Note Taking Skills for Kids: 3 Steps to Better Notes
Good note taking skills for kids are central to academic success. Taking notes is a highly specialized form of writing, one that is simultaneously very individual and highly strategic. Note taking, while learned, is implemented through individual taste. Yet all practiced note takers possess the strategic insights that allow for the construction of meaningful notes.
Why are notes so important? The answer is simple. Notes allow for the initial organization of facts presented by a teacher to his students and serve as a resource for later assessment of that information. Because, rather often, the data provided by the teacher is considered to be important, notes provide you with a map of the teacher's thinking.
Of course, that is the cynical importance of notes. Far more significant is the capacity to use your notes to encounter the ideas presented to you through a critical lens. Notes provide you with the fertile ground for asking questions and confronting confusion. They provide a foundation for further inquiry.
Learning to take adept notes, therefore, is a skill that is emphatically critical to academic success. I want to share three simple tips for learning to take notes that will provide you with a structure that, no matter what your style of note taking is, will provide you with the tools for critical analysis.
Tip No. 1: Divide Your Note Page into Two Main Parts
I like to use "Law Ruled" paper for note taking. Law ruled paper has a left margin of about one-third the page, leaving two-thirds of the page for the main body of notes. The right side of the page is for classroom notes or notes from reading text. The left margin is perfect for making additional notes while studying.
Tip No. 2: Identify three to five Key Words on each page of Notes
Identifying key words or key concepts is important because these keys serve as a template to memory. By isolating key concepts or words your memory is able to retrieve all of the material represented by the isolated idea. It is these key words that trigger retention when you absolutely require recall, say at test time.
Tip No. 3: Re-read your notes at least Three times Every Week
Consider three times a week as a minimum not the maximum number of reviews of your notes. Every weekday would be ideal. Taking two days off for the weekend is also suggested as a small break. Focus on the key words while re-reading. If the keywords trigger a broad understanding of a concept then move on, nothing more is required. If not, read the notes referring to that idea and move on.
The form your notes take is not significant. What is important is that your notes both make sense to you and that your system allows you to easily retrieve information contained in them.
Why are notes so important? The answer is simple. Notes allow for the initial organization of facts presented by a teacher to his students and serve as a resource for later assessment of that information. Because, rather often, the data provided by the teacher is considered to be important, notes provide you with a map of the teacher's thinking.
Of course, that is the cynical importance of notes. Far more significant is the capacity to use your notes to encounter the ideas presented to you through a critical lens. Notes provide you with the fertile ground for asking questions and confronting confusion. They provide a foundation for further inquiry.
Learning to take adept notes, therefore, is a skill that is emphatically critical to academic success. I want to share three simple tips for learning to take notes that will provide you with a structure that, no matter what your style of note taking is, will provide you with the tools for critical analysis.
Tip No. 1: Divide Your Note Page into Two Main Parts
I like to use "Law Ruled" paper for note taking. Law ruled paper has a left margin of about one-third the page, leaving two-thirds of the page for the main body of notes. The right side of the page is for classroom notes or notes from reading text. The left margin is perfect for making additional notes while studying.
Tip No. 2: Identify three to five Key Words on each page of Notes
Identifying key words or key concepts is important because these keys serve as a template to memory. By isolating key concepts or words your memory is able to retrieve all of the material represented by the isolated idea. It is these key words that trigger retention when you absolutely require recall, say at test time.
Tip No. 3: Re-read your notes at least Three times Every Week
Consider three times a week as a minimum not the maximum number of reviews of your notes. Every weekday would be ideal. Taking two days off for the weekend is also suggested as a small break. Focus on the key words while re-reading. If the keywords trigger a broad understanding of a concept then move on, nothing more is required. If not, read the notes referring to that idea and move on.
The form your notes take is not significant. What is important is that your notes both make sense to you and that your system allows you to easily retrieve information contained in them.