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10 Strategies for Science Students on How to Take Notes during Chemistry Class
You’ve just walked out of a chemistry lecture,
feeling like you understood everything the professor said.
However, by the time you sit down to study,
it’s like everything you learned has vanished from your memory.
As luck would have it, you jotted down a few things while you were in class.
In truth, your notes are supposed to help,
Unfortunately, they’re either too disorganized
or they’re missing key details.
If this sounds familiar, you know first-hand how frustrating it can be.
Note-taking, especially in chemistry can sometimes be overwhelming.
In fact, this is even harder when your professor is explaining certain concepts a little too fast.
Even though most students don’t like taking notes,
note-taking is a vital skill to have and learn.
It is extremely important if you want to master your learning material.
This guide will help you – as a student – get better at note-taking during Chemistry class.
1. The Split-Page Method
Have you ever heard of this method before?
If not, then you’re lucky.
Start by dividing your page into two sections with a straight line down the middle.
Use the left side for jottings during class.
Or if you want to write down your thoughts or anything else.
Use the right side for summaries and conclusions.
With this method, you get to capture everything without worrying about perfection.
Later, you can go through everything you wrote on the left side
and create a neat, executive summary on the right.
2. Underline Important Stuff
When you see something important,
Don’t waste any time, underline it right away.
This makes you see the key points at first glance during the review.
By underlining your notes, you’ll pay attention to important info in your notes.
This trick will make studying your notes easier and faster.
3. Highlight, Highlight, Highlight
When reviewing your notes, get a highlighter and mark important points.
However, you have to be careful not to highlight everything.
By highlighting, you can note what’s important in your notes.
A key thing to remember is to keep it minimal;
Don’t turn your notes into a coloring book
If not, everything will look important,
Which defeats the purpose.
4. Increase Your Writing Speed
The faster you write, the more information you capture.
Ensure you practice fast writing to keep up with your tutor.
By writing fast, you will get more info and won’t miss out on important information.
In addition, when you jot things down fast, you’ll have more time to study and understand the material.
5. Sketch It Out and Learn Visually
Sometimes words aren’t enough.
When you come across a tough concept,
Take a second to create a visual
It could be a diagram, chart, or quick sketch that adequately captures the concept.
By adding visuals to a concept, complex topics become easy to understand.
By adding visuals to your notes, you’ll understand better
And it’ll make it easy to recall the info later.
6. Active Listening will go a Long Way for You
Here’s an important fact to keep in mind.
Your notes are as good as your listening.
Make sure you’re tuned in and you understand what the professor is saying
Do this before you even start writing.
Active listening will help you pick important details that will be in your notes.
It’s about more than just hearing the lecture
it’s about thinking through and absorbing the material as you write.
7. Use Your Own Shortcuts
Create a set of abbreviations and symbols that make sense to you,
For example, using “Rxn” for reaction or “=>” for leads.
These abbreviations and personal shortcuts save you time
And they also help you keep up with the lecture.
Most importantly, they make your notes unique to you alone.
This way, it’ll be more meaningful and easy to study with the note.
8. Organize After Class
After the lecture, take a few minutes to tidy up your notes.
Fill in any gaps, rewrite anything messy
Also, organize your content logically.
Organizing yourself after class will help etch the material in your mind
It’ll also ensure your notes are clear and complete.
It’s like polishing your notes so it’s top-notch when you need them.
9. Plug in Examples
Whenever the professor mentions an example, or you come up with one on your own, jot it down.
Examples make you understand concepts and topics better.
Examples will go a long way in your notes.
They help you understand how theory can be used in real-world applications.
This makes it easy to understand and remember.
10. Make it a routine to Review your work
Make reviewing your notes a regular thing.
Don’t make it a habit to always cram everything the night before the exams.
A quick weekly review can do wonders.
By reviewing your work regularly, you move information from short-term to long-term memory.
This means you’ll remember the material when it counts,
Not on the day of the exam.
Conclusion
Don’t see taking notes as a chore.
With these hacks, you can transform your chemistry notes into a vital study tool.
Try every strategy we listed out, find what clicks, and stick to it.
However, if these seem a little abstract to you, we’re here to help.
Head on to CopyChemistry and reach out to us.
We’ll answer any questions you have and if you want something more.
We can assign a private tutor that will help teach you these techniques and more.
To wrap it up, step up your note-taking game to take you one step closer to getting an “A” in chemistry!
