Did you know that your library card allows you to access online homework help? St. Thomas Public Library subscribes to an online service called HelpNow, and that means that you have access to professional tutors, writing labs, practice tests and thousands of online lessons if you have a card with us! Whether you’re struggling to help your child with their math skills or you’re working on a university-level essay, HelpNow can be your best friend! You can even access the service from home via our website.
How to Use HelpNow:
From the St. Thomas Public Library website, go to the Collections heading. Under this heading you will see an Online Learning menu, and under that you will click on HelpNow: Homework Help. From this page follow the Homework Help link.
Now you’re on HelpNow! You can create an account quickly and simply by clicking the Login icon in the upper right corner of the page. Just click the blue ‘sign up’ link and follow the prompts.
Being logged in allows you to create a calendar, keep track of past sessions, save tests, and keep track of your studies on HelpNow.
Now that you have an account, let’s explore! Under the Expert Help heading, you’ll see options for Live Tutoring, Writing Lab, Skill Surfer, Send Question and Language Lab.
Paying a tutor is expensive! You can connect with live professionals from 2 p.m. to 11 p.m. seven days a week, from grades K to 12, in a variety of subjects for each grade level. Once you select grade level and subject, you’ll enter a chat session with an expert in that subject. Ask questions and get guidance on assignments!
Writing Lab is a tool to use in the editing stages of your paper or essay. Just upload your document, write any questions or comments in the box provided, and your paper will be sent to a writing expert for review. They will get back to you with their comments within one or two days! This is a great tool for high school, college or university students.
Skill Surfer is an entire learning library for grades 3 and up. Explore each category to see all it has to offer. The Elementary section has grades 3 to 8 lessons on math, reading and language, science and technology, and social studies. The EQAO section has practice tests for grades 3, 6 and 9. The University Applications section will guide you through the process of finding and applying to university. You can see by now what a wide range of help is available on HelpNow…a student can use it for their entire school career!
This option lets you send a question any time of the day, and you will get a written response back from a tutor in your subject in one business day. You can attach documents or pictures if needed.
Use Language Lab to connect with a French or Spanish tutor, or use Vocabulary Builder to take quizzes, use flashcards, or work on pronunciation!
HelpNow can also help you connect to fellow students by setting up online meetings with MEET, use flashcards for studying with Flashbulb, and use LEAP for targeted lessons and courses.
Explore HelpNow and you’ll be amazed at the many levels of learning support that are available to you for free!