Note-Taking Chapter 7!

Chapter 7 was a great chapter! I loved reading about all the different ways to take notes and how to set students up to successfully take notes. I really LOVE the idea of structured note taking. I had a teacher that made pre-structured outlines for us to use to take notes. This was extremely helpful to me and a lot of other students in the class. I agree with the book that it is very important to prepare students for taking notes. It is significant that students are taught note taking skills. If students are not taught note taking skills then they cannot be reliable to make good notes when listening to a lecture. The “Split Page” note taking skill is a great way to allow students to take notes. I like this method a LOT!

It is important that teachers present information that the students are taking notes on clearly. The information should also be presented in a way that is easy for the grade level to understand and comprehend. Some grades are going to struggle more with note taking than others. It can also be helpful to explain to the students WHY they are taking notes. If it is something that they think is going to be a total waste of time, then they most likely won’t put much effort into it. It is a good idea to stress the importance of note taking. Ex: Note taking IS important because you will need to review this information before the test. Explain that you will not go over the same content over and over and that students should take notes so that they can remember and study what was said in a particular class period. Another thing that is important to me is ending each class or subject with a review of the content. All students should be able to answer some questions teachers might ask after reading a passage to the students.

Quote from text: "While people may have different ways of taking notes, I do believe that it's a skill that can be taught. I also believe that students need to be shown how to take notes - good notes - that they can use later."

Question:

1) How can we get students to WANT to take notes automatically?