Some people buy a lot of good-looking books, but they always write a few pages and put them in the corner to eat ash; Some people are full of books, but their academic performance has not improved at all, and they gradually lose interest; Some people take notes as a part of their daily life, and even use various notes to plan their lives, and have made great achievements.
Since junior high school, I have been recognized as a note-taking enthusiast by my classmates. After freelancing, I have a good research on tools to improve efficiency. Today, I will introduce some notes that I personally think are more useful. Each note is accompanied by suitable situations and suitable people, hoping to help you with your study and work.
Function of notes
Before talking about how to take notes, let's think about a question: What are notes for?
Everyone must have met such students. They have been working hard in class and don't even want to lift their heads. But ask her what the teacher said in class yesterday. I don't know, I forgot.
Because a lot of knowledge can't be mastered by memory alone. Feynman learning method is recognized as one of the most effective learning methods in the world. One of the theories is that recording is only the most superficial learning, and only when you can explain your knowledge to others in your own words can you really master it. In other words, the most important thing in learning knowledge should be "summarizing, inducing and sorting out".
The reason why many people take notes is that they just regard notes as a recording tool, but in fact, notes should be a knowledge management tool. Taking notes is not to be a porter of textbooks, but to help you deepen your understanding of knowledge and establish your own knowledge framework system.
Understand this, and then learn how to take notes, in order to play its real "power."
Cornell notes
When it comes to taking notes, the first thing to mention is the famous Cornell note-taking method. It was founded in the United States in 1950s, and many famous scholars spared no effort to recommend it when sharing their learning experiences, which shows its high efficiency.
Its design is very simple, you just need to draw a horizontal line and a vertical line on an ordinary notebook:
The narrow column on the left is used to record keywords and tips, the large position on the right is used to take notes in class, and the horizontal bar at the bottom is used after class. You can sum up what you have learned in class to help you deepen your understanding.
When reviewing, you can cover up the detailed notes on the right, recall the relevant knowledge points according to the keywords on the left, and check for leaks in time.
The notes written in this way are clear and focused, and any missing places can be made up later. And you don't need to remember too many words, which saves a lot of time and is more suitable for courses that need systematic learning.
At present, there are many notebooks specially designed for Cornell notes. If you want to use the electronic version, you can also use note-taking software such as GoodNotes.
Outline note method
Outline note-taking is the most traditional and commonly used note-taking method. Its use method is very simple, that is, the knowledge points are marked with 1, (1), 1, (1) according to the hierarchy, and then the key points are distinguished with colored pens and markers.
This is my favorite method of taking notes when I review in senior three. Because it can help me organize the knowledge framework very efficiently, all the knowledge points are clear at a glance.
When I was studying chemistry in the third grade, the teacher also arranged a set of notes for us. A year later, my chemistry textbook was almost brand-new, but I got full marks in chemistry.
It should be reminded that to use this method well, you need to have a certain understanding of the knowledge structure of the courses you have studied, otherwise it is very likely that the teacher will talk on the stage and you will be immersed in a lot of books and write down a lot of things that you didn't remember at the end.
Moreover, because the outline note method is a linear record, once there are missing knowledge points, it is difficult to make up.
I suggest that you use Cornell note-taking method in class, and keep the outline note-taking method in the new class and use it when reviewing and sorting out.
Mind mapping method
It was not until I went to college that I came into contact with mind mapping. At first, I thought it was too fancy and didn't like it very much, but after sorting out my reading notes several times, I gradually couldn't live without it.
The presentation of mind map is not linear, but unfolds like a net or a branch. It can't record all the contents of going to school after class, but it can clearly show the knowledge framework.
This method is very useful for taking notes on subject reading, writing an article outline and sorting out fragmentation knowledge. A little tip, I suggest you use mobile app or computer software to do mind mapping. Handwritten mind maps are beautiful, but they are time-consuming to do and difficult to modify.
golden rule
If we want to say that the country that studies notes most thoroughly must be Japan. It is no exaggeration to say that the Japanese have a manual ledger. Finally, the note-taking skill introduced to you is the classic note-taking skill from McKinsey & Company in Japan-"golden rule".
The golden rule is simple to do, just remember one way of thinking: fact-explanation-action, that is, the present situation-explanation of the present situation-how to deal with this situation.
This method of taking notes is result-oriented, taking notes as a tool to find and solve problems, forcing you to think and make achievements while taking notes. Personally, I think this method is not suitable for students, but it is a good prescription for professionals who need to use their knowledge flexibly to solve practical problems.
Other preventive measures
1. Don't focus too much on the choice of notebooks and apps.
Since writing about learning dry goods, I have often been asked by my friends to recommend notebooks and apps, and some people have to find some unpopular ones to highlight their personality.
But what I want to tell you is that taking notes and learning the methods of taking notes are to improve your learning efficiency. If you spend too much time on tool evaluation, you will put the cart before the horse. In fact, each product has its own advantages and disadvantages, and the quality difference is not as big as everyone thinks.
If I have to recommend it, buy a binder with a separate core. Use a square when you need a square, and use a horizontal line when you need a horizontal line, which perfectly solves the problem of difficult selection.
2. Make a copy of your notes.
The finished notes must be backed up and archived, which is a bloody lesson for many predecessors! Paper notes are easy to be damaged and lost after a long time. It is best to save a file with photos in it on the computer.
Electronic notes should be kept not only in the software, but also in the computer. In case the internet is disconnected or the software is hung up that day, it's too late to cry. In addition, remember to give the document a good name, such as "date+subject/title". , with a unified format and timely classification, so that it is more convenient for future reference.
3. What suits you is the best.
Finally, I want to tell you that there is no such thing as the best way to take notes. What suits you is the best.
For example, I recently used a work-rest book, in which there is a column designed for people to plan the time of the day, but I regard it as a timeline, because I think the daily plan should be flexible, and I can't live according to the prescribed schedule like a robot.
One day later, according to the actual time spent today, summarize it in memo, find out what is a waste of time, and make improvements the next day.
When you study these notes, you don't have to make a standard answer like doing a math problem. No one can say that this note is right, and no one can say that it is wrong. If you think this kind of note-taking is more efficient in learning, then you can "personalize" the existing note-taking methods.