#note tips

If you’re off to university in the fall, one of the biggest learning curves is taking notes for your classes! Here are some tips for useful and organized note taking. 

Knowing what information to put in your notes when a professor is lecturing is difficult at first, especially if it’s at 8 in the morning, and the only thing on your mind is breakfast. You don’t need to write down every anecdote your prof tells the class, but you should take note of key concepts, theorists/names of people they frequently mention, and explanations of major events. If they share their power point with you, take a look at the slides after the class, and just takes notes on what the prof says. You can compare what you wrote to the power point and see if you were on the right track with picking out the important information. If the professor only shows the power point in class, make brief point form notes of the slides so you don’t feel rushed to keep up with the presentation and what they’re saying. 

How you organize your information is also significant to creating useful notes, especially when it comes time to studying! I’ve said this in a few other articles: design your notes like study notes. This saves a lot of time for preparing for exams. It’s also good if you can create categories for your notes in a class, you can do this digitally or with handwritten notes! If you’re actually writing down your notes, leave space for each topic, so you can add information when a topic gets brought up again. This way, you’ll have similar concepts grouped together and you’ll be more organized for assignments and tests. 

Creating shorthand for yourself and terms specific to the class is also helpful for writing notes faster! You can make a legend for what your abbreviations stand for. Also keep your shorthand simple enough that when you’re reviewing your notes it’s obvious what you were trying to say. Creating abbreviations for repeated terms and phrases can help reduce anxiety about keeping up with the pace of the class!

It’s a good learning habit to ask questions in class when you’re confused! You should also write down your questions when you don’t have a chance to ask them in the moment! If by the end of the class any of those questions are still unanswered for you, you can ask the professor to clarify any information/concepts you’re unsure of. 

One final good note taking habit is to leave space for textbook notes. Often, the information in your textbook will overlap with your professor’s lectures, so you don’t want to waste time writing two sets of notes that are basically the same. You only need information from the textbook that  your prof didn’t cover. This also works the opposite way when you have to do a reading before a class. Take down the key points from a textbook reading, and then add in new or extended information your prof gives during the lecture. 

I lend my notes out from time to time when a friend has missed class or whatnot, and these are a few things that I always hear that people like so I'm sharing a little of how I do notes:

My notes are,,, funny,,,? Like,,, humorous?

(Literally I thought everyone did this but I guess not.)

when I’m writing my notes in class, I write down jokes that my profs make about the material (my professor started class once by asking us why we should believe Montesquieu and not Ron Swanson), and really anything I'm thinking of in class.

like in my con. law class, instead of writing “the Court threw out the case on the grounds of...” I'll usually write something like “the Court was like ‘Bitch, no! you can't be...’” 

it’s usually faster to write.

I make myself laugh while studying.

I remember it better

Arrows!!!!

I use a lot of arrows in my notes. Profs lecture in circles sometimes, so it’s really important to remember what goes with what. 

I use arrows to add to bullet points

when profs repeat themselves, I write it down again, but draw an arrow to the first reference.

it can make your notes a little messy, but it really helps you see how everything is connected.

Brackets

tangents can be important sometimes. if you think it’s important, write it down, but put brackets around it so you can remember that it is a tangent, and it won’t confuse you when you go back to study it.

this is really helpful if someone asks a question and the prof goes “that’s a great question, and important, so I'll answer it, but it is not necessarily relevant to today’s material”.

or just for answers to in class questions in general.

brackets for me are basically saying, this is important, but it doesn’t necessarily go perfectly with these notes.

your notes can still be useful if they:

* are rushed * feature bad handwriting * are one only colour * feature exactly zero calligraphy * are written with a 50c biro * are the furtherest thing from ‘aesthetic’ you have ever seen.

still worried? don’t be! I made a chart for you!

it is honestly that simple. yup!

look, studyblr-in-general, I honestly love you. some of the tips I have gotten on studying, note-taking, and just surviving uni itself have been invaluable. I don’t use printables myself (...mmmmostly because my printer is as dead as doorbats) but those are also top-notch. BUT. but the concentration on fancy calligraphy, brand-name pens, and aesthetics is an issue that we need to deal with.

look, if you have the time, energy, and inclination to make your notes pretty as heck, go ahead and do it! I’m not saying stop if that’s your jam. if elaborate notes help you, by all means, keep making them! however, the fact that when someone says ‘studyblr’, the first thing the average person thinks of is ‘pretty notes’ is, you know. a thing. pretty notes have their place. but in academia, useful notes are more important by a million miles.

and there are people who look at these pages upon pages of beautiful aesthetic notes and just...despair. there are people who have mental illnesses that would never allow them to take those kind of notes, because they’re trying to reach an impossible aesthetic ideal. or would write said notes over and over and over because they’re not “good enough”. or those who have enough trouble concentrating on what the lecturer is saying without worrying about how to tart up their notes. or those whose hands shake so badly from anxiety (or otherwise) that attractive lettering is right out.

this is a problem. it’s not the majority of people -- I don’t think -- but it exists, and it’s still a really valid problem that I think we should address. at the end of the day, I think we as an academic community need to stress that good notes are way more important to have than pretty ones. like, when I say I’m starting an Ugly Notes Revolution, I’m not saying it to belittle anyone who makes aesthetic notes, I’m saying it because I honestly think it needs to be done.

find the challenge here

Well, when it’s just me and my textbook, one thing that helps me is color. Now, when I was in my first year of college, I tried to use way too much color; that ended up as too much work and I didn’t take a lot of notes [from textbooks]. This year, I think I’ll just sprinkle in some color.

If you didn't do well on exams, don't feel bad. Just think of how you can improve. My big tip for taking in information is notes. Take all your handouts, tests, reviews etc. and condense them into notes. Make it visually appealing. For inspiration check studyblr, it always gets me ready for study sessions.

Note for university students! Most of you take laptop notes in lectures, these still work for you! There are highlight settings and chart templates on most writing apps.

Protip: Chromebooks etc. allow you to have two windows running at the same time. This is great for copying down direct quotes from sites. Just drag the window to one side until an outline appears that covers half the screen. Adjust to preference from there.

Colour code. Sticky notes in specific pages that are the same colour as one topic's notes (example: sections on cancers and notes about cancer/carcinogens/mutations) are very helpful for quick access to key info.

Find a way to make it fun. It's much easier to memorize things you enjoy. I love history, so I just make it more interesting. John A. Macdonald, a founding father of Canada, spent thousands of dollars on champagne and fireworks to impress his colleagues. Boom, fun fact.

Memory tricks. To remember things like diagrams, people, definitions, and events, use memory tricks. Find key words or phrases that stand out to you, doesn't matter how absurd, and make a pun, a reference to something you enjoy, a joke, anything that you can immediately identify.

Use colourful pens/highlighters. Colour draws attention in to what is highlighted. Use colour sparingly, and still use colour coding. Highlight headings, key words, bullet points (to be visually appealing) and anything else that you need. You are more likely to retain information written in blue ink than black or pencil.

Find videos. If the teacher just isn't helping, teach yourself through videos. They have engaging audio and visuals to better explain concepts. I especially recommend this for math. Take notes off of the video, but keep them under a specific heading dedicated to videos so you can ask about what you learned next class to see if it's right.

Make diagrams/charts whenever possible. Writing out notes and diagrams once is equivalent to reading them 7x. As opposed to just looking at a diagram or chart, make your own. Not only will it help you learn, it looks damn pretty too.

Find tools that work for you. I can't emphasize this enough. We've all had bad experiences with pencils that aren't dark enough/broken, pens that don't glide, erasers that won't work, calculators we don't understand. You need a solid foundation before you even start notes because if you don't you'll end up frustrated instead of pleased.

Find techniques that work for you. Figure out what kind of learner you are and roll with it. I'm a visual and kinesthetic learner. I take notes, I'm very hands on and I respond well to colours and videos. You might not be the same. In that case, some of my tips aren't the best for you.

Listen to music. That does not mean music you get hype to. I've made that mistake. Find instrumentals from animated movies, acoustic covers, nothing too crazy or distracting. Music has been proven to help you study subjects you don't enjoy. Make a playlist of calming songs that you still enjoy.

Put your phone down. I know, shocking. Your phone is keeping you off task, so set it on the opposite side of the room, notifications off. Pick it up when you take a break.

Take breaks. Every half hour or so, have an alarm that tells you to get up, stretch, drink water, and check your phone. Study hard, take a minute to regroup, repeat. Really stretch out those wrists, you'll thank me later.

Schedule your study sessions. Most of you are in high school or university, so you have extracurriculars, jobs, social lives. Find time for work and dedicate a half hour or more a day to just looking over/ writing down more notes.

Stay healthy. When it's 3am and you body is screaming, just go to bed. Pain and exhaustion are the body's way of saying step the fuck up Kyle, so respect that. Drink water, eat healthy snacks, sleep at least 6 hours, get sunlight, go for walks. Try to drink one coffee in the morning and no caffeine after 4. You have nothing if you don't have your health.

!! Thank you so much for sending an ask in!!

notebook: what is better, handwritten or typed notes? 

I use both equally and think it really depends on the class. For me, handwritten notes are usually for math, science (some), and language classes. For history, science (some) and English notes, I type them up occasionally. I learn best by typing and rewriting my notes. 

I actually carry one notebook with me to all of my classes and take all of my notes in it. Then, when I get home, I rewrite the day’s notes in their respective class notebooks. 

That being said, taking notes on Google Docs is super effective! That way, as long as you have the app on your phone, you can have them with you no matter where you are! Also, my friends and I make a big group Doc when we’re reading a book in English or filling out study guides before a test, so that we can have all of our notes in one place. This was an invaluable study method for me last year, and I would recommend it to absolutely everyone! 

Maintaining organization in school notes can seem daunting and monotonous. Here are some tips to keep your class notes in order and not spend a lot of time on it!

The benefit of organized notes, is that when it comes time to studying for exams, you’re not struggling to remember what information is important. Write your notes in a format you would already use for studying. Also, use a colour legend to highlight certain points for why they matter. For example, highlight all literary devices in blue and historical points in green. That way, you won’t have to be up all night trying to decipher the context of how a note relates to the rest of the class material.

Making categories for class notes is another way to maintain organization. Whether you take notes by hand or on a computer, separating information each day will save you time before a test. Especially, if your teacher is testing you on a specific topic and not everything discussed in class. You’ll probably then have a section of notes on what you need to study ready to go. Then, you won’t have to waste time on deciding what information you need to review.

Taking notes from a textbook can be some of the most painfully boring tasks there is in school. One option could be scan the chapters you have to read, and highlight your copy of the pages. Another option, is read the chapter and see where the important information would fit in with your class notes. In your own words, explain the points from the textbook you think is significant, and how it connects to what’s been discussed in class.  

If you know you’re a messy person or easily forget things. Digital notes is probably your best option, because you can access it online from any device. However, if you feel like you learn better from a hard copy, at the end of each day print off your notes to keep at home. If you’re more of a visual learner, write/draw the most important points from your notes when you get home. 

You can also organize notes by comparing what you wrote with friends. They might have explained a concept better that you were struggling to understand; grab a sticky note and add their useful points to your notes. You could also be helping out a friend that likes how you explained some class information! This can help you not feel so overwhelmed when you have to review concepts you found to be difficult!

Organization doesn’t mean your notes have to be beautiful. Simple and easy for you to understand is what matters the most! Choose a format you can commit to and dividers/categories that don’t take a lot of work to create. Of course, if you like giving your notes gorgeous themes, go for it! Just make sure you manage your time to put that kind of effort in! Hopefully some of these tips helped and you’ll be a little more organized this semester!