Chapter Nine: Developing Notetaking Skills

By: Sam Wilson Kayleigh Bonner David Bonner Richard Hasenjaeger

The Importance of Notetaking

In this chapter you will learn 5 notetaking systems. Annotations, Cornell notes, two-column notes, three-column notes, and outline notes.
Your goal: Learn how to use all five systems so you can then select the most appropriate system for your various textbooks. The following important points about textbook notes provide you with additional rationale for taking the time to create and use notes effectively.

Importance of Notetaking (Cont)

Notetaking involves condensing large amounts of information into more manageable units.
Notetaking requires you to think carefully about information

You have to break it down, analyze it, and select what is important.

Notetaking encodes info kinesthetically and visually. How can you encode linguistically?

Studying from well-developed notes is more timeefficient than reading and re-reading chapters.

Essential Strategies for Textbook Notetaking.

1. Understand what you read before you writingRead a paragraph, then pause and think about it. Be sure you understand it before writing it down.
2. Be selective- Your notes should be a condensed version not word-for-word

3.Paraphrase- Shorten explanations or info by writing it in your own words.

4.Include textbook reminders- Instead of copying full charts or sections write See page XX

Essential Strategies (Cont)

5.Label your notes- To avoid confusion include chapter number and number each page of notes.

6. Use spaced practice- Make contact with your notes several times, either to warm-up or to review. 7. Use feedback techniques- Look-away technique such as reciting or visualizing to check accuracy of your learning 8. Review your notes- Use immediate review to create a strong impression in your memory. Use ongoing review to keep it fresh.

Annotating Important Information

5 Essential Strategies for Annotating

Enumerating and OrdinalsEnumerating is using numbers to label steps in a process, or to mark off the amount of information. Ordinals are similar except that they are WORDS that signify a specific number of items. Marginal NotesSmall notes written in the margins of a page, these are used to help quickly identify key points For marginal notes, it is important to be very brief while still getting valuable information. The best type of marginal notes are simply abbreviations to draw your attention to the important information in the book.

Highlight the main idea Highlight important points that backup the main idea Circle terms and highlight their definitions Number (Enumerate) steps Make marginal notes

Essential Study Strategies to Study from Annotation

Reread Out Loud

Read only what you have as key points, it might sound messy, but the key points are being processed auditorily and visually Same as rereading out loud, but this time, also add in your own words, tailor the information to your own way of learning Look away from the book and attempt to recite what you learned, glancing down occasionally to check on how youre doing.

Write Summaries or Take Notes on Paper

Instead of having to constantly refer back to the book, write down a summary of all the key points you just learned as a reference sheet. Use Spaced Practice, Immediate Review, and Ongoing Review

Verbally String Ideas Together

Recite Without Looking

Look over EVERYTHING, but not just one and done, look over it as soon as youre done, and continue to look over it for the next week or two

Step one: Recoding

Tips:

Marginal Notes: Make note of it, especially if it is not included in the regular text. Double Spacing Between Headings:

Use the headings and subheadings to your advantage, they will point you to important information. When an introductory paragraph is given, create a heading for it and put down key points. Write down the headings and subheadings and use them as categorical markers. If needed, make your own headings and subheadings so as to organize the information to your own standards.

Introduction:

Make your notes readable and less cluttered, leave some space between headings.
Sufficient Information: Make sure you write down what is actually important. Meaningful Phrases or Short Sentences Use phrases or sentences that help you remember the information, however, avoid using short words and phrases that are hard to remember.

Headings and Subheadings:

New Headings:

Step One: Recording (cont.)

Annotations:

If youve already annotated the info., move it into your notes Try to number your ideas, the information will be better retained as you can associate the information with the different numbers (listing) When you come upon a small supporting detail, make it noticeable by indenting it and then using dashes or stars before actually writing the information. For smaller graphs and other visuals, go ahead and copy this information into your notes. For larger amounts of information, simply make a reminder to go the page where the graph is given.

Number Details:

Minor Details:

Graphs and Charts:

Step 2: Reduce
Copy Headings of each section to the left will make it easy to find where each section begins and ends quickly
Rereading your notes and clarify any vague or incomplete information with details

Ask yourself questions about information in the right column

Use key words to spark memory searches

Step 3: Reciting

This Step involves using information in the recall column to explain information out loud in your own words without referring to detailed notes.

To avoid peeking, use a piece of blank paper to cover the right side. Explain in complete sentences. After done reciting, check for accuracy and completeness Adjust recall column with things such as keywords or questions to keep you focused on important points

Step 3: Reciting (Cont)

Track your progress: If it helps, you can star items that you recited with accurate details. You can also Check or Arrow the information you need to practice further.

Step 4: Reflecting

Involves thinking seriously, comprehending, and using elaborative rehearsal strategies to work with information in new ways.
NOTE: This is a creative and highly individualized step. No two student's methods will be the same.

Think and Ponder- Think about the topic, relationships between details, and the importance.
Line up your recall columns- Arrange the pages of your notes so you can see a lineup of all the recall columns.

Step 4: Reflecting (Cont)

Write a summary- Look only at information in the recall columns. Write a summary to summarize the main ideas and important details in full sentences.
Write on the back of your notes- Make lists of information, write study questions, add diagrams or charts, jot down questions for the professor. Use study tools- Reinforce your learning by creating study tools that you can use.

Index cards, charts, mnemonics, visual mapping.

Step 5 Reviewing

The review step in the Cornell System involves using immediate and ongoing review. Immediate review- Is the process in which rehearsing information before you end a learning session.

Ongoing review- is the process of practicing info for days and even weeks after the initial learning occurred. Ongoing review keeps info active and accessible in your memory system.

The Two Column system

1-Write in the Left Column-write a topic, vocabulary term or study questions in the left column. 2-Write in the Right column-Directly across briefly describe details or explanations 3-Be Selective-Dont clutter your notes
4-Use the read, record, recite, recycle- read one paragraph at a time, use the ideas that best reflects the main idea

5-The items in the left column vary- for specific paragraphs add more than one entry for more space to put on.

6-Space your notes-leave space in between each new item or group of related items.
7-Sketch diagrams or charts-sketch in the left column to summarize 8-Practice your notes-cover the right column and recite.

9-Highlight difficult sections-color spots that need some importance in the right column, that you want to identify info for quick practice.

10-Use immediate and ongoing review

German Psychologist-Hermann Ebbinghaus- began the study of memory in the late 1800`s. He devised a method in his lab to measure how much he forgot over a period of time.

The Three column system

Comparative Reading- better for use with two different sources. Use them to define terms, for math equations, or for math terminology. COMBINE textbook and lecture notes Study and compare Rework and review.

Outlines and Their Types

Formal Outlines
Highly structured Differentiated levels of information Shows relations of information

Informal Outlines
Basic
Only Chapter/Section headings When it can be created

Formal Outlines Example

Title: I. Main Heading or Topic
A. Subtopics use capital letters B. Subtopic
1. 2. Supporting details Supporting detail
a. b. Minor detail Minor Detail 1) Subideas of minor ideas 2) Subideas

C. Subtopic

Informal Outlines
Is less formal and can be organized in an less structured way
Can be created
Before reading the chapter and used as a basic outline to self quiz and adding key words

During the chapter used for taking notes with

After the chapter to test yourself on what you learned and to reinforce the new information

How to Study From One

Read and explain line by line the material to yourself or others
Checking accuracy when reciting information will help build a complete understanding Adding clue words can be good practice for memory searches and quizzing Write a summary of the information learned as to self check your knowledge for completeness and detail

The End