Depending on how fancy your note taking expectations are, they can also prepare students to write an outline for an upcoming research paper. Outlining: Outlining is beneficial because it doesn’t require students to do anything other than organize the information into headings and related information. The following approaches can help students make meaning from their free style jottings. However, it’s important to take free style notes a step further by teaching students how to reflect upon their notes and reorganize them. This strategy is good for students who have a hard time listening while they are also trying to analyze and organize. I call them free style notes because students just write down all of the information they find important as they listen, not worrying about where they are putting it or what it relates to. It’s also important to think aloud about why you are writing down some information but not others…why you are placing information in a specific area on your notes.įree Style: Free style notes (as I like to call them) are my favorite place to begin. As I do, I talk about the benefits and drawbacks to different note taking strategies. I try to incorporate a different type of note taking approach each day during mini-lessons at the beginning of the year. They also need to understand that they have the power and responsibility to choose the mode that best fits the content being delivered. Students need to know that there are different ways to take notes. We want students to view notes as documents that are worthy of attention from and communication with a teacher.īecause one of students’ main struggles with note taking is not knowing what to write down, providing feedback will help students to know whether they are writing too much or too little. A grade is not really necessary, but feedback is beneficial because it will help students to know whether they are on the right track and where they have room for improvement. When you first begin asking students to take notes, make sure to give them feedback. I wouldn’t recommend this fancy paper approach for the whole year, but it’s a fresh approach for a unit that’s heavy on note taking. Whenever I asked them to get out their cloud notes so that we could add to our Odyssey timelines, I never heard one groan. Their enthusiasm about taking notes on stationary was much greater than I had anticipated. It had been sitting in my double door cabinet for a couple years, and I thought it might interest the students to use it. One day, I found some stationary that had clouds on it. Colored pens, highlighters, and even colored paper can add some pizzazz to an otherwise mundane task.Īnother success I’ve had with note taking is simple. I encourage students to color code their notes to help them recall information. Research shows that color has brain benefits with memory. You can also share this note taking infographic with students or have them create their own based upon their research about the benefits of note taking. Then, have them make connections between the benefits of note taking and those skills. Have them research soft skills that are highest in demand. Explain to students that most employers demand soft skills. This is also where you can start to differentiate. It’s easier to stay organized with class material with notes than without. It’s easier to study with notes than without. In addition to the research proven benefits mentioned above, note taking will also help them to succeed in their classes. How does it benefit them both now and in the future? The now aspect is simple. Students want to know why they should take notes. Tips for Teaching Note Taking Strategies Explain the relevance. Note taking improves focus, attention to detail, organization, creativity, prioritizing, comprehension, and retention. For one, studies have shown that taking notes by hand helps students process the material better. I’m not saying that taking notes by hand is the only way to succeed in life, but I do think it’s imperative for secondary students to learn note taking skills. They will pull out their iPads or cell phones and proceed to screenshot the notes I display.After I ask them why they aren’t taking notes, they will claim, “We don’t know how!” They will stare at my like I have food stuck in my teeth.If I utter these words to my students without first teaching them strategies and expectations for note taking, I’ll generally find one of two outcomes: Please pull out your notebooks so that we can begin. Okay class, today we are going to be taking notes during our mini-lesson on summarizing. Looking for ways to teach note taking strategies, but not sure where to begin? Keep reading.
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