I made some notes on the 7 1/2 Lifelong Learning Habits reflecting on how they apply to my life.
- Begin with the end in mind-- This one is the easiest for me. I am always mapping out what I want to happen. I can never just see how things go. I am always thinking about the end before I even begin.
- Accept responsibility for your own learning-- This is something I also do well, although at times I struggle with it. Sometimes I think, well how am I ever going to learn how to speak Spanish if I have no one to teach me? or ...someone to watch the kids...or someone to take care of the house. You get the idea.
- View problems as challenges-- This can be difficult for me. It is so much easier to get frustrated when problems arise, but in general I am pretty patient. I think I could work on being more optimistic.
- Have confidence in yourself as a competent and effective learner-- This is probably the hardest for me when it comes to learning Spanish. I lack confidence in myself since I have already taken classes and I still don't know conversational Spanish. I have even said to myself, I will never learn Spanish...I'm too old already to learn a new language. This is ridiculous since I am not yet 30! It is a cop-out and simpler for me to just quit than to work extra hard to learn Spanish.
- Create your own learning toolbox-- I think I do a good job of this. I have web resources and friends/ colleagues I can consult as well as books.
- Use technology to your advantage-- I feel like I am fairly tech savvy. I just recently realized I am not using technology to organize my life. So I started an iGoogle page and calendar to track my appointments. Since I am a list person I also started a TadaList to help me eliminate those paper to do lists.
- Teach/ mentor others-- This one is a given, since I love teaching already. One of my favorite tasks was using technology in the classroom.
- Play-- With so many responsibilities it can be hard to find the time to play. But just because I am a mother and a wife and a librarian doesn't mean that I am not still ME. So I promise myself I will take time to enjoy the fun stuff in life. Starting now.
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