Flickr

I've looked at many Flickr photos but had never thought about using it myself...until it was suggested as an activity for this week. I gave it a try - it took a little time to get it all set up, but I was successful! The hard part for me was finding photo subjects that I thought other people might want to see. (Looking at the site however, it appears that many people using Flickr really don't have that concern!)

I enjoyed viewing the mashups and other third party sites. I had seen trading cards developed for library staff members , but wasn't sure how they were done.

Applying the learning

I was so pleased with how easy it was to create this blog, that I created a "personal - by invitation only' blog this weekend. It is intended as a way to communicate with friends and family - and allow them to respond so everyone else can read as well as me. (It won't eliminate the telephone calls and e-mails, but hopefully if will help to avoid those lengthy e-mails and back and forth exchanges.)

E-Learning audio conference

On Wednesday, I listened to an audio conference sponsored by the Urban Libraries Council. The topic was - "E-Learning: Train Your Staff the Newfangled Way." The speakers were: Marilyn Mason (WebJunction), Helene Blowers (creator of Learning 2.0 - The Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County), and Thomas Simpson (Orange County Library System - Orlando.) I attended the program anticipating all kinds of great new ideas and insights into using e-learning at LCLS. To my surprise, with the implementation of "Play to Learn", we are already beyond much of what was being discussed!

How exciting to know that we have already begun the process of incorporating e-learning at our library system - something that many libraries are still struggling with figuring out how to do it. It truly makes one appreciate our library system staff who are continually looking for ways to keep LCLS in the running as an earlier adopter of new technology initiatives.

For anyone that would like to hear a basic introduction to e-learning, we will be receiving a CD of the ULC audio conference in about a month. It will be cataloged and added to our Professional Collection when we receive it.

BTW, did you know that we have copies of ALL of the ULC audio conferences we have participated in as part of our Professional Collection?

Comments on the "7 & 1/2 Habits to Life Long Learning"

I have always been a successful independent learner who likes to share my experience/skills with others, so 1, 2, 3, 4 and 7 ("beginning with the end in mind", "accepting responsibility for my own learning" , "viewing problems as challenges", " being confident in myself as a competent effective learner" and " teaching/mentoring others") are definitely my strongest habits.

I don't consider myself a techno-geek, but I have developed a strong interest in technology, both in my work and personal life, and feel I do use it to my advantage (habit 6) in most cases. I am currently without a stable technology environment in my home and it really frustrates me...especially because I would like to enhance this learning opportunity by spending time away from work exploring even more!

As an independent learner I tend to create my own learning toolbox (habit 5) - but most of my tools tend to be from sources and resources removed from my worklife. So one thing that I hope to take away from this experience is an opportunity to connect with others in the LCLS community!

Ok, so what about habit 7 1/2? It may come as a surprise to some people, but I do like to play! Perhaps I will share more about that in a later post...