MELANY A.

MANRIZA
Discussant
The Basics of Note Taking
A Key to
Academic
Success
What do you
know about note
taking?
Why is it important
to take good notes?
 Promotes Active Listening
Provides Accurate Record of Info

Note
Makes You Restructure Information
 Interpret (give meaning)
 Condense

Taking:
 Organize
Provides Repetition
Helps you learn more quickly

Why?
 Note taking is an important
part of academic life.

To be successful at note taking, you need to:

 Improve your listening skills.
 Develop your note taking skills.
 Be able to use your notes to study.
 Like All Skills
•Listening and note taking improves
with practice.
•Practice everyday.
 Characteristics of Good
Notes
Good Notes:
•Are Organized

•Distinguish Main Points from Details

•Include Examples

•Indicate Lecture Patterns

•Allow for Self Testing

•Stand the Test of Time

•Use Abbreviations
Note taking does not = Dictation
 Note taking is writing complete ideas

 Dictation is writing complete sentences.

 Example
Dictation:
History 1002 meets 2 days a
week, from 10:00 am to 10:50.
Notes:
Hist 1002
•2d/wk
•10 – 10:50 am
 Helpful Strategies for
Taking Notes:
 Listenfor Key Words/Points
 Abbreviate
 Focus
 Find Main Ideas and Concepts
 Use Your Words
 Cues and Clues
 Review
 Key Words and Points

 Do not write everything

 Even if you could write everything, it would result in

wasted words and time.

 Make point from notes which look for the key ideas.
 Abbreviate
 Develop a set of abbreviations that make sense to you - it
saves valuable writing time.
Some common general abbreviations
e.g. For example
w/ with
w/o without
etc. and so on
vs against
m a million
mkt market
 Focus
Try to focus on getting
terms, quotes and examples
(things that will likely be
important later).
 Ideas & Concepts
Perhaps most important of all,
look for the central ideas and
concepts of the lecture, not just
facts.
 Use Your Words
 Try to put things in your own words when you can.
 However, this may not always be possible or even a
good thing because the presenter's words may be
more precise and meaningful than your own way of
expressing things
 Cues & Clues
 Listenfor presenter's cues that inform you that
important material is coming.

 Three examples of cue phrases:

 “In conclusion …”
 “The most important thing …”
 “We could summarize by …”
 Review
 As soon as you can after the class, review
your notes.
 Share with other students since they may
have picked up something you missed.
 A great way to learn the material is to teach it
to someone else.
 Use headings to
organize ideas.

Gas Use Factors

Europe U.S

Less good hwys

More $$ cheap gas
More trains auto ind.
+pub transp. oil comp.
 To create headings use:
• CAPITAL LETTERS
• BOXES

• underline
• - - indent below the
heading
 Take notes on this sentence

Studies on worldwide literacy rates show that almost 80 percent of the world’s
population over the age of 15 is now literate. This includes more women than ever
before.
 One way to write this
info
• ww literacy rt = almost 80 % world pop over 15 yrs now
literate

• grtr # of women than bef

 Take notes on this
sentence
UNESCO’s study shows a drop in illiteracy from twenty-two percent of the world
population in 1995 to twenty percent in 2000.

illiteracy ww pop
1995 2000
22% 20%
 Take notes on this
sentence
The Battle of Palmito Ranch, also known as the Battle of Palmito Hill,
was fought between Union Army and Confederate States Army forces
on May 12–13, 1865 near Brownsville, Texas. It was the last land
battle of any size or significance of the American Civil War.
Battle of Palmito Ranch/Hill
•Union vs Confd.
•May, 1865
•Brownsville, TX
•Last battle Civil War
 Take notes on this
sentence
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of
which it is composed, and the processes by which they change.
Geology can also refer generally to the study of the solid features of
any celestial body (such as the geology of the Moon or Mars).
Geology
•Study of
• Sld Earth,
• Rocks
• Processes of change
• Sld features of any celestial body i.e. the
moon/Mars
 Take notes on this
sentence
The three keys to creating a green environment initiative are
educating the public, improving technology, and increasing the
demand for recycling.

3 keys to green env. int.

1- educate public

2- improve tech.

3-incr. demand for recy.ing

 Remember
•Get the big picture!

•Rewrite your notes.

•Develop your own

style and…

Practice, practice, practice.