Homework help is as close as your computer

Helping your child with his or her homework is not always easy.

First, things have changed since you were in school and you might not know enough to help. Second, unless you're a teacher by trade, you might not have the skills to help your child learn. Finally, it takes a lot of time when other things are going on at home and you're often distracted anyway.

Don't despair! There's help at the library. Sure, there always have been books and other information at the library, but I'm talking about targeted, professional homework help that's even received acclaim from kids.

Live Homework Help is a program that connects students to tutors who are certified teachers, university professors, graduate school students, students at accredited colleges and professionals who are experts in their fields. All Live Homework Help tutors have passed a third-party background check and are certified by Tutor.com, the parent company of Live Homework Help.

Here's how it works: Students access a Web site at their home or library computer by using their library card number. They are asked for their grade level and subject of inquiry. Tutors are then assigned based on this information. Students and tutors can review specific homework questions, as well as subject specific concepts.

The "conversation" works much in the way that instant messaging works. Tutors may utilize special features such as an interactive white board and shared web browsing.

Kids love Live Homework Help. Here are some recent comments from Mount Prospect Public Library's student users:

• "This is amazing! My tutor helped me get the right answer and coached me through it and I really understand it now."

• "I think it is a wonderful place to get help if you don't know how to do stuff if you can't get help from your teacher."

• "I feel like I'm smart."

• "Thanks! You guys rock!!!!!"

• "Thanks. Before science was hard, but now I get it…finally! :)"

Live Homework Help is geared to students in fourth grade through the first two years of college. Help is available for almost anything such as math, including algebra and calculus; English, including essay writing; science, including biology, chemistry and earth science and social studies. Spanish-speaking tutors also are available for math and science. Tutors will even critique students' research work or essays prepared for college entrance.

Carolynn Muci, marketing/public relations director at the Mount Prospect Public Library, said the library started offering the program at the beginning of the year.

"It's been wildly popular," she said. "Usage statistics have increased 50 percent to 60 percent every month. We've publicized it widely via demonstrations in schools, promoting it in our newsletter and in our school newsletters sent home to parents. One high schooler even wrote a glowing review about it for her high school newspaper."

The program is available at 22 area libraries that have paid for the service. Tutor.com, the parent company, was founded in l998 and now has more than 1,600 participating libraries nationwide.

The North Suburban Library System has negotiated a group rate for Illinois libraries that wish to offer the service through the Library Partnership Trust.

"This is a wonderful program," said Mary Smith, Mount Prospect children's librarian. "It takes library service beyond what we can provide at the reference desk. We can guide students to information. But this is a real tutoring service that matches individual children and their homework issues with a certified tutor who can help them learn."

For a taste of Live Homework Help, stop by your local library to see if they offer the program and get a quick demonstration of how it works.