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Student Guide To Organization, Note-Taking, & Study Skills
Student Guide To Organization, Note-Taking, & Study Skills
Organization, Note-
taking, & Study Skills
Note-taking strategies, binder
organization, shorthand and more...
It’s a beautiful day outside and your teacher is giving a lesson at the front of the
room, soon your eyes drift to the windows and you’re in a fantastic daydream. But
then you hear someone call your name… uh oh.
Does this sound like you? Do you sometimes have trouble paying attention in
class or find your mind wandering? Here are some tips to re-engage with your
classes.
- Take notes. If you are actively writing it can help you engage with the
material and means that you are actively listening. These notes will also be a
valuable study tool.
- Make a list of questions about the material your teacher is presenting. You
can answer them yourself as the lesson continues and you learn more,
research the answer after class, or ask your teacher.
- Do you like to doodle? Instead of drawing hearts or stick figures, try doodling
images about key points or events your teacher is covering, this way you will
at least be actively listening to the content even if you are not writing notes.
- Get enough sleep and eat well. If you are tired or hungry it can make paying
attention to even the most interesting topic difficult.
- Don’t sit near a friend, you will be tempted to pass notes or whisper.
Alternately, if your seat mate is distracting you talk to your teacher about
making a change.
Why do we procrastinate?
There are many reasons we procrastinate, these reasons will be different for
everyone but some are common problems.
- Poor Time Management: this happens when you don’t manage your time
well and do not leave enough time for yourself to do an assignment
properly. For example: Allison didn’t write the due date in her agenda and only
realized the night before that she had not started the essay.
Avoiding Procrastination
Once you are aware that you procrastinate there are several strategies you can use
to avoid it.
- Prioritize: write down everything you need to do, both school tasks and
things you need to do in your everyday life. Number them from least
important to most important to decide which need to be done first.
- Schedule: once you have prioritized the tasks that you need to get done
you can schedule your time around them. By setting dates or times that you
plan on completing a certain task you hold yourself accountable to
completing them.
- Be Accountable: set goals for yourself and stick to them. Once you have
reached a goal reward yourself. This could be a cup of hot chocolate after
finishing your study notes, or time with friends after a big test.
-Be Prepared: By having all your learning materials in order you can go to class
prepared and ready to learn to the best of your ability.
-Make Studying Easier: If all your notes are organized and clear you will have a
much more enjoyable time studying when you know what the main concepts and
terms are, your teacher’s expectations, and any other materials or rubrics you
need to be successful on a test or assignment.
-Less Stress: If you know where everything is and have tidy notes you won’t have
to spend study time digging through a pile of paper, or searching for an
assignment sheet the night before its due.
General Organization
At Home
- Before you start your homework make sure you have all the materials you will
need within reach.
- Make a study plan and set goals so that you finish homework and assignments
on time.
At School
- Make sure to have the materials you need for school each day.
- Tip: Pack your bag the night before to avoid forgetting important
papers or materials.
Your binder is the main place where you store notes, assignments, and important
information. Unfortunately many students have trouble keeping their binders
from becoming disorderly piles of loose and ripped papers. Here are some tips to
keep your binder tidy.
- Use dividers. If each subject or unit has its own section you won’t misplace
papers by mixing your English notes in with your History notes.
- Put any handouts, rubrics, assignments, or notes into the rings right away. The
longer you wait, the more likely it is that you will loose them.
- Put your name and date on each page, this way if it slips out of order or is lost
in the classroom, the owner and the place it should go in your binder can be
found easily.
- Keep a binder organization checklist and at the end of each week take a few
minutes to go over it so that you can start the next week organized.
Your notes are a very important part of your learning experience. They help you
process and summarize information in class, and are a valuable study tool. There
is no one way to take notes, every student learns differently and will take notes in
a style that will help them learn best. However taking notes can be challenging
for many students: what should you write down, how do you know what's
important, should you use point form or write down the whole sentence? While
these questions can only be answered through trial and error and finding out
what works best for you, there are some basic tips and tricks that can help any
student become a great note-taker.
Do I write it down?
- Key terms: If you notice that new terminology, a name, or a concept are
coming up multiple times in a lesson – write it down.
- If your teacher says “this will be on the test” or “this is really important”-
write it down.
- If you teacher or the text you are reading uses headings and subheadings
these often indicate key topics- write it down.
Don’t:
- Write down definitions word for word. Instead, try putting it into your own
words in a way you will understand.
If your still unsure of the method you want to use to take notes, give one of these a try.
Shorthand
If you choose to use shorthand when you take notes, make sure you use symbols
that you will be able to remember when you go back over your notes. It can help
to make a key of the symbols and abbreviations you use at the top of your page.
For example:
@ at
& and
∴ therefore
= equal to / is
w with
w/o without
eg. for example
approx. approximately
diff. different
Heading
Key Subheading
Terms - Information
- Information
- Information
Subheading
- Information
- Information
Heading
Questions
Title Name
Date
Summary
Title Name
Date
Main Topic/Idea
Summary
Time to Study
When:
Today:
- It is never to soon to start studying. It helps to review your notes each
night so that information can be stored in your long term memory.
How:
Start by going over the material to see what you don’t know or are struggling
with. Look at your notes for any hints your teacher gave that you took note of and
remember to look at those concepts. Just reading over your notes is not the only
effective way to study, use a variety of strategies that work best for you.
Strategies
- Draw a diagram. - Teach a friend or family
member.
- Get a friend to quiz you.
- Write a summary.
- Make a mental map.
- Write a mnemonic.
- Make cue cards.
My organization goals:
1. Right now I will:
2. Today I will:
2.
3.
2.
3.
2.
3.
Respond by circling how often the following statements are true for you.
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
1. _____________________________________________________________________
2. _____________________________________________________________________
3. _____________________________________________________________________
Created by Elizabeth E Nelson ©2014 Lifelong Learning
Note-taking: Self-Assessment
Respond by circling how often the following statements are true for you.
1. When I study I find the notes that I took during class helpful.
5. I know what the most important points of each lesson are and have them
clearly indicated in my notes.
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
What are three things you could do to improve your notes or your note-taking
skills?
1. _____________________________________________________________________
2. _____________________________________________________________________
3. _____________________________________________________________________
Created by Elizabeth E Nelson ©2014 Lifelong Learning
Procrastination: Self-Assessment
Respond by circling how often the following statements are true for you.
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
What are three things you could do to avoid procrastination?
1. _____________________________________________________________________
2. _____________________________________________________________________
3. _____________________________________________________________________
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