How to take notes in class without falling behind

Before the lesson

Spend two minutes looking at what the lesson is about: the title on the term planner, the last page of your notes, or the chapter heading. Knowing the topic in advance makes it much easier to tell a main point from a side comment.

Start a new page with the subject, the topic and the date.

What to write down

• Anything the teacher writes on the board or repeats.
• Definitions, formulas and dates, exactly as given.
• The reason behind a point, not only the point. "Why" is what exam questions ask for.
• One example for each idea.
• Anything introduced with "this will be in the assessment" or "a common mistake is".

What to skip

Skip stories, repeated explanations of something you already have, and anything that is already word for word on a handout. Put a mark on the handout and move on.

Write less, in your own words

Use short phrases and your own abbreviations. "Govt raised rates, so borrowing fell" is a complete note. Putting an idea into your own words forces you to process it, which copying does not.

Leave space. A blank line between ideas gives you room to add things later, and makes the page far easier to read.

When you get lost

Write a question mark in the margin, leave a gap, and keep listening. Trying to fix one missed point in the moment usually costs you the next three. Ask at the end, or look it up afterwards.

The ten minutes after class

Notes are at their most fixable straight after the lesson, while you still remember what was said. Read them through once, fill in the gaps, finish the half sentences, and underline what you did not understand. Ten minutes that day saves an hour in exam week, when the same page would be a puzzle.

Recording the lesson

If your school and your teacher allow it, recording a lesson lets you listen properly instead of racing to write. Always check first, since many schools need the teacher's consent.

Grasp can record a lesson, transcribe it and draft notes while it runs, then save the notes into that subject's notebook. The audio is not kept. You still need to read the notes afterwards and fix anything that is off, for the same reason you would check your own.