TEXTBOOK NOTES

Textbooks tend to have way more information than you really need to know. Here's how I simplify and pull out the essentials.

It's not helpful to write down everything in the textbook. You won't remember anything, and it'll be harder to sift through when reviewing and studying. Instead, start by reading a section, then shorten and simplify it using language you understand. Make sure to write down major points from the text and include info mentioned in class by your professor.

For notes taken before class, either leave room for lecture info (similar to the Cornell method) or place sticky notes alongside matching content. After class, some people like to rewrite their notes to include lecture notes, but it's a lot of work. Instead, you can mark down in the old notes where to find the in-class notes. You can better organize by using color coding, different headers, graphs, tables, etc.

My Note-taking System

Before I start my notes, I choose one color for the highlighter and pen. Having a color scheme can make the notes more interesting to look at and make information easier to go through, but too many colors can be confusing and distracting. For language notes, I use the colored pen to write examples and the highlighter for headers and underlining important phrases. For non-language notes, I use the colored pen for vocab and headers, and the highlighter for important information. All other info is written in black pen and organized with bullet points.

To add interest in language notes, I make tables for irregular conjugations, use brackets next to paragraphs for quick summaries, and use arrows for details. With non-language notes, I use

arrows for details, put shapes around major info, and draw diagrams or charts (where they apply).

#notes #studying #language