Great notes make studying easy, which means excellent exam grades. When you have topnotch note taking skills your exam preparation will be less stressful. These five hacks will make your notes ideal for learning the material and studying.
1. Date and Title
Writing a quick date and title at the top of each page of your notes will keep things organized. If you want to review a particular topic or lecture, go right to the date. You won’t have to thumb through and skim endless pages of notes to find a fact or idea.
2. Do Not Copy
Don’t copy word for word. Even if your teacher is using power point, don’t just rewrite the slide down into your notes. Choose important main ideas and supporting points. Make connections and synthesize material as you write. Engaging your brain in identifying the most important ideas will actually help you remember it better than just copying it down.
3.Don’t Use Straight Lines
Get wild in your notebook. Draw pictures that correlate to the topic. Make road maps of where topics are going. Draw a timeline with important events. Develop a mind map that connects related details. Bullet points don’t stick with you as well as other visual tools. Try to incorporate at least one other visual tool in your daily notes.
4. Use Color
Brighten things up. Not only will your notes be more lively with color, but it will also challenge you brain to come up with a system for color coding your notes. Each color may help you recall related facts. You can go back and color code with a highlighter, or use different colored pens as you write. The latter method may also keep you from getting sleepy during class.
5. Review The Same Day
Look over your notes the same day you wrote them. Then, if there is anything you can’t read, or information you forgot, you can quickly correct it while it is fresh in your mind. Discovering holes in your notes a few days later could cause you to miss important information.
Try these five hacks to make note taking more fun and lively. If you are having more fun with your notes, your brain is more likely to be engaged with the material. Ultimately, it will help you have better recall when it comes to exam time.
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