Gabi Pontell's Note Taking

Taking efficient notes is a crucial skill to have in college both in and outside of class. Notes help you learn the information, as well as study it. Notes are essential in order to anticipate test questions, and will help you prepare for tests.

The note taking strategy I tried was the Jeopardy Note-Taking Strategy for my political science class. Because the class consists of mostly reading, taking notes during lecture reiterates what we read before class, and helps create a better understanding. In the beginning of the year, I would do the reading, but the notes I would take in class weren't beneficial because they were unorganized and didn't contribute to my understanding of the material.

The Jeopardy note taking strategy is very easy to do. Go to class as you normally would, but separate your paper into two halves. Only take notes on the right side of the page during the lecture. After the class is over, reread your notes and on the left side of the page, create a question corresponding to your notes on the right side. *Be sure to identify major points and underline or star significant points to emphasize importance.*


Here are my notes:















The strategy helped me separate ideas and main points which assisted in improving my understanding of the class topics. Not only that, but creating questions on the left side of the page helped me study and anticipate potential questions on the next exam.


I used a different type of strategy for note taking in my Addictions in Cultural Context class. This time, I used the SU/Cornell Note-Taking System.

Before Class:
Draw a vertical line 2.5 inches from the left side down the page. This is now your recall column, where you will later reduce your notes.

Next, trace the first horizontal line across the page and to the top of the paper to create your summary box.


During Class:
Record your notes in the large box on the right side of the paper.


After Class:

1. Reread your notes
2. Reduce your notes on the left in the recall column by using key words or terms that will help you remember the information.
   **This is best to do right after class**
3. Summarize your class notes a day or two later in the summary box at the top of the page.
4. Review the recall column and summary box once a week.

Here are my notes:















The SU/Cornell Note-Taking System wasn't as helpful as the Jeopardy Note-Taking Strategy for me. Maybe it would have worked better for a different class. Although not as beneficial, it helped me organize my thoughts and summarize a whole section of notes. Also, it was helpful to break down the notes into the left column because it made the main ideas stand out. We have a final paper to write in this class and I feel as though it would be helpful to use the SU/Cornell strategy to take notes while I do my research. I can write down all of my notes and break it down into main ideas, or potential body paragraphs for my essay. Also, the summary will be helpful because it basically summarizes all of my notes.