Taking Notes in School

Many students groan at the prospect of taking notes and dread the very activity. A good reason exists for this fact, as note taking can be a very intimidating activity. Given many students are unable to take notes. Schools tend to sometimes expect students to know how to take notes. Unfortunately, valuable time and resources are not wasted on this essential concept. So what is a student to do? How are they supposed to take notes?

How Should Students Take Notes?

Obviously, the medium of your note taking is rather important. Some classrooms will allow students to bring laptops. Said rules will vary from teacher to teacher. So be certain to check, because a laptop may be confiscated and may not be returned. Otherwise, the old fashion approach of a notebook and pen or pencil will have to do.

Teachers will have their own style of lectures. Some educations may write on the black board or white board. Other educators put only bullet points. Other teachers yet will not even use the black board. Some may put notes up on a projector. Others will just talk for a half of an hour or more and can ramble on at points.

The key for note taking is to pick out the important points of what the teacher is saying. Transcribing the entire lecture will be impossible and likely rather stressful as well. It is a good key to pick up a certain key terms. Supplement said notes with more notes from any assigned reading your teacher may give you during that day. It is all about getting valuable information to study for finals.

A word to the wise, notes will help the student recall information in the lecture better. However, one must also pay attention. If anyone gets too far behind in their note taking, it may be a sign there are too many notes being taken. There are ways where too few notes will be taken. A happy medium should be found when the important points of a classroom lecture are written down.

Notes will help. It may be hard to find a proper medium first but it will be worth the effort. Trial and error is required, but note taking is something that should be done by each student. Everyone will have their own style when doing this activity. Work with what is best for you and your learning habits, as you will gain the best classroom experience.