Mastering Your Notes

How to master your notes Review them carefully Recite them regularly Reflect on them deeply Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Reviewing to Cement Understanding Use the Q System to verify your understanding of key ideas Use summaries to help see the big picture Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

The Q System Arrive at a question for each important idea Jot the question in the margin of your notes or textbook page Questions can be abbreviated, but they should be unambiguous Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

When you don’t have enough space in a textbook margin Use the sticky-note method: Jot your questions on sticky notes and affix them alongside their paragraphs Use the bookmark method: Jot a page’s worth of questions on thin slips of paper and insert them in your textbook in the appropriate spot. Take separate notes: Avoid the thin margin problem altogether by taking your notes separately. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

See the Big Picture with Summaries Summaries provide context. Summaries encourage you to come to grips with broader ideas and to ask “What’s the page about?” Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Types of summaries The standard summary: A few sentences at the bottom of each page, describing its contents The wrap-up summary: A few paragraphs summing up an entire lecture or reading assignment. The split-level summary: Summarize each page and then summarize the entire lecture or assignment as well. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Reciting to Strengthen Memories Encourages you to think Helps you to concentrate Prepares you for the next chapter or lecture Allows time for consolidation Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

How to recite Cover the first page of your notes or markings with a blank sheet of paper, revealing only the Q System questions. Read the first question and answer it in your own words. Slide down the cover sheet to check your answer. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

How to recite (cont’d) If your answer is incorrect or incomplete, try again. Continue with each question until you’ve answered all of them. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Two “flavors” of reciting Out loud This is the traditional way Make sure your answers are clearly articulated complete sentences On paper This method is a little slower but it provides proof of your knowledge Instead of speaking your answers, write or type them out Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Reflecting to add wisdom Reflecting involves pondering and speculating on information When you reflect, you wonder about the significance of information and about how it fits in Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Why reflect? Reflect promotes creativity Reflection leads to wisdom Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Techniques to encourage reflection Use the Silver Dollar System Rearrange your information Put it in context Ask more questions. Think visually Combine your lecture and textbook notes. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.