Using Flickr as a inter-school arts network

1. Create a Flickr account You can easily create a Flickr account using your Yahoo, Google or Facebook account details at

1. Create a Flickr account Then create the small icon that will represent you on Flickr. (You can skip this step if you like.) Complete the set up by personalising your profile and adding a description about you or your school/college

2. Using Flickr This menu appears at the top of the home page. Some of the headings are self explanatory: Home – Takes you to the Flickr homepage Contacts - is the people you have connected with on Flickr Upload - is where you go to upload your photos Explore – is a random series of photos from the site, some amazing shots!

Getting your photos onto Flickr If you have a smart phone, you can take a photo of the artwork then it directly to Flickr. The subject will appear as the Name of the photo on Flickr. You can also just use a digital camera, dump them to your hard drive, then upload them from the internet. Or why not let the students take their own photos and save YOU the work!

Privacy Obviously privacy is a HUGE issue for schools. I NEVER put the full name of the student on the work, just the Christian name and I NEVER show children’s faces. Make sure you get the permission from your Head to make a Flickr site. I also had to get the site unblocked. You might also want to get parents permission. Some of the photos on the main Flickr site might not be suitable for children to view. You can change the privacy settings on each photo by clicking the button underneath the photo. If you make a photo private only YOU can see it. You can also go to your account page and change what information you share and what others can see.

3. Using Flickr, your Photostream Your Photostream page shows your photo uploads, showing the most recent first. At the bottom of this page is a link where you can change the layout of your page

3. Using Flickr; Sets A SET is a group of photos that you might want to put together, for example artwork on a particular theme or year group, or even an individual students’ work.

3. Using Flickr; Collections A COLLECTION is a group of sets. So you might put all of the artwork from each year group together or group some students together. For example, you might make a SET for each GCSE student then make a COLLECTION of all of those students. You can SHARE a SET and make slideshows of them but not COLLECTIONs.

3. Using Flickr; Organise & Create Click the Organise & create button to take you to the control panel where you can batch edit your photos, change permissions, delete multiple files and lots of other stuff. This panel can take a bit of getting used to!

3. Using Flickr; Groups Groups are a powerful way to share work. They can allow you to connect with other artists and schools across the world, or around the corner and are a great way to get new ideas and connect with other teachers. You can browse groups on Flickr or use the search box to find groups, or create your own group!

North East Art Teacher Network The aim of this Flickr group is to get as many schools as we can to upload their work and share it in this group. We can make friends online and have lots of FREE inset. Just think how many times you’ve thought how you would love to get out of school to see other schools’ artwork but can never get the time? You can also start discussions with other teachers or the teacher about the photo you have seen.

Comments One of the real thrills about Flickr is getting a comment. On Flickr, only members can comment on a photo (On another site called Photobucket you can invite non-members to comment) This could be a superb way of evaluating students work, but I’m not sure the students in my school are old enough to have a Flickr account of their own. Some of the photos on the main Flickr site might not be suitable for children to view.