How I Take Notes for Class

-

Taking Notes


Hey guys! So since it's back to school and tests and quizzes are coming up, and so I thought that I'd start this quarter off with how I take notes. So this is what I like to do and I know that what I do may not work for everyone but this is what helps me. I recently tried some of these actually for the first time and I was amazed that it was easier for me to retain the information. 

1. Mind Maps 

I found this genuinely very helpful because I am a visual learner and with mind maps, it gives you a visual representation of how everything is related. This is a clear and constructive way of how different topics build upon each other, in classes such as AP Biology. Everything that you learn is co-dependent of the topics that you have previously learned. It's basically an organized brainstorm that you have to identify the relationships between topics.



Now you can do this online using sites like https://coggle.it/ where you can sign up for free! And this allows you to make mind maps and you can share them with your friends so you each can add a little piece of what you understand of the topic!

2. Take Notes

Using the review sections from textbooks, powerpoints that the teacher gave us on different school websites! Anything information that you can possibly get, I go on youtube a lot using people like Crash Course, Bozeman Science, or Khan Academy to help teach and explain further the topics that you're learning.



My notes are all made in class or during my summer classes and they are very simple. Just jot down the important and write any work down. After class, maybe not right after especially if you're in high school like I am but during that same day. Revise whatever you learned and add any more notes that you need so that when you go back that you can understand and connect everything that you have written down. 

3. Study Guides!!



Right now, I am studying for my Biology Unit 2 on Evolution and my teacher gives us these unit guides where we have a bunch of vocab terms and they all relate to the chapter, so with the mind maps I would expand on the topic and on the study guide I would put it in my terms so that I would be able to understand it. 

I add diagrams so that I can connect it back to the topics, and I use mnemonics or I create a story in order to connect the dots together. 

4. Flash Cards


These are to be used for just things that you might need to memorize, or like things you just need to know. I usually use these when in AP Lang, we are given prefixes and suffixes or just vocabulary terms that we'll be quizzed on soon. I just have a small stash in my backpack, that I can just take out because these are a must in high school! Especially, last year in French IV where all we ever learned was verbs and vocab so on one side you would have the French terms and on the back was an image, definition, synonym, and antonyms all in French.

So you can use so many different sources such as Quizlet, which is what I have been using for about 2015 and actually way before that and it such a life saver. It's very on-the-go thanks to its mobile app, so while I'm walking to the bus stop just do a quick revision, brushing my teeth I'll just get my phone out and I'll quickly play a little game so that I know that I know my words.  

There are honestly so many different ways to study, it genuinely took me a long time to figure out what works for me, and my style is still changing. So take the time to figure out if you're a hands-on learner, visual learner, aural, logical, etc. Studying is all to be fit around how you best take in the information, and it's definitely changing how you're able to retain the information. 


____________________________________By Shika Singh____________________________________


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Apps/Websites for Studying and School

-
Image
Hey guys! So with school halfway done with the first semester, we need apps that we can use to organize, study, and focus so that we can be successful this school year! So I have compiled a list of my favorite apps/ websites that I use whether it's for studying for school, organizing my life in general, or just to track habits. 1. Quizlet This app is a way for students to learn any quick facts for school, which can help with English vocab, learning structures in a cell, or even just a foreign language verbs. This is a site where you can create and find flashcards that can help with your studies. Teachers can even use the Quizlet Live which is a game that challenges students memories in order to give a fun, lively, and collaborative activity to bring the students to challenge themselves and each other. Overall. this is such a great way to test yourself on the basis of reconnection of pictures to words or words to the definition. 2. Toggl Toggl is...
Read more

Night Before An Exam!

-
My AP Exams are the next three days: AP Biology, AP Calculus AB, and AP Language and Competition. So I am definitely going to be following some of these tips to a T. So relax and don’t stress or try to cram because the night before a test, there is nothing new that you will be able to learn for the next day.  Disclaimer:  These tips won’t work for everyone but they might help slightly. 1. Know What You Need:  You’re going to need different items for different exams, such as my Biology and Calculus exams, I will be needing a TI-84 calculator. However, for all of my exams, I will be needing a black or blue ink pen for my free responses. Know if you need your ID, pens/pencil, calculator, dictionary, etc. 2. DON’T CRAM:  Cramming will not get you anywhere, in fact, you’ll be more likely to mix up facts. So you can revise what you have already learned but there’s no way that you’re going to be able to fully comprehend and understand a topic. Don’t attempt to learn a ...
Read more

Plan The New Month With Me

-
Image
Welcome, everyone! Happy February! I know that when this goes up, it'll be well into February, but I am just using this as a basis to get everyone motivated to either plan your month to the dot or just simply get an idea of what your month will look like. How I do this is two different methods, one is a bullet journal and the other is a planner from Plan Ahead . (not sponsored) Why?: When looking at your month in a bigger view, it gives you time to think and plan ahead of time yet also it's just another way that you're going to be able to look back and be like, "Wow I did a lot this month." Personally, I don't like when a planner gives you daily and weekly layouts, so I ripped all the weekly/daily pages out of my planner. Just so that I am able to have a wider view, plus it has enough space in the boxes to the point where I can say Chapter 28 is due, Cell Signalling Test, and Photosynthesis Lab today all in the same box! How?: I had a bullet journal ab...
Read more