Attitudes and Preparation for Effective Note Taking

Why take notes?

Promotes better organization of information.
Creates personalized materials for review and study.
Develops listening skills and focusses attention.
Encourages a good work ethic.
Engages you with the class material.
Enhances learning by making knowledge your own.

School is work. Work at it.

Learn to be a better student by developing study skills.
Developing metacognition improves learning.
Do what works, change what doesn’t.
Take notes at every class and review them.
Engage with the instructor and your fellow students.
Connect academic skills to future school and work settings.

Mental, Emotional & Physical

Remember your motivation for being in school.
Exercise your body as well as your mind.
Practice good sleep hygiene and eating habits.
Keep an open mind about your abilities and capacity to learn.
Find the joy in discovery and mastery.

Location and Time

Study early and often.
Regular review of material prevents the need to cram.
Distractions--sound, light, people.

Supplies

Personalize your notes.
Pens, highlighters.
Post-its.
Notecards.
Computer.

What do you take notes on?

Be aware of the class content and themes from the syllabus.

Anytime you hear, “In conclusion,” “To summarize,” “Today we’ll cover”
Anything written on the board.
Things that are repeated.
Use txt tlk.

Effective Note Taking: The Cornell Method

Cue Column	Notes Column
Preparation/Mindfulness	Read text before class. Review previous notes. Remember your motivation.

1. Record	During the lecture or reading, write down ideas and thoughts from the
	material being reviewed. Add all relevant content so that it is clear to you.

2. Reduce	As soon as possible, reduce & summarize info into small “chunks” of
	information. These will be your cues. Put these keywords, phrases, dates or
	numbers in the left hand column. Make sure it is something from which you
	can remember the content in the right had column.

3. Recite	Covering the right hand column, work on being able to recite the information
	that is hidden using just the left hand column cues to help you remember.
	Rewrite your cues until you have them well matched with the content. This
	helps you have a better assessment of what you have retained and learned.

4. Reflect	Notes are excellent for review and remembering content. This is enhanced
	by reflecting on the material and asking questions about it. Think about how
	this information is related to other information from readings and lectures in
	the class. Think about the themes of the class, important ideas and facts
	that have come up. Think about questions you have for the next class or
	reading. Reflection develops metacognition, your thinking about your
	thinking, and improves learning.

5. Review	Review your notes regularly. Memory is aided by reviewing early and often.
	Add to your notes when new information and relationships to other ideas
	and facts learned in class apply.

Effective Note Taking: Practicing the Cornell Method

Effective Note-taking: Resources

Books

Becoming a Master Student—David B. Ellis, Classic general book on study skills.
On Course—Skip Downing, Great newish general book on being a student.
Note-Taking Made Easy—Judi Kesselman-Turkel, Good book on note-taking.
The Mind Map Book: How to Use Radiant Thinking to Maximize Your Brain's Untapped Potential—Tony and Barry Burzan, Specific to the Mind Mapping method.

Websites

http://www.studygs.net/ Great collection of study skills available in multiple languages.
http://www.khanacademy.org/ Collection of videos on academic topics. Good for checking on topics when your notes or text are unclear.
http://lsc.cornell.edu/Sidebars/Study_Skills_Resources/Study%20Skills%20PDFs%20for%20LSC%20Website/Cornell%20Note-Taking%20System.pdf Cornell Note-Taking from the source.
http://youtu.be/8t_Vzeq5L3g Video of Cornell system. There are lots of note-taking videos on Youtube, explore and learn more!