Taking Notes

Taking Notes on Your Readings

• If you underline in your text books, do so only after you have gone through a survey and first reading of the material.  Underline only important words and phrases, not entire sentences.  Review for each course every week.

• When studying books you cannot underline, summarize the main points and facts on 8” x 11” paper in note form. Summarize in your own words.  Leave a two-inch margin at the left for “recall clues” which will enable you to quiz your recall of the material.  The large column on the right may be divided into two columns, one for summary of textbook material and the other for related points from your lecture.

Critical Points

• Take notes at a speed at which you are comfortable.  If you try to get more down, the resulting stress will decrease your efficiency and exhaust you before the day’s classes are finished.  Work for gradual improvement.     

• Reduce information to point form and take down those points in short phrases.  Keep asking yourself, “What is the point the teacher is making in his/her ramblings.”

• Develop you own shorthand and abbreviations: sg = something, b/c = because, vs = versus, con = conclusion, ref = reference, w/o = without, etc.

• Make your left-hand margin equal to ¼ of the width or the page.  Later use this margin to concisely summarize the notes using key phrases, dates, names, etc., which will serve as recitation clues during the review.

• As soon after class as possible check your notes to see that they make sense. Studies have shown that reviewing your notes within 24 hours of the class increases retention of the information by 60%.  Fill in gaps, check your spelling, and prepare any questions for clarification at the next meeting of the course.  You will now have time to reflect on what the teacher said.  Structure the notes.  Rewriting the notes is not necessary.  Simply label points “I”, “A”, “B”, “1”, etc. and underline important material.  Also at this time do your left margin summary (point number 4).

• Read textbook material related to a lecture prior to the lecture so the new vocabulary and concepts will not be completely foreign to you.

• Focus your attention on what the teacher is saying.  Don’t get distracted by looking out a window or at a friend. Don’t reduce your concentration by doodling.  Don’t focus on the teacher’s mannerism.

• As you progress through your course and gain a deeper understanding of the material, you will want to condense and summarize your lecture notes integrating the material around key themes and course objectives.  This should be part of the review process.

• If you are not adept at taking lecture notes, you will have to spend more time taking notes from your textbooks to compensate.

• Ask questions in class when you don’t understand the point your instructor has made.