiobook, Magazine, Comic, Music, Movie, Television
The complete list of over 100,000 Accelerated Reader titles.
Tags: Accelerated Reader, AR Points, Teacher Resources, Elementary, Middle School, Libros en Español
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. Intended for use by PreK to 3rd grade students. Please note: For the best user experience, it is recommended that the latest version of Edge, Safari, Firefox or the Chrome browsers be used. All of these browsers may be downloaded for free.
Tags: Storybooks, Educator Resources, Teacher Resources, Pre-K, Elementary, Preschool
Brainfuse HelpNow provides on demand, anytime, anywhere eLearning for all ages and levels. HelpNow offers personalized homework help in core subjects (math, reading, writing, science and social studies) including SAT preparation. The Adult Learning Center is included in the HelpNow suite. Live help available online every day from 2:00 PM to 11:00 PM Central Time.
HelpNow supports the library’s Count UP math tutoring program but also offers learning assistance in other subjects.
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
Provides access to cultural reports, statistics, and primary source material for countries across the globe, including the United States and Canadian provinces. Includes unique information such as native recipes, interviews, photos and videos. Contains four modules: Kids, Provinces, States and World.
Tags: Teacher Resources, Educator Resources, Cultures, Traditions, World Religions, Governments, Flags
Includes information on many titles popular with students in grades K-8, arranged by instructional unit, theme or topic. Teachers can find appropriate fiction to complement classroom instruction.
Tags: Teacher Resources, Educator Resources, Book Recommendations, Reader’s Advisory, Libros en Español
The complete list of over 100,000 Accelerated Reader titles.
Tags: Accelerated Reader, AR Points, Teacher Resources, Elementary, Middle School, Libros en Español
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. Intended for use by PreK to 3rd grade students. Please note: For the best user experience, it is recommended that the latest version of Edge, Safari, Firefox or the Chrome browsers be used. All of these browsers may be downloaded for free.
Tags: Storybooks, Educator Resources, Teacher Resources, Pre-K, Elementary, Preschool
Brainfuse HelpNow provides on demand, anytime, anywhere eLearning for all ages and levels. HelpNow offers personalized homework help in core subjects (math, reading, writing, science and social studies) including SAT preparation. The Adult Learning Center is included in the HelpNow suite. Live help available online every day from 2:00 PM to 11:00 PM Central Time.
HelpNow supports the library’s Count UP math tutoring program but also offers learning assistance in other subjects.
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
Provides access to cultural reports, statistics, and primary source material for countries across the globe, including the United States and Canadian provinces. Includes unique information such as native recipes, interviews, photos and videos. Contains four modules: Kids, Provinces, States and World.
Tags: Teacher Resources, Educator Resources, Cultures, Traditions, World Religions, Governments, Flags
A free, authoritative source of information about the rich history, geography, and culture of Arkansas. The Encyclopedia contains more than 7,000 entries and 11,000 pieces of media related to Arkansas with new material being added weekly.
Tags: Arkansas History, Arkansas Geography, Central High School, Little Rock Nine, Local History
An interactive database with practice tests and tutorials for many standardized academic and licensing tests, such as the GED, SAT, Nursing, Real Estate, etc. Access: Sign in as new user and create personal account using your library card number as your user name.
Tags: ACT, SAT, Test Preparation, GED, College Admission, Jobs, Employment
Includes information on many titles popular with students in grades K-8, arranged by instructional unit, theme or topic. Teachers can find appropriate fiction to complement classroom instruction.
Tags: Teacher Resources, Educator Resources, Book Recommendations, Reader’s Advisory, Libros en Español
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
General reference database for elementary and middle school learners, researchers, and educators covering curriculum areas and content sets such as reading, language arts, current events, science, social studies, history, health, and technology. SIRS Discoverer provides editorially-selected, indexed, and curated materials from over 2,100 newspapers, magazines, and websites offering guided research for young researchers.
Tags: Educator Resource, Teacher Resource, Middle School, Elementary, General Reference
The complete run of Gale’s Something About the Author reference set, including thousands of illustrated biographical profiles of children’s authors and illustrators.
Tags: Biography, Autobiography, YA Authors, Young Adult Authors, Modern Authors, Contemporary Authors
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
Composed of more than 500 full-text scholarly journals and popular science magazines covering research and instruction in earth, life, physical, medical and applied sciences; and technology, engineering, and math.
Tags: Earth Sciences, Life Sciences, Technology, Physics, Mathematics, Astonomy, Chemistry, Biology
New and expanded. Access World News Research Collection. Now featuring a wider variety of news including USA Today, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Pine Bluff Commercial, Times Record (Fort Smith) and many others from around the world. Look through the A-Z Source List or use the Map Search to find news from specific regions. Explore the Suggested Topics for trending events, upcoming holidays, famous people, social issues and more.
The complete list of over 100,000 Accelerated Reader titles.
Tags: Accelerated Reader, AR Points, Teacher Resources, Elementary, Middle School, Libros en Español
Combines all formats of the newspaper including full-text, online-only articles and page images into one simple search.
NOTE: There is a 30-day embargo on remote access of the image edition of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Tags: Local News, Sports, Current Events, Classifieds, Local Business
Brainfuse HelpNow provides on demand, anytime, anywhere eLearning for all ages and levels. HelpNow offers personalized homework help in core subjects (math, reading, writing, science and social studies) including SAT preparation. The Adult Learning Center is included in the HelpNow suite. Live help available online every day from 2:00 PM to 11:00 PM Central Time.
HelpNow supports the library’s Count UP math tutoring program but also offers learning assistance in other subjects.
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
Provides access to cultural reports, statistics, and primary source material for countries across the globe, including the United States and Canadian provinces. Includes unique information such as native recipes, interviews, photos and videos. Contains four modules: Kids, Provinces, States and World.
Tags: Teacher Resources, Educator Resources, Cultures, Traditions, World Religions, Governments, Flags
A free, authoritative source of information about the rich history, geography, and culture of Arkansas. The Encyclopedia contains more than 7,000 entries and 11,000 pieces of media related to Arkansas with new material being added weekly.
Tags: Arkansas History, Arkansas Geography, Central High School, Little Rock Nine, Local History
Gale eBooks (formerly Gale Virtual Reference Library) is a database of encyclopedias and specialized reference sources for multidisciplinary research. These reference materials once were available only in the library, but now you can access them online from the library or remotely 24/7.
Tags: Research, Homework Help, eBooks, Term Papers, Research Papers
An interactive database with practice tests and tutorials for many standardized academic and licensing tests, such as the GED, SAT, Nursing, Real Estate, etc. Access: Sign in as new user and create personal account using your library card number as your user name.
Tags: ACT, SAT, Test Preparation, GED, College Admission, Jobs, Employment
Includes information on many titles popular with students in grades K-8, arranged by instructional unit, theme or topic. Teachers can find appropriate fiction to complement classroom instruction.
Tags: Teacher Resources, Educator Resources, Book Recommendations, Reader’s Advisory, Libros en Español
The complete run of Gale’s Something About the Author reference set, including thousands of illustrated biographical profiles of children’s authors and illustrators.
Tags: Biography, Autobiography, YA Authors, Young Adult Authors, Modern Authors, Contemporary Authors
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
Composed of more than 500 full-text scholarly journals and popular science magazines covering research and instruction in earth, life, physical, medical and applied sciences; and technology, engineering, and math.
Tags: Earth Sciences, Life Sciences, Technology, Physics, Mathematics, Astonomy, Chemistry, Biology
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
Banco de Contenidos aulaPlaneta (classroomPlanet Content Bank) is World Book’s new comprehensive Spanish database with more than 170,000 articles, images, and videos designed for native Spanish-speaking researchers and advanced bilingual and ESL students.
El contenido, los medios enriquecidos y las funciones interactivas de World Book en español.
New and expanded. Access World News Research Collection. Now featuring a wider variety of news including USA Today, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Pine Bluff Commercial, Times Record (Fort Smith) and many others from around the world. Look through the A-Z Source List or use the Map Search to find news from specific regions. Explore the Suggested Topics for trending events, upcoming holidays, famous people, social issues and more.
Combines all formats of the newspaper including full-text, online-only articles and page images into one simple search.
NOTE: There is a 30-day embargo on remote access of the image edition of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Tags: Local News, Sports, Current Events, Classifieds, Local Business
Brainfuse HelpNow provides on demand, anytime, anywhere eLearning for all ages and levels. HelpNow offers personalized homework help in core subjects (math, reading, writing, science and social studies) including SAT preparation. The Adult Learning Center is included in the HelpNow suite. Live help available online every day from 2:00 PM to 11:00 PM Central Time.
HelpNow supports the library’s Count UP math tutoring program but also offers learning assistance in other subjects.
Brainfuse JobNow offers the following services:
Live Interview Coaching: Patrons can brush up on interview techniques or get live online interview practice from trained job coaches. Job coaches and patrons communicate via live chat in our online classroom. In addition to live interview coaching, patrons enjoy 24/7 access to interview tips and career resources. The coaches are available every day from 2:00 PM to 11:00 PM Central Time.
Resume Lab: Patrons can submit their resumes any time through the JobNow Resume Lab and a job coach will send it back within 24 hours with detailed feedback and suggestions for improvement. Users are also able to download resume templates, or browse resources for producing better resumes.
Career Resources: Patrons enjoy 24/7 access to a carefully-selected library of job resources. In addition, Brainfuse job coaches help users strategically target jobs best suited to their interests and qualifications.
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
Provides access to cultural reports, statistics, and primary source material for countries across the globe, including the United States and Canadian provinces. Includes unique information such as native recipes, interviews, photos and videos. Contains four modules: Kids, Provinces, States and World.
Tags: Teacher Resources, Educator Resources, Cultures, Traditions, World Religions, Governments, Flags
The Central Arkansas Library System has partnered with Driving-Tests.org to provide access to manuals and practice tests for the Arkansas Driver’s Test. The site includes practice tests for car and motorcycle licenses, as well as for the CDL.
Tags: Driving Test, Arkansas Driving, Driver’s License, CDL, Practice Test
A free, authoritative source of information about the rich history, geography, and culture of Arkansas. The Encyclopedia contains more than 7,000 entries and 11,000 pieces of media related to Arkansas with new material being added weekly.
Tags: Arkansas History, Arkansas Geography, Central High School, Little Rock Nine, Local History
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
Includes current journals, magazines, and newspapers from ethnic and independent presses. Content covers 1990-present, with specialized coverage of the following ethnic categories: African American/Caribbean/African; Arab/Middle Eastern; Asian/Pacific Islander; European/Eastern European; Hispanic; Jewish; Native People. It is updated daily with new content and contains over 2 million full text articles.
Tags: Newspapers, International News, World News, Current Events
Gale eBooks (formerly Gale Virtual Reference Library) is a database of encyclopedias and specialized reference sources for multidisciplinary research. These reference materials once were available only in the library, but now you can access them online from the library or remotely 24/7.
Tags: Research, Homework Help, eBooks, Term Papers, Research Papers
An interactive database with practice tests and tutorials for many standardized academic and licensing tests, such as the GED, SAT, Nursing, Real Estate, etc. Access: Sign in as new user and create personal account using your library card number as your user name.
Tags: ACT, SAT, Test Preparation, GED, College Admission, Jobs, Employment
Includes subject headings, reviews, summaries and more for over 135,000 fiction titles. Use Novelist to find other books by a favorite author, or similar books to a title you’ve already read.
Tags: Reader’s Advisory, Book Recommendations, Book Reviews, Libros en Español
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
A large general research database featuring a diverse mix of content including scholarly journals, trade publications, magazines, books, newspapers, reports and videos.
Tags: General Reference, Academic Research, Scholarly Journals, Information Technology, Information Science, Dissertations, Theses
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
Developed to help students do more effective research and to assist educators in teaching the basics of the core information literacy principles of finding, evaluating, and using information.
Tags: Academic Research, Information Literacy, Research Process, Thesis, Educator Resource, Teacher Resource
This research tool provided via Traveler Access.
Background and analysis on 350+ leading issues, providing pros and cons on social, scientific, health, historic, economic, political, and global issues.
Tags: Social Issues, Research Topics, Information Literacy, Debate Topics, Primary Sources
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Access more than 500 lifelong learning courses in over 30 subject areas, many of which offer continuing education units (CEUs). All classes are designed and led by professional instructors and include videos, assignments, quizzes, tests, and options for social media interaction with other learners. Patrons may take multiple classes and learn at their own pace.
Tags: Continuing Education, Online Learning, GED, Computer Basics, ESL, Research Skills, Web Design, Test Preparation, Programming Languages
CALS is partnering with several local schools to provide students with improved access to research and reading materials through the Tech Card Program. Students in participating schools will be issued a Tech Card which can be used to access the library’s electronic resources from school or home.
Tech Cards cannot be used to check out physical materials (books, dvds, etc.) from the library. Parents and students may apply for a library card with borrowing privileges at any of our locations or by visiting our website.
Access to some of our online resources may require users to enter the Tech Card number (printed under the barcode on the back of the card) and a PIN. The PIN on every Tech Card is set to 1234.
The Tech Card issued for the school year will expire on September 1 of next year. If your child is enrolled in a participating school for the following year, they will be issued a new Tech Card for use next year in the fall.
If you have questions about the Tech Card Program, please contact Amanda Orgel, Youth Services Coordinator, at (501) 918-3049 or by email at outreach@cals.org.
Count UP is a free after-school math tutoring program for K-12 students in Central Arkansas. Through this program, created by the Central Arkansas Library System and supported by an ESSER grant, experienced tutors are matched with students to provide personalized support and guidance. Our program offers one-on-one tutoring tailored to students, both for assistance with math homework and more intensive work on building math skills.
