Note taking is an art that takes practice and discipline. It certainly isn’t easy when a flood of information is coming towards you and you have to decipher what’s important to write down and what’s not.
Have a try developing these note taking tips during your classes, and watch the progression in your grades.
Deciphering the important information
You would want to pick out the important information rather than writing
everything word-by-word. For example, in an history class, you would want
to remember names and dates.
Keep Distractions Away
Using your phone when you should be taking notes is a bad idea. You are
likely to miss crucial information. If you are sitting next to someone who
might talk a lot, it is probably a better idea to move away from that person.
Mapping
The mapping method of note taking is based on diagramming your notes. It looks like a flowchart or a spider’s web between topics and subtopics. It’s a nice way to visually organize your notes that may be interconnected.
Here’s a more detailed guide on how to do mind mapping:
How to Use a Mind Map to Organize Your Life
Bullet pointing
The Outlining note taking method uses headings and bullet points to organize topics. This method is most useful when learning about topics that include a lot of detail. This method allows you to see the relationship between topics and sub-topics.
Reviewing your notes
What you retain from the first time you take notes will quickly fade if you do not review them later. The important thing is that you take the time to go over your notes later so that you can remember what you learned and further reflect upon the points made.
Ask for clarification
Your notes are close to worthless if you don’t understand them while writing them. Ask the teacher any questions you may have. Chances are someone else will be grateful that you asked about the same thing they were confused about.
Take courage and work hard to understand the concepts the first time around so that you’re not even more confused later on.
Don’t be afraid to mix up some of these note taking methods together. You may find that a portion of your notes is better organizing in an outline format, but then decide that you need to make a chart for another portion. The point is to be organized and do what makes the most sense for you. It does not matter what method the person next to you is using. Note taking is meant for yourself, so do it in whatever way is best for you.
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