writing notes

[ushop]

How did/do you write your notes? For the classes that don't interest me, I either doodle or write exactly what's on the projector. I get lost in writing my letters the right size and distance apart.

But when I really think, my notes are different: My handwriting is messier, and I don't bother staying within the lines. I draw arrows to connect ideas, and boxes around text to separate my random thoughts from what the professor is saying. I'm the girl who writes hunched over the desk with her nose to the paper.

I have a "main binder" that I carry with me every day. One of my fears is that I'll go to class unprepared by grabbing the wrong binder, so I just carry the one then separate my notes later. Each class lecture is held together with a paper clip. (I love paper clips!) At the end of the week, I then reorganize the notes into a binder for each course. A copy of the syllabus goes first, followed by papers and drafts. The notes follow, with the latest notes towards the back.

Aaaand now it's time to finish organizing my philosophy binder. :)

[logan235711]

actually I skip most of my classes and only come when I have specific questions for the prof. i usually don't take notes for math and equations based classes but write out alot of potential patterns or correlations and then try to formulate ideas from those--so just alot of messy pages with lots of numbers. and for less equation based classes i write notes on the margins or arrow to specific passages that i bracket off for comparison with other material in the writing. sometimes i also number ideas so i can quickly reference the # later in the writing easier. lastly on books i will usually write an outline of each chapter which is subdivided into concepts.

[HackerX]

I spent a lot of my lectures at uni reading books, or listening to music.

I don't remember writing a single note in a lecture

[Max T]

But when I really think, my notes are different: My handwriting is messier, and I don't bother staying within the lines. I draw arrows to connect ideas, and boxes around text to separate my random thoughts from what the professor is saying.
ushop- I really recommend you google 'mindmaps' and, if interested, get the book by Tony Buzan.

Mindmapping is a very intuitive style of taking notes where you can condense several pages of traditional notes into one page.
The key to mindmaps is writing the single word that recalls your whole thought on a niche area in a subject.
Mindmapping works so effectively because it is a style of note-taking that your brain can easily memorise. 'Easy to memorise' through adding shapes, colour, structure and being very quick to revise compared with traditional notes.
Traditional note-taking- reams of bullet pointed detailed sentences- are very difficult to recall in comparison.

Recall is all that matters- not how neat and detailed the notes appear.
Many students fall into the trap of thinking that neat and detailed note-taking feels like such hardwork that it must be better memorised as a result.
Instead, detailed note-taking diminishes recall. Record notes in the mannner the brain thinks via mindmapping.

[Sevs]

I don't do notes I don't know why never done and possibly it will break me my neck onde day but so far It goes alright.

What I tend to do is listne in lectures and if something is einteresting enough i WILL remember it conversly if something bores me there is no way im going to remember.

What i then do is I go away and do every single question on the topic i can find and i won't rest until ive done all them. When i did my A levels i would sometimes spend up to 3 hours on a single maths question until i finally cracked it- best feeling ever btw.

[Rei]

I do a similar thing with the binder
but mainly because I'm not about to carry 4 different binders for 4 classes I have back to back that day... well... that is if I even show up to class...

I really hate having to pay attention to what the prof is saying and copying down notes at the same time. I'm glad most of my profs post their notes online, so all I really have to do is print them off so I could actually pay attention to what the prof is saying and just jot down linking comments.

I really do prefer to write notes with arrows and stuff because it simplifies and connects ideas much faster than words can convey. (I also colour-code for better reading. (One colour for the actual note, one colour for example questions, one colour for example answers, another for things to pay attention to.) But usually I'm not awake enough in lectures to make such connections so I just copy down whatever I receive unconsciously and try to make sense of it after.

SIDE NOTE: For anyone reading this who is still in high school I definitely recommend AGAINST getting into the habit of not writing down notes unless you have an absolutely amazing memory. I never really wrote notes in class in high school and I did perfectly fine. But in university, you're either too tired to suck up the information, or there's WAY too much to remember it all. Which is horrible because the exams are a CRAP LOAD more specific (and worth a crap load more marks) compared to high school exams; which means you have to know your stuff a CRAP LOAD better than the vagueness and ridiculous simplicity that is high school.

[rwyatt365]

In college I would write copious notes - pages upon pages with diagrams and pictures and everything.

And would never (or quite rarely) look at them again!

What would happen is that, if iI write something down then I can remember it. Once it's there as a concept in my mind I can recall the concept. That's all I needed for tests. I do the same now for work; if I need to remember something then I write it down.

[Rei]

In college I would write copious notes - pages upon pages with diagrams and pictures and everything.

And would never (or quite rarely) look at them again!

What would happen is that, if iI write something down then I can remember it. Once it's there as a concept in my mind I can recall the concept. That's all I needed for tests. I do the same now for work; if I need to remember something then I write it down.

That's true... whether you look at it again or not, writing it down makes sure you're really paying attention to what's going on. I'm horrible for spacing out during lectures if I'm not planning on making notes.

[OneBadMother]

I write notes, at the cost of paying attention to what the teacher is saying out loud. It's mostly so I can run through the notes the night before or the night before the night before a test in order to cram it into my mind. It's really the lab work and activities that gets me to learn best, though.

[Figmentum]

I wrote down any big words and any connection between them.