The Most Effective Secret to Enhancing Memory - Classic Memory Techniques Known by People with Excellent Memory

Author: Liu Chang / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-07-01
Features: Make notes a "super dictionary"
Textbooks are important, but don’t mistake them for a solution to all problems. Textbooks provide the basic framework of knowledge, but to flesh it out, you must revisit your notes. Taking notes isn’t about copying what’s already in the textbook—it’s redundant and time-consuming. Moreover, if you don’t even know which parts to write down, your notes won’t serve any purpose. Notes must function as a "super dictionary." The principle is to systematically organize essential foundational knowledge and application items. So, does taking notes mean writing down everything the teacher says? A teacher once said, "These days, students really go all out in taking notes. Some even write down every word the teacher says." Students who write down everything verbatim are no different from stenographers in a meeting. They take notes for the sake of taking notes, which is pointless. Moreover, reviewing them later will take a lot of time, reducing efficiency. Taking notes isn’t about being more detailed—it’s valuable to rewrite what you understand in your own words after listening carefully. Therefore, notes should be concise and clear, allowing you to grasp the main points of the lesson with a quick glance, without writing down every single sentence. To create such an outline requires some thought. This "super dictionary" should be a simple and comprehensive notebook. Generally, it should include: doubts discovered during previewing, key points from the teacher’s lecture, reference materials, clippings from newspapers, examples, practice problems, common mistakes, alternative solutions from classmates, and more. Only by organizing all these contents into one notebook can it truly function as a "super dictionary."
How to Take Class Notes
First, in terms of content, focus on recording the following:
1. Record the teacher’s blackboard notes. These represent the teacher’s thought process and key content. Such as: basic headings, definitions, principles, striving for accuracy. Also, diagrams, tables, text explanations, key terms, persuasive data, and typical examples drawn on the blackboard during problem analysis.
2. Summarize the teacher’s explanations concisely, especially the analysis of examples, which is the essence of classroom teaching and should be recorded as much as possible.
3. Note any sudden insights or alternative solutions that occur during listening, especially the best approach.
Second, in terms of layout, pay attention to the following two points:
1. Notes differ from textbooks—they are primarily outlines for self-review. Therefore, the layout should also differ from regular textbooks, aiming for simplicity, clarity, and vividness. Include all key, difficult, and confusing points, but don’t copy the teacher’s exact words, or you might miss the next part of the lecture while busy taking notes.
2. Don’t write notes too densely—leave some space on the left, right, or bottom of each page for future additions.
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