Saturday, April 23, 2016

Website Review: Ancient History Encyclopedia

ANCIENT HISTORY ENCYCLOPEDIA is an online encyclopedia with an educational mission.
Focusing on all aspects of the Ancient World, the nonprofit website provides short, interactive articles similar to Wikipedia. Articles contain a bibliography, legal notice, and additional resources to explore. There are many ways to access information. Users can use their search tool or index to locate people, places, and objects. The timeline allows users to search by date or keyword in particular categories such as “Arts & Culture” or “Rulers & Politics”. Interactive maps of the Ancient World, Roman Empire and others help youth explore areas of interest by time period. The Explore option lets students to explore regions of the world. Users can also search the video and image indexes.
Beyond the encyclopedia, the website also provides engaging articles related to travel and culture. Interviews provide interesting insights into people and places. Articles about exhibitions and education are also available.
Librarians will find the website to be an exciting way to engage youth in topics related to Ancient History. Although the website contains ads, they can be removed with a membership that supports the non-profit.
The website’s collaboration feature is a great way to get teachers and students involved with making contributions. Users can submit definitions, illustrations, articles, book reviews, timeline entries, videos, and web links.
Consider the interdisciplinary possibilities of the website. For instance, a Latin dictionary would be useful for language students. The Measurement Conversions page allows users to convert modern measures to Egyptian, Roman, or Greek measures. Think about ways to connect history with mathematics.
To visit the website, go to http://www.ancient.eu/.