Ideas will Flickr

Reflections on the process of learning about the Flickr

My own previous knowledge and experience with Flickr combined with the knowledge gained from the trailfire, helped provide me with a solid base of understanding of this photosharing site.

I have to admit though, that I was somewhat annoyed with Flickr right off the bat. I needed to create yet another e-mail address, with yet another password to remember in order to fully utilize the site. Yahoo is affiliated with Flickr, so I needed to have a Yahoo account. To cut down on info overload, I used not only the same password as my hotmail account, but also the same e-mail ‘handle’.

While using this tool, I found it to be very user-friendly and easy to navigate. I quickly learned how to upload photos, and how to edit, tag and share them. Check out my pictures.

Discussion of Flickr in terms of my own personal learning

I could see myself using this site in the future; perhaps after a trip with friends. I could post the pictures to share with the friends I traveled with, as well as friends who weren’t there. However, I see there is an overlap here between Facebook and Flickr. I think most of my friends would just post their vacation photos on Facebook to share them with other friends and family. The advantage of Flickr over Facebook would be that you can use Flickr to not only share, but also edit your pictures, and share them with others around the world.

I admire the environmentally friendly aspect of Flickr. This tool will lesson the need for CDs to be used to share/back up our photos. Paper will also be saved. More and more photos will stay in digital form: from camera to computer to Flickr. I think it will take people awhile to move away from the whole, “I want to print it off” kind of mindset. We have to ask ourselves, “Why do we want a hard copy?” Is it to frame and display? Then fair enough. Is it to share with others? Well, that can be accomplished with this tool.

Discussion of Flickr in terms of teaching & learning

I could see myself using Flickr in my classroom. For example, on Friday I went on a field trip to the Bennett Center with my Grade Six class. I could have taken pictures of the different types of trees we studied and then uploaded them. My students could use them as tool for reviewing.

I found a site ( www.jakesonline.org/flickrinclassroom.pdf ) which showcases many different ways to use Flickr in the classroom, with my favourites being ‘digital storytelling’ and using pictures as a prompt for writing.

I think it’s a great way to bring your places that we’re learning about to life. If we’re reading a book set in Boston, or learning about a city in Peru, we can use Flickr to transport our students that location.

After getting to know this tool a bit better, I can see myself not only incorporating it into my personal life, but also into my classroom as well.