Intense Study Organisation Tips

So, I know most of you (at least here in Australia) have already started school, but believe me its not too late to get in the habit of organising your notes. I'm mainly talking to high schoolers here, but it is all too easy to get carried away with assessment and teacher's stressing you out that you no longer have any idea where those notes you took on derivatives or ratios has got to! Now, to be honest it took me a good 4 years to finally find this system and I believe its a pretty good one, but keep in mind that everyone studies and works differently so this may not be your ideal organisation system.

This method I'm about to explain works best for math subjects or those with lots and lots a worksheets or questions from a textbook. I used it for my two senior years in high school and it was by far the most effective and simple way of keeping track of my notes. But I do hope it can be of some help to you!

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Normal Topic Notes
All the notes that your teacher writes on the board, example questions they do with the class, or handouts, write as normal (ie. all the things you do with your teacher in class). Note: 'handouts' are referred to here as those which just contain information, not questions. I will talk about what to do with 'worksheets' (ie. Questions) later on. Remember to title, date and glue in those handouts (you DO NOT want to lose these when it comes to study) and make them neat!

Worksheets with Questions
When you receive worksheets that you have to complete by your self (either at home or in class) allocate a highlighter colour to it. Highlight the title, the border, the picture or anything that tells you that that worksheet is 'green' (or whatever colour you decide). Now when you start working on that sheet in your book, highlight the corners of those pages with the same colour as your worksheet. This may seem strange, but what it does is show you very clearly where you did that particular worksheet in your book. It also shows you where you did your notes from class (as they will have white corners). So, when it comes to revising for the exam you can quickly flick to the pages you need. Another trick is to highlight the question number (on the worksheet) when you complete it and get the answer correct. This will enable you to know exactly what question you're up to if you don't finish the worksheet in one study session! When you're finished and completed the questions, don't glue it in, instead file it in a display folder or binder in the order you received them so again when your studying you have easy access to it and don't have to keep flicking back in your book.

Textbook Questions
Ok, so while I usually received worksheets from my teacher in school, I know there is a lot of you who work from the textbook. If this is the case then perhaps you may want to allocate one chapter or section a certain highlighter colour or if you only use it occasionally, just allocate the whole textbook a colour.

 

The trick for this system is to have lots of different coloured highlighters so that each of your worksheets is a different colour and that you always highlight the corner tabs of your book when working on question sheets. This way there is a clear distinction between the work that you do and class notes/examples. But, whatever way of studying and taking notes works for you, good luck!

Love, TVT (The Vintage Typewriter)

Those of you in College or University already, any good tips for organising your notes?