Taking Awesome Notes

Mr. Hendy Industries

Learning Goal (LG)

WALT: use strategies to take short

and clear notes
Success Criteria (SC)

I know I am successful when I can

Make jot notes
Make my notes easy to read and understand
Identify important ideas from a text or while listening
Summarize important points and the main idea
What was the name of the girl who
won the third and final debate on
King of the Nerds yesterday?
What colour shirt was she
wearing?
What colour of hair did she have?
 Answers:
1:Danielle
2: Red
3: Pink

Did you remember her name after thinking about her hair colour?
Our brains label people, things, and
ideas almost automatically, but we
need to recognize and harness that
power! (cue evil laugh)
So, why do we take notes?

Hint: our brains try to take the easy way out

Next-Level Note Taking Strats

But first.
 #1
Remember to K.I.S.S.

Keep It Super Simple

Do some of YOUR notes look like this?
Lets see some examples

Note #1 Note #2
The battle of Passchendaele was a bloody and From July Nov 1917
terrible part of the first World War that marked
the beginning of the end for the British forces BF was like lake b/c heavy rain and
on the Western Front. The battle was long and
drawn out, lasting 4 whole months from July to artillery
November of 1917. The entire battlefield was
marshy bog land that had been waterlogged Cnds and Brits had 16,000 cas. Compared
because of the heavy rains and artillery to 57,470 day 1 for the Somme
barrages that destroyed dams in the area.
Luckily for the British and Canadians, there were First use mustard gas
only 16,000 casualties during the entire battle,
compared to that of the Somme which had Main Idea: battle happened b/c Brits
57,470 casualties in the first day. wanted land and used Cnds for it
How do we keep it soooooo simple?

Use abbreviations or texting language

Canadians = Cnds
Main Idea = MI
Important Point = * (star)

Focus only on the important points

BOLDED words, coloured words, anything
repeated by the teacher or in the text
Lets try to take a note together

It was no secret that Old Man Taylor had won the lottery the week before, and he'd
happily proclaimed, crazy old man that he was, that he'd never store his riches in
the bank. He didn't believe in such unpredictable things, not after the great market
crashes of the past. So when the two burglars broke into his house one early Sunday
morning, shortly after Taylor left for church, they thought for certain that they'd find
his fortune ready and waiting to be stolen. Search though they might, however, they
discovered nothing in his house but stacks of old magazines, heaps of disgusting
used tissues, and a bed so hard on the back that it would break the average man's
spine after a night's rest. They left, disappointed, a few stolen magazines their only
prizes... and when Old Man Taylor came home and found his front door broken
open, he grabbed three wadded tissues from one of his many garbage bins and
removed the $1,000 bills secreted inside. This, he thought, should be enough to
cover the damage.
I had moved to another city to study and needed a place to stay. Through an ad in
the local paper I found a reasonably priced room that belonged to a single woman
in her early forties. Mrs. Roberts was rather reserved, not exactly the talkative type.
Being kind of shy myself I didn't mind though.
However, I have to admit being a both surprised and a bit annoyed to find out that
she also had a young teenage daughter living with her - it was weird that Mrs.
Roberts had neglected to mention this fact in the ad, let alone tell me about her
when I moved in. I decided to not to bring it up as the kid seemed harmless enough.
She mostly kept to her room upstairs and I didn't see her much as I usually came
home late. I figured she was an awkward bookworm just like me.
Weeks went by. I only ever talked to Mrs. Roberts to discuss practicalities such as
laundry hours, she was quiet even by my standards. One Friday afternoon I met her
in the hallway. She had done her hair, had a nice coat on and carried flowers in her
hand. I decided this was a good time to break the ice and said, "looks like someone
is going on a date!" with the most enthusiastic smile I could muster. She smiled sadly
and replied "Oh, I'm afraid not. These are for Emily. Sorry, I didn't tell you. I had a
daughter. There was... An accident. It's her birthday today. She would have been
your age now."
Transmission Intercepted:
From: Theoretical Physicist Martin J. Balard
To: Redacted Government Email Address

The situation has been neutralized according to protocols set by redacted. Edwin Alden successfully
travelled to another dimension and returned. However, there were unforeseen consequences that have
forced my recommendation to scrap the project. Following the sequence of events, I have halted all
cross dimensional travel for the foreseeable future.
Alden was held in containment and observed for seven days after spending two minutes and nineteen
seconds in a cross dimension. He exhibited no signs of physical or mental distress. Mr. Alden was taken out
of observation, debriefed, and released.
Alden entered the elevator for the surface with four other researchers, three male and one female.
Surveillance video footage shows ten seconds into the ascension, Alden began to cough. Facilities
elevators are equipped with bio-hazard detection systems causing them to stop and send distress signals
to bio-hazard teams that were dispatched.
Alden then began vomiting. The researchers trapped inside huddled to one corner maintaining their
distance. Alden continued vomiting before collapsing onto the floor. Moments later, a creature burst
forth from Aldens body. Slow motion footage shows the unidentified animal emerging from his body.
Blood spatter coated the camera obstructing our view of the creatures attack. The audio portion
confirmed the researchers were killed in a struggle. As per protocol, the elevator was released and
plummeted into the incinerator. All biological evidence has been destroyed.
We do not know how the creature entered Alden, all equipment functioned correctly. We believe the
creature waited for the opportunity to escape and multiply. Luckily, it failed.
 #2
Find a System that
Works Best for YOU
If youre a visual person, draw pictures and use
colour; but if youre a more logical person, use well
defined areas with straight lines
 Find the system that works best for you

Which would you choose?

 #3
Always summarize
hopefully with a friend
Summarize find the main idea and connect with
questions you may have
Follow these three steps and you
will find your studying much less
stressful and hopefully see your
marks go UP