Guide
Reading
Notes follow a structure of main ideas and supporting
ideas, details, and examples. It is the
most common note taking form, usually enjoyed by those that think rather
logically, literally, and concretely.
Rationale: Upon initial exposure to
information by reading, taking notes forces the active neural processing and
later provides an efficient source for review activities. Many other activities depend upon good
Reading Notes.
Instructions: Establish Basic Bulleting and Nesting practices, a Key of Symbols, and
abbreviations for Shorthand. Below
is a basic key to work from that indicates levels of importance and a few other
meanings.
BASIC
BULLETING and NESTING
Basic
Bulleting establishes levels of importance while maintaining
clarity. Nesting information, meaning using indentations at consistent
points according to the level of importance, will also establish clarity.
Example:
TITLE
·
Subheading, New Section
o
Generalization Main Idea
§
Detail
BASIC
SYMBOL USE
Develop a Key
of Symbols, kept as the first page, to develop consistent symbol use and
later decipher notes; the symbols will evolve over time.
Example:
¿
links an idea that would not
fit into the space available
c: concept
n: name
to identify
v: vocabulary words to look up
Ev: event
Ex: example
* further inquiry needed
ADVANCED SYMBOL USE
Example:
BASIC SHORTHAND
USE
Shorthand is the use of consistent abbreviations to speed
up the note taking process. This is
generally achieved by eliminating vowels except at the beginning of words.
Example:
b/w = between
c/f = called for
u/e = unemployment
ppl. = people
all. = alliance
ptcpt = participate
rsstnce = resistance
org. = organization
cnsrv = conserve
ADVANCED SHORTHAND USE
Advanced
Shorthand will involve categorizing abbreviations according to major categories
of information you approach
Example:
|
|A|
= Americans |AA|
= African Americans |W|
= Women |L|
= Labor |
pP = President pC = Congress pSC = Supreme Court pS = Senate |
gS
= South gN
= North gW
= West gNE
= gGP
= gRM
= |
eD
= Demand eS
= Supply eP
= Production e$
= Price eBM
= Bull Market eI
= Investment |
Ø General guidelines
·
Stay efficient
o
Paraphrase as much as
possible; only copy important subheadings or titles.
o
Eliminate basic prior
knowledge
o
Eliminate useless words
o
Use your Key of Symbols to
develop shorthand
·
Stay organized
o
Nest information
§
Use indents effectively
§
Use white space effectively
o
Be consistent with bulleting
and symbol use
o
Identify the importance and
type of information with appropriate symbols
·
Be robust and complete
o
Use sufficient examples and
details
o
Identify any quotes that may
be useful for essays
·
Don’t get caught up with how notes
look
Reading
Notes Rubric
|
# |
possible
points |
|
expectations |
points
earned |
|
1. |
6 |
Clarity |
Title, Reference,
Name, Date, and broader topic; page numbers |
|
|
2. |
Corresponds to a
Key of Symbols |
|
||
|
3. |
Stays within
Margins |
|
||
|
4. |
Uses spacing
effectively |
|
||
|
5. |
6 |
Organization |
Employs
bulleting |
|
|
6. |
Employs nesting (indents) |
|
||
|
7. |
8 |
Efficiency |
Concise word
choices |
|
|
8. |
Utilizes
abbreviations |
|
||
|
9. |
Utilizes Symbols |
|
||
|
10. |
N/A |
Thoroughness |
Thoroughly
covers topics within reading |
|
|
11. |
Completes
reading |
|
||
|
|
20 |
|
total |
|
Reading
Notes Example
|
|
|
