Executive Functioning

Structuring Your Notes for Success!

Posted by Monte W. Davenport, Ph.D. on

When taking, reviewing, and studying notes, it may be helpful to apply some structure so that you can better learn the information. This can be especially useful if your teacher or professor is not really organized in his or her presentation style.

Ask your instructor questions if you missed or don’t understand something: he or she will be excited to see how you are trying to structure the information presented.  You can also use your textbook to supplement missing or misunderstood information.

Try these suggestions to restructure the information you need based on your teacher’s presentation and testing style.

Biology, Anatomy, Physiology

  • Name of Structure/Chemical/Hormone/Process

  • Location

  • Context (System or Sub-System involved)

  • Importance

  • Function/Purpose

  • Processes

  • Important Components and Their Roles

  • Adjunct Processes

  • Pathology

  • Treatment of Pathology

Chemistry

  • Chemical Substance, Atom, Element, etc.

  • Composition

  • Structure

  • Properties

  • Phase

  • Energy

  • Changes, Interactions, Reactions, Transformations

History

  • What was the Event/Time Period?

  • When did it happen?

  • Who was involved?

  • Where did it occur?

  • Why did the event occur (Cause)?

  • What was the result of the event (Effect)?

  • Why is the event important?

English/Language Arts – Discussion of Literature

  • Author, Title

  • Date Written

  • Important Author Background (Why did he or she write this?)

  • Author’s Purpose/Goal

  • Setting

  • Characters (Protagonist, etc.)

  • Plot (Conflict, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, Resolution)

  • Use of Literary Devices

  • Importance of this Work

Business and Economics

  • Business/Organizational/Economic Structure

  • Goal/Priority

  • Context (Who? What? When? Where?)

  • Procedures, Processes/Steps/How it works

  • Benefits and Limits

Develop Your Own Structure

Try using these structures and watch for ways to structure your notes according to your learning style. Over time, you will learn how to structure your own notes!

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(c) 2010-2019, Monte W. Davenport, Ph.D.
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