English Language Learners

Books & StuffDatabasesWebsitesCitationsHelp

Check these out!

Find stuff on the Main Floor of the library

ESL Easy Readers are located by the Library Instruction Room door.

Music CDs are found along the north wall.

Magazines that can be found on our magazine shelf that are written specifically for English Learners include:

News For You

Northwest News

Find theses upstairs in the Stacks

Movies	PN 1995.9
Graphic Novels	PN 6727
Composition	PE 1404	Pronunciation help	PE 1137
Dictionaries	PE 1625	Grammar	PE 1112

Research databases contain journal articles, eBooks and more to help with your research. A full listing can be found here. The following databases allow you to sort your results by reading level:

eLibrary (from ProQuest). Sort search results by ‘Reading Level’ — lower is easier.

SIRS Discoverer (from ProQuest). Sort search results by ‘Lexile’ — lower is easier.

Bellingham Herald (from NewsBank). Sort search results by ‘Readability (Lexile)’ — lower is easier.

General

Learn English, Feel Good

Dave’s ESL Cafe

ESL Gold

TOPICS Online Magazine for Learners of English

Interesting Things for ESL Students

Internet Picture Dictionary

BBC Learning English

Cambrindge Online Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

Grammar & Writing

Grammar-Quizzes.com

Grammar Girl

Grammar Bytes

Common Errors in English Usage

Big Dog’s Grammar
Basic English grammar with interactive exercises.

Purdue Online Writing Lab’s (OWL) Guide for ESL Students

Vocabulary

ELRC (English Language Resource Center) Academic Vocabulary Podcasts – Bergen Community College

Self-Study English Vocabulary Quizzes – Activities for ESL Students

EZ Slang

Longman Vocabulary Website

ESL Idiom Page – Dave’s ESL Cafe

Medical English Dialogues – Englishmed.com

Spelling Games - Interesting Things for ESL/EFF Students

Listening

Randall’s ESL Cyber-Listening Lab

National Public Radio

Voice of America Special English – Read, listen and learn English. Focus on current events.

ESL Podcast

Pronunciation & Speaking

American Accent Training

Pronouncing English Sounds – SoundsOfEnglish.org

Making Small Talk – from About.com

Example Job Interview Questions – from About.com

Language Guide
Especially useful for pronunciation and vocabulary building.

Extras

Activities for ESL/EFL Students

Two citation styles are used most frequently at Whatcom Community College:

and

APA Citations are usually used in Psychology, Nursing, and science courses.
MLA Citations are usually used in English, History, and non-science courses.

Check your assignment or ask your professor which citation style to use for your class.

When you write your paper, you will need to cite your sources in two places:

in the paragraph where you have quoted, summarized, or paraphrased from the source (called an in-text citation)
in your Works Cited list (MLA) or Reference list (APA)

Please see our citations page for links and handouts about proper formatting of citations. We also have an online tutorial for you.

Help for using the Library is available in several ways:

In-person. Librarians are available at the Library, no appointment necessary. Drop by and say hello!

Telephone reference is available during open Library Hours (see right side bar).

Text Chat is available 24/7 from AskWA.

Frequently Asked Library Questions (FAQ’s) may have the answers to your questions.

Rowena McKernan

Ro is an instructional librarian and would love to answer any questions you may have. Email her at rmckernan@whatcom.ctc.edu