7 Keys to Effective Note-Taking
6 MINUTE READ • NOTE-TAKING TIPS
As a high school student, learning to take good notes is one of the best things that you can do to ensure you succeed in your education. Effective notes can help students retain information, solidify knowledge, study efficiently, and take better tests. Not only can it help you to become a more successful high school student, but note-taking skills can also help you be successful in college and beyond.
One of the challenges is that note-taking doesn’t come naturally to many students. It’s a skill that has to be developed through practice and regular attention. How can you become good at taking high-quality notes? Here are 7 of our best tips to help you get started:
Minimize distractions
Distractions are always the enemy of success. This is even more true for online students. Distractions come in all shapes and sizes, but one thing is always true: if your focus is divided you are bound to miss some important information. The next time you sit down to go through a lesson, try turning notifications off on your phone or computer. Are you in a quiet place? Is there music or tv in the background? If you are distracted while trying to listen to a lesson or lecture, the notes you take will never be helpful enough to make a difference for you as you study them later.
Main points, summaries, terms, & outlines
Note-taking is all about catching the most important information, not about catching every detail. Don’t overwhelm yourself by trying to write down everything your instructor says, word-for-word. Practice listening for main points, summaries, important terms, etc., and then add them into your eNotes or your own handwritten outline.
Pay attention to cues from your instructors
If you listen closely during lessons and lectures, instructors often give verbal cues that can help you know what things you should focus on as you take notes. Your instructors want you to succeed, they also know what is going to be on the exams. So when your instructor says things like: “in summary...” or “lots of students miss this…” or “an important point is…” - those phrases, and others like them, should catch your attention and make you highlight or write down whatever you hear next.
Be consistent & stay organized
Consistency in note-taking is key. Whether you use color-coding, numbered outlines, timeline sketches, note cards, or post-it notes, try to be consistent. If you highlight dates in yellow, try to always highlight dates in yellow. Try not to bounce back and forth from one pattern or style to another too frequently. Your organization is also important. Don’t mix notes from multiple subjects or classes all into the same place. Lots of students find it helpful to have a separate notebook for each different class or subject. Keep your notes in order with dates and lesson titles at the top so you can effectively find what you need when you study. Disorganized notes can make studying more difficult later. Don’t waste your study time searching for notes that you forgot to label correctly.
Try writing by hand
With so many electronic and digital tools available, it might seem strange, but studies have actually shown that taking notes by hand (vs notes on a computer or tablet) can benefit students and make a big difference in the amount of information students retain. If you are able, try taking notes with a pen and paper for a while and see if it helps you. Check out this study that talks about the benefits of note-taking with pen and paper.
Try a few different proven methods
There are many different methods that you can try. The most important thing is that you try some. One method that we like for note-taking is called the ‘Cornell Note-Taking System’. While it was originally designed for college students, the Cornell method works great for high school students too. You can learn more about it here. You could also try another method called “Flow-Based Note Taking” described here: If you want to keep looking, there are other methods you can find simply by searching Google.
Find your sweet spot
Are you finding success with what you are currently doing? Different students learn in different ways, which is why the most important thing is that you figure out what is most effective for you! When taking notes, you don’t want to write down too little, but it’s equally important that you are not writing down too much. With practice, you can learn what method is just right to help you remember the right information and be best prepared for the tests you will need to take. Start by simply trying out some of the things we suggested above and see if your test results improve over the next few weeks. If not, keep trying other ideas until you find what works best for you!
If you’re struggling with writing your own notes, you might benefit from using guided notes. These are notes you can print or fill out virtually to help guide you through the most important parts of the lecture.
You can also use these notes on your end-of-course exams!
