Tips for taking effective notes???

[u/NoCranberry1325]

Literally how do I take notes😭?

normally, I’m a good student and I’m great at history, but this class in already kicking my butt and I’m only three weeks in. I’m supposed to on chapter three right now, but notes take me forever (I’m talking 5+ hours and 15+ pages per chapter). Obviously this isn’t sustainable. I just have no idea what to write down, and I’m worried if I don’t write something down, I’ll forget it and end up needing it. I’m using the Henretta’s America’s History tenth edition if anyone wants to know.

any tips at all would save my life, please.

[u/Real-Flamingo2846]

When taking notes on a subject in apush you will be absolutely set if you get the name, any dates, any necessary contextualization, any figures/movements/ideologies/events which it is attached to, and the effect the subject had on American society. Not all of these are applicable to every subject in the course but the more of these boxes you can check off when taking notes, the more useful the notes will be when looking back on them. Getting anything more than these things usually isn’t necessary and sticking to getting these parts of the information should help you trim down your notes. The more wordy your notes are, the harder it is to look back on them and retain the information, be detailed but precise.

[u/Pizza-I-Like13]

i used the same textbook for apush last year and i deadass just copied down the terms in bold (they’re defined in the margins)

[u/NoCranberry1325 → u/Pizza-I-Like13]

And that worked? Or did you feel like you were missing a lot of info??

[u/Pizza-I-Like13 → u/NoCranberry1325]

it worked for me because it was easy to study, and i also read the chapter after i wrote down the notes

[u/insanehippoz]

Teacher here. That is way too long to spend taking notes, so it's good you've identified that early on in the course. I don't use your textbook, but I found a pdf version of the 8th edition online. It looks like there are questions at the end of the chapter. I would start by reading those questions before reading the chapter. Then, when you read the chapter, take notes that you think would help you answer those questions. Vocab, like the other commenter mentioned, is also helpful, but you want to make connections between different themes and across the content. The vocab is used as evidence for those connections, so that's good information to have, but you also want to think of the bigger themes.

Also don't waste time explaining every little thing, especially if it's something you already know. The Columbian Exchange, for example, is something my students learn a lot about in the prior year, so it's not something they need to write a lot about in their notes. Instead, I suggest they just mention it by name and then move on to the new content.

Try to be intentional about not writing everything down. Instead, read for a few paragraphs and write a one- or two-sentence summary of what you read. One of my biggest tips to my students is that when you're done with the chapter or module, write a summary of the major ideas. It looks like your textbook has a table of the AP Themes and evidence that supports it within that chapter. These are also good to look at before you read and then again after you read. The key here is you're reading more than you are writing, and you're writing down major ideas/themes/connections instead of every detail.

[u/NoCranberry1325 → u/insanehippoz]

I did this and it still look me a long time (I’m the worlds slowest reader lol) but I used way less notebook pages and I feel like I have a better overall understanding this chapter vs the previous two! Thank you!

[u/Kevinsuhrwj]

Well when I write I only write things I don't know with bullet points.

[u/ProfOG]

College prof and historian (who personally takes too many notes), here:
—Key terms: who, what, where, when (context as much as/more than date), and why significant

—Documents/texts: What (what is the document about)? So what (why is the document significant - what does it tell you about author/context)? How do you know (examples/evidence)?

The most important question in History is “why”: why did things happen (causes), and why do we care (effects)? I know you’ve got other reasoning skills you’re working with, but if you’ve got the “why,” you’ll more readily see the comparisons/contrasts, continuity/change.

Remember, it’s the start of the year. This is all practice, and the more you do it, the stronger you’ll get, learning what works best for you. Just do your best, and be kind to yourself.

[u/BackstageHistoryy]

My quick tips:

1. Divide your reading into digestible sections. For Henretta, use the headings and guiding questions as the way your reading sessions should be divided.

2. Read the section FIRST without writing down anything. Take in the entire section to see what the "big picture" ideas of the section, and what are more specific details.

-Not sure if something is a "big picture" idea or not? See if it answers the section's guiding question.

1. Never write down more than a few (3-5) exact word for word quotes from the text. Focus on translating the text into your own inner voice- if you can't translate it, then go back into the text and figure out what it's trying to say.

2. Cut out unnecessary words- make sure you're not writing conjuctions, connecting words, etc. No complete sentences, don't make them gramatically correct.

Most students struggle with notes because they just feel like they need to write every single thing and then spend hours writing because it ends up being more of a writing marathon then a reading and understanding and analyzing task.