Notes are important because they can help you remember things. If you take notes, it’s easier to remember the information from a class or a meeting. If you take good notes, it’s easier to remember what people say. Taking notes can also help you study.
There are many benefits to taking notes. One of the main benefits is that you learn better from taking notes. In addition, if you get in trouble in class or need to review something, taking notes can help with that.
Finally, when you do take good notes, it is easier for others to understand what you’re trying to say when you’re in a discussion with them.
Let’s understand this topic in detail.
How to Take Notes
Why Note Taking is Important
Organized notes can help with retention and recall. It’s easier to go back and find the information you need when it is organized. This approach helps with organization and time management as well as accuracy.
Collections of information can help to organize your notebook. Research shows that when people take notes they tend to only record about 20% of the material in class, which means if you are listening to a lecture everything that is said is important.
Make sure you are recording everything that is said in class, not just the beginning and end of the lecture or what you think is important. Making note of the material as it is given, rather than after class when you review your notes can also help to make connections between concepts and enhance understanding.
A study completed on college students studying on their own showed that more active methods such as summarizing and paraphrasing were associated with better course performance whereas students who used more passive methods such as just copying notes had lower course outcomes.
This shows that active note taking methods are better than just writing down the information verbatim. Students also tend to remember better when they wrote summaries of their notes rather than just reviewing them from a written copy.
The best method was when students created their own version of the content by rewriting their notes into a new form.
Reading your notes is essential to improve retention, however this should be done after class while studying rather than during class while trying to write down everything being said at the same time.
When reviewing your notes you are better off using questions that require higher order thinking (Why is this important? What is the main idea?) rather than questions that require rote memory (What was this lecture about?).
Best Ways to Take Notes
The best way to take notes is to type them up. If you are typing you will have a typed copy of what you are reading it can be edited, searched for keywords, and copied. The other option is to write the notes down by hand. This option may mean that your handwriting will not be perfect but because writing by hand forces your brain to focus more on what you are reading it may help you better understand the material at hand.
How to take notes on iPad
One of the ways to take notes on your iPad is to input them manually. To input notes on your iPad manually, open up the Notes app and type away in it. Another way you can take notes on your iPad is by recording what you say through an audio recorder. Export these recordings to iCloud or Dropbox, then import them into the Notes app.
How to take notes from a Textbook
My favorite way to take notes from a textbook is by dividing the page into two columns with a title at the top of one column and notes for each section going down the other.
I find that I can better retain information when I do this because I am able to put my own thoughts about what is being taught in between the note-taking process.
Sometimes, too, I might also include quotations from the text as well as web links for videos or articles on the topic being discussed.
I would not recommend leaving large spaces of blank space in your notes as they then start to look more like rambling thoughts than actual structured notes.
If you then have difficulty later trying to figure out what you meant, it will be extremely difficult because your notes will not make sense.
How to take Cornell notes
I’ll give you a brief overview of how to take Cornell notes. First, read the passage and form a question about it in your head.
The question should help you figure out what parts of the text will be important to memorize. Write down a quick summary of the passage on one side of the page, leaving space so you can continue writing as you go along.
At first glance, there may seem like there is no correlation between mind wandering and ADHD symptoms, but if we break down ADHD symptoms into three categories: hyperactivity/impulsivity, attentional problems, and memory problems, it becomes clear that people with ADHD have excessive mind wandering because they have more trouble paying attention and memorizing things.
One way to combat this is by means of stimulant medication, such as Adderall or Vyvanse.
How to take Meeting Notes
Meeting notes are a quick summary of what happened in a meeting. They are written by someone who was present in the meeting who is generally skilled at writing.
The content of your meeting notes will depend on the objectives of the meeting, who attended, what people talked about, and what decisions were made.
The person taking the meeting notes should ideally be seated near the center of the table or in an area that has easy access to all attendees.
Meeting notes need to be taken down in real time so they should avoid distractions like reading materials, laptops, smartphones, or tablets.
It’s also best if they take their hands off any papers or objects that may make noise when moved because this could interrupt others in the room or distract them if they need to refer to the notes later.
The best people for this task are generally secretaries, assistant, interns, or assistants since they are often times already part of the meeting and will not be distracted by other responsibilities or tasks they may have on their mind. They can also take notes more discretely than someone who is completely new to the meeting.
If the notes are written in real time, they should be kept clear and concise to avoid confusion or repetition later on.
A paragraph is usually enough for most situations but it will depend on how the meeting was conducted so keep this in mind when taking notes. Some meetings may require more detail while others may just need a few bullet points to get the point across.
The notes should be written after the meeting has ended since it can often help jog people’s memory about what happened in the meeting and also lead to better insights, which may not have been known or discussed at that time.
Some companies even record meetings to ensure their accuracy for presentation purposes or because they need it as part of their legal procedures.
Before the meeting ends, the person who is taking notes should let everyone know that they are doing so and ask if there is anything else that needs to be added before the conclusion.
They can then wait until after it’s over to start writing things down. If they write too quickly, they may miss something that was said or they may write something that doesn’t make sense.
The same thing goes for taking notes on a computer during the meeting, which should be avoided unless there’s no other way to write things down since it can lead to distractions and errors.
How to take notes in Google Docs
To start taking notes in Google Docs, open a new document. When you open the document, it will appear blank and may appear difficult to navigate.
All of the functions and features can be found in the top menu in between “File,” “Edit,” and “View.”
It will also give you a bar at the bottom that provides you with different formatting options. Adding formatting will make your notes easier to read and more organized.
Once you have your notes written down, there are many ways to organize them so they are easy to use and find again.
You can list them under headings or color code them so they’ll all be together if you scroll through for reference.
You can also use tabs so each section is labeled directly and any notes you have there will appear under their name.
If you want to share your document with a friend or classmate, start by going to the menu again and select “Share,” then “Change,” and “Get link.” This will give you a link that can be shared with anyone who wants to read it.
How to take notes Faster
How does one take notes fast? When taking notes, it is best to be mindful of the following points: use abbreviations, use symbols, make diagrams, and use color coding.
