HELP - Note Taking Instruction

[CyndiLJ]

I need help...big time.  I need a short instructional sheet, samples, etc. of how to take good lecture notes and/or notes from reading.  I don't need a complicated system to try and teach for my ELL learners, just a simple, easy to understand set of instructions or a guide sheet that shows them formats for good notes.  I have one child, in particular, who wants to rewrite the entire lecture, and others who can't seem to "see" how to organize their thoughts into good study notes for later use but they understand the material.

 

I don't need a huge semester long course, but I might like to have a few different examples of styles so they can visualize what I am talking about.  What I think won't work is a complicated (even slightly complicated) system for upper level learners.  Basically, I need 4-6th grade instruction level for this skill.

 

Anyone have any idea where I might find something useful?  I keep finding upper high school/college level instructions for note taking, and it is too advanced for us.

 

(I also need a good review of library skills that is clear, short and sweet, too, if anyone can point me in the right direction.)

 

As always, so appreciative of my Brain Trust here who always seems to know what I don't!

 

 

[mom31257]

Take a look at this thread from the high school board. 

[Cosmos]

We need to work on this here too!

 

Do a google search for Cornell notes. There are lots of tutorials and even youtube videos. People have put so much helpful stuff on the web devoted to study skills. I don't have any specific links but I've looked in the past and found lots of helpful information.

[SailorMom]

I think Cornell notes is the way to go.  It's very simple - there's even a chart :) 

No one method works well for everyone, but I think it's a great place to start, and then the student can go on from there to find whatever works best for them.

[mom31257]

I remembered that the CLE Language Arts I'm using includes note-taking, so I looked ahead in the books I'm using this year. The LightUnit 406 (4th grade) has teaching about taking notes. There is practice spread through the workbook, too, because the program is spiral. Lessons give the students a list of notes and ask which don't fit the subject. Then the student writes a paragraph using the remaining notes. There is a section on taking notes giving examples both bad and good on using phrases, sticking to the subject, being accurate, and using your own words.  There are short articles to read and take notes from throughout the book. The student picks a topic and takes notes from outside sources, such as an encyclopedia, and writes a paragraph about it.

 

I really like it and look forward to doing it with ds. He is in 5th grade, but when I switched to CLE, there were a few things covered in the 4th grade that I didn't want him to miss. The workbooks cost $3.35 each. You'd have to pay shipping I suppose, but I think it might be a good investment. I also believe LU 507 in CLE's LA is a research paper, so it may have good teaching on note-taking as well. 

 

 

 

 

[Staceyshoe]

We are using Scholastic's Note Taking Made Easy and Youtube videos about Cornell notes.

[Momling]

We do note taking with short lecture videos -- currently Crash Course Chemistry, world history or sometimes khan academy or other 10 minute lectures. I take notes with the girls. I'll write down things I think are important and we talk about how we know that it's an important idea or what we think the point or the big picture is... I show them how I organize my notes - usually outline form. It's really heavily directed/guided learning. Every Friday I give a quiz that I make from *my* notes over the previous 4 mini-lectures and they are allowed to use their notes on the quiz. So, if they have been careful with their notes and kept them in their notebook and wrote legibly, they do great. They're getting good at it. At first, I would stop regularly and pause the video, but Now we watch once without note-taking, and then watch a second time while taking notes (without pausing). I'm trying to get them to keep pace with a lecturer. Eventually, I plan to stop taking notes with them and just give quizzes.