Teachers give the impression that taking notes is just writing down what they write on the board. True note taking is an art form they don’t have time to teach and have even less time and ability to enforce.
Taking proper notes is a 3-part process that starts before the lecture, picks up during lecture, and continues beyond lecture. Teaching something that goes beyond the class time is incredibly difficult for teachers, so they don’t bother trying to fit it in. Instead, they give glimpses of what proper note taking might look like through processes like Cornell notes.
The 3 parts of note taking are: pre-reading, lecture, and review. Performed properly, these three phases of note taking can expose you to a new concept enough for you to understand it and pass most tests.
Today, we are going to talk about…
Pre-reading
Teachers are always saying you need to read the book before class, but they never say what that means or why.
The first time a concept is introduced, it will be difficult to grasp. You will not understand it fully. That is why you need to read the chapter of the book before it gets taught in class.
The chapter may be confusing or feel out of context. You will probably have questions. In reading the book first and gathering those questions, the lecture your teacher gives will be much easier to understand because you have seen the concept at least once before.
Proper pre-reading isn’t just reading the chapter
Yes, you need to read the chapter of the book, but that isn’t enough. You need to take notes.
I know, work, ugh!
But trust me, taking notes on the chapter before the lecture is so helpful it will change how you experience lectures entirely.
Have you ever had trouble keeping up with the teacher? Do you spend more time trying to write the notes down during class than listening? That is because you didn’t do proper pre-reading.
Most teachers take the first few examples from the book. If you had pre-read and taken notes from the book, you most likely would already have most of your class notes. During class you can embellish those notes with things the teacher said that helped you understand the material.
Class becomes a place where those notes make sense and you can ask the teacher questions, instead of a frantic time trying to take notes and listen simultaneously.
How do you do proper pre-reading?
Get out your textbook and a notebook. Some people use two notebooks: one for pre-reading and one for the lecture. I prefer to keep it all in one notebook.
Set your book and notebook side-by-side and start reading. As you come to each concept, summarize or explain it in your own words, and write those down in your notebook. If you have a question about the topic, write the question down in a different color or highlight it. Make sure to leave space for the answer under the question so you can answer it right there.
If you are writing both your lecture notes and book notes in one notebook, only write on one side of the page for the pre-reading notes so you have space for the lecture notes on the other side.
When you get to a worked example, write down all the steps to the example and then write down what is happening in each step, in your own words. By translating the example into your own words, you will find it easier to articulate any questions you may have. It can be helpful to write your questions in a different color so you can find and answer them easily during the lecture.
Before class, skim over your pre-reading notes so they are easier to follow along with during the lecture and make note of any places you had questions. Ask those questions in class at the appropriate moment and answer them in the space you left for the answers.
When should I do pre-reading?
Ideally, you would pre-read the book before the course even starts. That will give you an idea on if you even want to take the course and if it will provide you with the information you need.
Obviously, that isn’t an option for most people. We don’t live in a world with infinite time. Try to pre-read each topic about a week before the lecture. If that isn’t possible, then get your pre-reading done by the night before class.
Have you tried Pre-reading?
Give pre-reading a try. It will revolutionize your lecture experience. Next we will cover the steps lecture and review. Follow me for more!
I find a lot of students struggle during lecture notes because they didn’t pre-read. I know I didn’t pre-read in highschool or my freshman year of college, and I suffered for it.
Thanks.