Free Resources from the Net for (Special) Education

Welcome to this Treasure Chest of Free Stuff!

FREE online resources and downloadable programs for learners.

I intended to write this post about my favourite online dictionary, but in good conscience I have to write about more than that. The website I’m highlighting here offers the best online dictionary I know of, but it also offers a great deal more.

Answers.com is a website that offers an extensive range of reference tools: a dictionary that includes spoken pronunciation; a thesaurus with links to entries for each of the synonyms; a list of antonyms; a “word tutor” containing an audio file that uses the word in a sentence; the wikipedia entry for the term; translations into multiple other languages; and context specific references to sources such as the “Veterinary Dictionary”.

I’ve long thought that dictionaries are not very user friendly for many people who need them, especially individuals with reading challenges. Answers.com helpfully offers a clear audio pronunciation for each entry. In Firefox, with the CLiCkSpeak add-on, definitions and other reference material can also be read aloud for anyone who benefits from that.

Answers.com is one more compelling reason to switch to Firefox, if you haven’t already done so. With the “Answers” Firefox add-on installed, you just place the cursor on any word on a web page you’re reading, then hold down the Alt key, and click the mouse to bring up a box like the one below.

One more benefit of using Answers.com in Firefox is the Google search bar that comes with Firefox. Answers.com is one of the options available in the drop down menu. If you wish, you can conveniently start your search at Answers.com. If you are beginning to research something, ghis seems to me a great place to start for an overview.

Answers.com is ad-supported, but this seems a small price to pay for such an excellent and accessible collection of references. This is a tool that is of value to all learners.