Extra Extra eRead all about it!
Zinio- FREE digital magazines on your computer, Smartphone or tablet from the public library
Let’s face it, as teachers we don’t always have the time to sit down and enjoy a great magazine, let alone trying to make time between marking, reporting and lesson planning to get to the store to buy one! I know you all want to feed your guilty pleasure of knowing the latest Bachelor drama, Donald Trump’s latest hairdo or who will be appearing on Ellen this week.
Well…you can get eMagazines for FREE from many public libraries through a website/app called Zinio without leaving the comfort of home. There’s a huge selection available, some of the popular titles are; Apple Magazine, Family Circle, National Geographic, Cosmo (in several languages), Rolling Stone, Reader’s Digest, The Economist, Canadian Living, and Us Weekly, just to name a few.
There’s something for everyone. They even have children’s magazines such as Click, Ask, Babybug, Cicada, Nickelodeon and Spider that will be perfect for your students!! The magazines can be read on your PC or Mac computer, iOS devices (iPad, iPhone), Android, Kindle Fire/Fire HD, Nook HD, Blackberry Playbook, or Win 8 Phone.
Why would you want to download magazines?
- They’re FREE!
- You can take out as many as you want at a time (no limit!)
- It’s much lighter than carrying them around in your already giant teacher bag
- You don’t need to return them to the library
- No late fees
- They don’t expire in 2-3 weeks like eBooks
- You can read back issues that are no longer on newsstands
- There are FRENCH eMagazine titles for my French Immersion colleagues
- You can read them offline once downloaded to your device from a network
- Little hands or paws can’t rip this kind of –zine
- Why not???
I thought it would be nice to share a step-by-step tutorial (in less than 10 steps) to help you get your favourite magazines in eMagazine format and start enjoying them right now. I’m going to explain how it works specifically for the Toronto Public Library; most other libraries work the same way and have helpful links to get you through it. Grab that Toronto Public Library card from your wallet, or go apply for one at any branch before you begin because for this you will need to have a valid, up-to-date library card. (If you haven’t used it in a while, remember you need to renew it in person at a branch once per year!!)
1) Begin by going to the Toronto Public Library website. Click on “Downloads & eBooks”.
2) Click on the red “Access Online” button.
3) Next you will be able to search for titles in the search field on the left or choose a genre you like from the drop down menu.
4) Once you’ve chosen your magazine, click on the blue “Checkout” icon beside your magazine image.
5) Now you’ll be asked for your email and password, chances are you don’t have an account yet, so click on the link above that says “Create New Account”. Next enter your library card number and click “next”.
6) Fill in your name, email and create a password then press “Create Account”.
7) Now click “Start Reading”.
8) Next you’ll be taken to the Zinio website (in a new tab), you have to login again. If you don’t already have a Zinio.com personal reading account you’ll have to create one (different from the Library one you just created, annoying, I know, but so worth it! And you only have to do this once). Click on “Create a Zinio Account”, enter your information and create a password.
9) Login and you’ll see your Zinio.com reading list with the title you chose included there. Click on the magazine and start reading!!
If you want to add more titles (I know you will!) you can just click on the tab to go back to the Toronto Public Library site and repeat only steps #4 and #7 to check out your new title. Previous issues are also available for some magazines; they will be pictured under the current issue.
Finally, if you’d like to read your shiny (literally!) new magazines on your Smartphone or tablet you must first download the Zinio app for your device. You’ll have to enter your Zinio.com account email and password (that you created in step #8 above), then when you login the magazines you picked on your computer will magically be there for your reading pleasure, you’ll just have to wait a few seconds for them to download! I know, I know, you are probably thinking, reading a full-size mag on my small iPhone screen..?!?! Well, they’ve thought of that. You can flip through the pages, then when you see an article you like, instead of constantly pinching your screen to zoom you can click on the convenient little “text” button at the bottom and your article will show up optimized for your Smartphone screen (and easier on your eyes).
Now you’re all set, go grab your drink of choice and enjoy some good articles (and don’t forget all the celebrity gossip) with no need to sneak peeks at the grocery checkout line anymore!
Happy reading!
I did a quick Internet search and found that Zinio eMagazines are also available from the following Public Library websites across Canada, and probably many more. Check yours today!
