Note-taking tutorial

Note-taking

Tried and true methods that students actually use

Good notes can save the day

But lets be honest, that’s easier said than done. Luckily, these strategies will help you choose a note-taking style that works for you and take more efficient notes in class.

Learn more effectively and free up more time for other things

Focus your notesTrying to copy down everything your prof says is not only incredibly hard, but ineffective in the long term.

It often helps to ask yourself, how does this point relate to this course/lecture’s theme?

Aim to capture relevant analysis of issues more than specific details – these can always be filled in later using assigned readings.

If you are unsure of the theme, try checking your syllabus or asking your prof or TA.

For Non-Technical Courses

Example: Question – Justify –

Conclude Method. Focus notes from the

lecture into answering smaller questions.

Even if the question is not stated, anticipating what is being answered forces your brain to think about the topic in a different way and will make remembering much easier.

• What was the cause of the American Revolution?• Taxes• History of Self-

Government• Powerful merchant

class• Enlightenment

ideals• The Amer. Rev.

resulted from a combination of real world forces and ideas.

For Non-Technical Courses

Focus your notes & prioritize The key to technical

courses is to get as many practice problems as possible in your notes

Things move quickly, so prioritize what you copy down

Understand how examples relate to the course as a whole

1. Practice Problems and their Answers

2. Confusing parts

3. Step-by-step4. Commentary

on steps

For Technical Courses

Example:

problem and answers are recorded

Issues written down for later clarification

Important steps are annotated

Tip: use textbook readings for after

class. This way you can fill any gaps in

your notes or understanding

For Technical Courses

Note-Taking MethodsThe following slides will help you up your note-taking game.

More information and note templates are available at the bottom of the page!

• Pros: Takes your organization to the next level. Summaries at the bottom and key points are easier to locate for future clarification and review. Works best for those whose notes are normally so scattered they are not useful.

• Cons: Increased indentation leads to less area for general notes, takes a small amount of planning.

Cornell Method

• Pros: Highly tiered, useful for complex, drawn out topics; breaking them up into bite-size notes.

• Cons: Not very adaptable to changes unless you’re on laptop. It is easy to get lost in multiple levels of headings

Outline Method

Mind Mapping MethodPros: Creates a visually appealing way to organize your notes, forcing you to think about topics outside the box; makes condensing and explaining multiple ideas a breeze. Ideal for those who find their notes entirely too boring to use.

Cons: takes a bit longer; may be better for review sessions than class notes. Requires some creative inspiration.

T-MethodPros: Slight variation of Cornell Method. Ideal for classes where clarification of steps is essential to understanding why an operation/step can be performed. Simple!

Cons: Not very adaptable to on-the-fly changes in formatting