Hey guys!
Today I'm going to be talking about how to take notes faster.
If your teacher posts lecture slides or other notes online before class,
Print them out.
You can take notes on these instead of starting from scratch and needing to write down all of the information.
Instead of writing down what your teacher says word-for-word,
Summarize the information and write only the key ideas.
You'll have to write less and this also helps you learn the information better
because you're actually understanding it instead of just copying it.
There are some super complicated shorthand systems out there
but I think making up your own symbol and abbreviation system is the most effective because you'll remember it
and it'll make more sense to you.
Here are some examples of symbols and abbreviations that I use.
For certain topics, there are also words that you use a lot, for example in these notes
I use the word "Renaissance" a lot because that's the main topic.
Instead of writing out these words over and over, make up your own abbreviation for it
Then write a note on your notes so that you know what it means when you're reviewing later.
Sometimes you just have to type, otherwise you can't get all the information down
If your teachers allow laptops in class, consider typing your notes because typing is a lot faster than hand-writing
The laptop I'm using is the Samsung Chromebook pro, and this video is sponsored by them
So I'll be giving away one of these at the end of the video.
Even if this wasn't sponsored, I would still highly recommend the Chromebook for note-taking
It's thin and lightweight, so it's easy to carry to class and it has a 10-hour battery life
Which means it'll definitely last the whole day
It's really easy to access Google Docs on this laptop, and you can also download your favorite note-taking app from the Play Store
Typing is the main reason for using a laptop
But if you ever want to draw diagrams or write notes digitally
This computer has a touchscreen and comes with a built in pen.
If your teacher won't allow you to use your laptop to type,
You just need to learn to write faster
There are some wild strategies out there for writing faster, but I feel like they take too long to master during this school year
So if you're on summer break or some other holiday,
You can check out the articles I linked in the description if you want to master one of these skills.
One way to write faster is to use smoother pens.
In general, rollerball pens are the smoothest, and then gel, then ballpoint and
Felt-tip tend to be the least smooth.
Besides changing your supplies, the only way I know of to increase your writing speed is to just practice a lot.
In most cases, rewriting notes is a waste of time
But if you write so quickly that your notes are practically unreadable,
You should rewrite them as soon as possible while you still remember most of the information in it from class.
To maximize the effectiveness of your rewriting, make sure you're organizing and clarifying the information
While you transcribe them into legible writing.
And now for the laptop giveaway, I am giving away the Samsung Chromebook pro that I showed earlier in the video.
This giveaway is open internationally and click the link in the description to enter.
I hope you found this video helpful
Remember to check the description to enter the giveaway
And I've also linked my Tumblr and Instagram where I post pictures of my notes
I also upload new videos every Monday and Friday.
See you next time!