TAKING NOTES

REASONS FOR TAKING NOTES A. Making yourself take notes forces you to listen carefully and test your understanding of the material. B. When you are reviewing, notes provide a gauge to what is important in the text.

C. Personal notes are usually easier to remember than the text. D. The writing down of important points helps you to remember then even before you have studied the material formally.

TIPS FOR NOTE TAKING Make your notes brief. Put most notes in your own words. Date your notes. Perhaps number the pages.

Draw a line down 1/3 rd of your paper, The small left column is for key words, phrases or people Take notes in the right column Skip lines to show a new topic/concept Use underlining, bullets or indentions for key information Layout Organization THE CORNEL METHOD Date/Page Number

Very easy to study from, simply cover up one column and use the other as your clue Simple and efficient Very easy to locate key concepts Reviewing Advantages THE CORNEL METHOD Date/Page Number

OUTLINING Generic Topic/Idea Key Concept/Person #1 Detail 1 Detail 2 etc Key Concept/Person #2 Detail 1 Detail 2 etc

OUTLINING You don’t need roman numerals any symbol will do Advantages Very Organized Shows how things are connected Disadvantages Requires more thought in class to keep organized

CHARTING METHOD How?AdvantagesDisadvantagesWhen to use? Set up columns and label headings Pulls out most relative info Takes time to learn efficiently When tested on relationships Headings can be categories Provides a useful review tool You need to know the content beforehand to set up chart If a lot of dates, people and places are used Place info in categories Big picture overview

THE SENTENCE METHOD Write each new topic on a separate line Advantages – its faster than writing paragraphs and you get the same info Disadvantages – can be harder to clean up and determine major/minor points

HOW TO TAKE NOTES IN MY CLASS? Pick one of the methods and stick with it Cornel and Sentence would be best for classroom notes Charts may be given to be filled in Outlines may be classroom activities