Why making notes is important, and some ways to approach note-taking

In this world of internet, video and instant access to information, making notes using pen and paper may seem very OLD-SCHOOL. There are however plenty of good reasons why learning to make proper notes is a very important skill to learn. Here are just a few of them...

When you make notes, you not only gather information from the page, you process it as well ~ note-making is a way of checking your understanding as you read. As you make notes, you transform someone else’s writing into a form that you understand. You are actively building an understanding of the text you are studying.

Books, articles, web pages etc can contain A LOT OF INFORMATION. Effective note-making will quickly sort out what you need from what you don’t, so you can get on with LEARNING without drowning in information.

No matter what area of study you choose to pursue, good note-making skills will help you to learn more effectively and to produce work with depth and authority Learning good habits now will set you up well for further academic study. At tertiary level, INFORMATION OVERLOAD is a very real possibility if you haven’t learned how to process text and lectures into manageable notes for your study. But DON’T WORRY! A few simple pointers will get you started...

Think of notes as being like a COMPRESSED COMPUTER FILE

Your notes contain what you need to know in a COMPRESSED FORM.

Think of notes as being like a COMPRESSED COMPUTER FILE Your notes contain what you need to know in a COMPRESSED FORM. Like a compressed file, your notes can easily be expanded again by you into a larger form, such as an essay, or an exam answer.

READ FIRST. If the article or chapter is short, read through it quickly and get a sense of the whole picture. If you already understand the point of the piece, summarizing it will be easier.

READ FIRST. If the article or chapter is short, read through it quickly and get a sense of the whole picture. If you already understand the point of the piece, summarizing it will be easier. With longer or denser writing, break the reading up into manageable parts.

READ FIRST. If the article or chapter is short, read through it quickly and get a sense of the whole picture. If you already understand the point of the piece, summarizing it will be easier. With longer or denser writing, break the reading up into manageable parts. Going paragraph by paragraph, try to notice the major detail or point being made. DECIDE ON YOUR OWN LEVEL OF DETAIL-GATHERING.

Underline or highlight information that is obviously important. This could include:

Names

Underline or highlight information that is obviously important. This could include: Names Dates

Underline or highlight information that is obviously important. This could include: Names Dates Concepts

Underline or highlight information that is obviously important. This could include: Names Dates Concepts What else?

Underline or highlight information that is obviously important. This could include: Names Dates Concepts What else? If you come across words, terms or passages you don’t understand, you can consult:

Underline or highlight information that is obviously important. This could include: Names Dates Concepts What else? If you come across words, terms or passages you don’t understand, you can consult: A dictionary

Underline or highlight information that is obviously important. This could include: Names Dates Concepts What else? If you come across words, terms or passages you don’t understand, you can consult: A dictionary Another text

Underline or highlight information that is obviously important. This could include: Names Dates Concepts What else? If you come across words, terms or passages you don’t understand, you can consult: A dictionary Another text Your friend

Underline or highlight information that is obviously important. This could include: Names Dates Concepts What else? If you come across words, terms or passages you don’t understand, you can consult: A dictionary Another text Your friend Your parents

Underline or highlight information that is obviously important. This could include: Names Dates Concepts What else? If you come across words, terms or passages you don’t understand, you can consult: A dictionary Another text Your friend Your parents Your teacher

Underline or highlight information that is obviously important. This could include: Names Dates Concepts What else? If you come across words, terms or passages you don’t understand, you can consult: A dictionary Another text Your friend Your parents Your teacher Don’t proceed through the text if you don’t understand it!

Remember the compressed file? Your job now is to do the compressing Only write just enough words for your notes to make sense to you. (They don’t need to make sense to anyone else) Copying out passages word-for-word defeats the purpose of making notes.

Remember the compressed file? Your job now is to do the compressing Only write just enough words for your notes to make sense to you. (They don’t need to make sense to anyone else) Copying out passages word-for-word defeats the purpose of making notes. Exception: Quotes need to be copied accurately (although you might choose to copy only part of a quote)

Remember the compressed file? Your job now is to do the compressing Only write just enough words for your notes to make sense to you. (They don’t need to make sense to anyone else) Copying out passages word-for-word defeats the purpose of making notes. Exception: Quotes need to be copied accurately (although you might choose to copy only part of a quote) Neatness is not important, as long as you can read and make sense of what you have written later on.

Underline headings that describe main points

Use bullet-points to list points that belong with each main point

Underline headings that describe main points Use bullet-points to list points that belong with each main point Use symbols to show progress, consequence, conclusion etc.

Underline headings that describe main points Use bullet-points to list points that belong with each main point Use symbols to show progress, consequence, conclusion etc. Example: European trade with Māori Settlers needed flax for trade Māori wanted muskets for warfare  Trade increased  Escalation of inter-tribal warfare

As you get more practise at making notes, you will find your own words and symbols to represent commonly occurring terms.

Examples: WW 2 = ?

As you get more practise at making notes, you will find your own words and symbols to represent commonly occurring terms. Examples: WW 2 = World War Two

As you get more practise at making notes, you will find your own words and symbols to represent commonly occurring terms. Examples: WW 2 = World War Two w/o = ?

As you get more practise at making notes, you will find your own words and symbols to represent commonly occurring terms. Examples: WW 2 = World War Two w/o = without

As you get more practise at making notes, you will find your own words and symbols to represent commonly occurring terms. Examples: WW 2 = World War Two w/o = without > or < = ?

As you get more practise at making notes, you will find your own words and symbols to represent commonly occurring terms. Examples: WW 2 = World War Two w/o = without > or < = more than or less than; before or after

As you get more practise at making notes, you will find your own words and symbols to represent commonly occurring terms. Examples: WW 2 = World War Two w/o = without > or < = more than or less than; before or after cont. = ?

As you get more practise at making notes, you will find your own words and symbols to represent commonly occurring terms. Examples: WW 2 = World War Two w/o = without > or < = more than or less than; before or after cont. = continue

As you get more practise at making notes, you will find your own words and symbols to represent commonly occurring terms. Examples: WW 2 = World War Two w/o = without > or < = more than or less than; before or after cont. = continue A web-search will yield sites that have lists of useful abbreviations and symbols. Soon you will be able to compress BIG CHAPTERS into small pages !

Simply making notes is NOT ENOUGH to get the information into your head in a meaningful way. If you make notes then put them aside they won’t be much use. If you come back to them at the end of term, they might not even make sense any more...

You need to RE-READ your notes, preferably within a few days of making them. Better still, see if you can UN-ZIP them; that is, turn them back into full sentences, or a synopsis of the text you made the notes on.

Simply making notes is NOT ENOUGH to get the information into your head in a meaningful way. If you make notes then put them aside they won’t be much use. If you come back to them at the end of term, they might not even make sense any more... You need to RE-READ your notes, preferably within a few days of making them. Better still, see if you can UN-ZIP them; that is, turn them back into full sentences, or a synopsis of the text you made the notes on. Now you know that the learning is in there!!

Search the internet for sites that contain tips on making notes. Try to find the ones that refer to making notes (from texts) rather than taking notes (from lectures). Some sites will have both. Write down five tips or techniques that have not been covered in this lesson and which you find useful. Write down the URL of any sites that you think are really useful. Be prepared to say why ~ we will be compiling a list of useful sites as a class at the end of the period.