1. September, 2014 TL Kennedy Secondary School
GLS 100 Note –taking
September, 2014
TL Kennedy Secondary School

2. Why take notes?
Many students believe there is no reason to take notes especially when we have Google and teacher web pages.
Note-taking is more than a record of what has been said.
Effective note-taking (not blind copying) has been proven to help with understanding and memory.
Helps you to remember important points.
You can reference notes later for review.
Helps to keep you engaged during a lesson.

3. Which method is best? The answer is – NONE is best.
You need to find one that works for you.
Before you choose, you need to try a variety of methods and decide which is best.

4. Tips for summarizing… Skim the text to get a general idea of the topic
Read an entire section before taking notes. DO NOT take notes while you read the section.
Delete unnecessary or redundant material
Find the main ideas in the text
Find the topic sentences to determine subtopics.
Substitute general or "umbrella" terms when appropriate (for example, trees instead of oak or maple).

5. Your Notebook Page
Each page in your notebook should contain the following items:
Title/topic of lesson
Date
Underlining of key terms
Chronological order
(use a spiral notebook/binder with dividers)
**It is best to use one notebook/binder per subject!**

6. Now you try…
Now, using a note-taking method of your choice you will attempt to take notes from three different sources:
An oral speech from YouTube.
A page from a textbook.
A narrative or story.
Use the same method for all three sources.
Compare your note with those of your teacher. (Check that you have included the same main ideas and subtopics).

7. A Speech or Lecture
Often, we have to take notes while a teacher speaks.
To practice, listen to the You-Tube speech given by Steve Jobs at Stanford University in 2005.
Using a note-taking method of your choice, listen for Steve Jobs’ four main pieces of advice for the graduating students. TIP: When listening to speeches, remember to listen to the speaker’s introductory statement so that you know the main idea and subtopics will be covered.

8. A page from a textbook
Read the selection entitled, “Scientific Laws” from a high school textbook.
Tip: When reading non-fiction text, use the subheadings, bolded vocabulary words, diagrams, and other graphics to help you decide the main idea and most important supporting details.

9. A Narrative, or Short Story
Read the short, short story “The Story of an Hour.”
TIP: When reading a narrative, it is often helpful to use the 5W+H questions to determine what is most important to include:
Who is in this story?
What happened to them? (Beginning, middle, end)
Where/When did this story take place?
Why do you think the author wanted to tell this story? (lesson/theme).
How was this story told and how did this style help you understand the story better?

10. Think, Pair, Share Consider these questions:
Did one method work best? Why?
What made the other methods ineffective? Explain.
Did you have to change your notetaking according to the type of reading/listening?
How will this affect your note-taking in classes from now on?

11. Tips for writing the “gist” fast!
What are some other strategies that work for you?
Share with your partner.