Target Planner

For this week's blog I used the Target planner in two of my courses. I used it for the course Writing 105 and Psychology 205. I thought these two courses were the most important to use this strategy for because I have an essay due in writing this upcoming thursday, November 3rd, and I have an exam in Psychology this tuesday, November 1st. For writing, I first put to type the rough draft, and then meet with a tutor for revisions. I then went from editing my rough draft, and adding two more pages in order for enough length for the assignment, to meeting with a tutor again at the writing center for a extra credit homework grade. The last thing I wrote down was to make final revisions and ready to be turned in on Thursday by midnight. For Psychology, I have an exam coming up, so I decided to first write down to start studying using all the notes from the lectures and using strategys such as jeapordy notes to study. I then reminded myself to go to the review session today so I would know everything that would most likely be on the test. Lastly, I wrote down to see my tutor monday night and go over everything with her so I would be golden for the test on tuesday.

Throughout this semester of CLS 105 we've seen a countless number of strategies, most of which I didn't like and really didn't work well for myself and my classes, although it was expected with my heavily math-based coursework. Two strategies that I've found extremely helpful and really have a knack for are D's Do's & Due's and a portion of PowerPoint Notes. I use D's Dos and Dues in all of my courses and PowerPoint Notes in my Statics (ECS 221) course.

For my Dues and Dos, I write out all major assignments on the monthly portion of my planner and I divide each week of my calendar in half, the right side being a list of things that are due each day and on the left side a list of things each day of when I'm going to do my assignments. I usually plan out my Dos and Dues week on Sunday and as the week progresses, add anything new that may come along. I feel like this really helps me out because it keeps everything that I need to do in front of me and all in one place and helps to keep me on task. If there is a week that I don't do my Dos and Dues in my calendar, it's usually an "out of whack" week in terms of assignments, classwork, and overall productivity.

My second strategy, PowerPoint Notes, I use in my Statics class in which the professor has posted every lecture for the semester on the course website, since Day 1. I never really paid any attention to them at all until PowerPoint Notes came up as an assignment on the CLS syllabus. What I do is prior to lecture read the designated sections of the textbook, then read through a copy of the day's lecture PowerPoint and write notes down of anything I may not understand or want further clarification on. In class, with these notes I write anything down that may stand out to me in addition to anything that the professor may say that relates to the notes I wrote down prior to class. With the extra sheet of blank paper that I attach the end of the PowerPoint, I do a sample problem or two that relates to the material covered in the day's lecture. This strategy really aids me because it keeps me on top of the material, having me master it in the present so that review in the future is that much easier.

PowerPoint Notes definitely was a part of my much needed lifesaving in my Statics class as that was my uphill battle that I was forced to face this semester. as for D's Dos and Dues, it definitely has been a major aid in my academic successes this semester. As my friend Jameel would say, "I forgot, you're a 'D's Dos and Dues' guy aren't you?" These two strategies are fantastic in my opinion and can be used in a number of courses of different types of content for students with various learning styles.

Ranking My Targets

Using a target planner is one of the most organized ways to keep me on top of my assignments. This strategy is perfect for almost any long term assignment or exam. I used the target planning strategy in my WRT 105 class for a paper that was due last week. This was a great way to keep me on top of the essay. It spread out my work load to separate completing each part of the essay. I first set out a date for an outline. Then the next target was for my first rough draft. After that I had 3 more targets to set dates for. I made my next sub assignment, to check the paper and make sure all of the requirements were met. I also checked the content in this revision which is a huge part of what she basis the grading on. I then set a date to have a final revision for grammar and spelling which led me to create a final paper. This final paper was ready and set to be handed in on time and hopefully I will receive a high grade for all the time I put in it.

Another subject I used this strategy for is SOC 101. I used the target planner to not organize one big project but to figure out when I will complete all of the assignments I had. I had an essay, some readings, and a response to do for the reading. I used ranking priorities to see when everything was due and how much of an impact that assignment will have on my grade. This gives me a way to see in front of me what I need to put the most time into and when I need to do it. I figured that working on my essay a little bit everyday would be the best idea. This gave me time to do the readings and responses without falling behind on my essay. By combining ranking priorities and target planning this gave me a perfect sense of when and how much time each of my assignments needed. I am a visual learner and this was perfect cause I saw everything in front of me. I suggest combining these two strategies because it made me work really efficiently.

Visual Learners Guide to Time Management

Hey guys! I’m back with more strategies this week. If you missed last week’s blog update, just scroll down the blog page and you should find our older posts. Anyway, this week I decided to go back to an older strategy you guys might remember from the beginning of the semester. This strategy is a Time Management strategy called the Target Planner. I’ve used this strategy before to help me organize large projects such as my CLS interview Project, and my Acting performance project. This week I used this strategy in my WRT 105 class and my ART 253, or Survey of Film History. In my WRT 105 class, I have an essay due this up coming Tuesday, so what I did is made a Target Planner that chunked the essay into smaller tasks. At the center of my Target Planner is the due date of the final draft, along with my writing portfolio and reflection. I dated that “November 1, 2011.” The next ring after that was labeled “Reflection and Portfolio Due, this is the date I selected to gather my portfolio materials and write the reflection. The rings before that are Labeled “Final Draft edited”, which marks the day I plan to edit my final paper, and “Free Write” which is the days I plan to just write everything I’m thinking down on the paper”. The final and outermost ring is labeled “Organize Thoughts” this is where I will be brain storming ideas for the paper and organizing what exactly I what to say with the information I have. I found this strategy to be very effective for me. As a visual learner it is important that I am able to visually see the work I have to complete and by the dates they need to be completed by. I chose The Target Planner strategy because it had a perfect combination of Visual appeal to help convey what I need to do and organize it in such a way that I can use it to accomplish a large assignment, such as this research essay. Since my course is analytical based, it is up to me to decide what I should write and what I should want to say about a piece of writing. For this project I needed to watch the film Blood Diamond and pick a scene that interested me that I could write about and analyze. The essay is really the only grade I have in my WRT 105 class, so it is essential that I do well on it, so I think the Target Planner was a good choice in Strategies for this project because it gave me a visual way to approach the essay.

I also used the Target Planner in my ART 253 class, which is also my Survey of Film History course. Since I am a visual learner, I find the class pretty interesting. We’re taught by my Professor giving a Lecture along with showing power point slides, which really appeals to my visual senses and helps me learn better. The Materials I need are the notes I take, and the films my teacher assigns outside of class. For me, the best way for me to learn is by listening to the teachers lecture, and following along with the power point slides. Since I’m given notes for the class, I am able to focus on what my professor is saying and learn more about the subjects we’re being tested on. There’s really only two main ways we’re evaluated in the class, ones through the Journal responses we write about each film we view, and the other is the exam we’re given. Unfortunately, on Monday, I have an exam on everything we’ve covered since the last test. But! This is not a problem; I found I could use the Target Planner as a way to organize how I will go about studying for my upcoming exam. At the center of my Target is the date of the exam, which I titled as “Test”. The outer ring of my target is titled “get notes from girl in class” which I labeled as “Oct. 28 – 29^th” This is the time when I will get the notes from the girl who takes them in class. The next ring is titled “Review Notes with friends and textbook”. I date this as “Oct. 28 – 30^th”, during which I will be reviewing all the notes I’ve received from the lecture and compare them with the textbook we were assigned for maximum learning efficiency and understanding. The ring after that, which is also the one just before the test date is titled “Make additional study Aids,” in which I planned to use some other strategies I’ve previously use such as the Q and A map, and 20 Minute test prep. After I made the Target Planner I felt much more confident with taking my exam, I also felt less stressed and more prepared for the week ahead. I think the Target Planer is a very effective strategy. It reduces stress, organizes large daunting tasks into smaller more approachable tasks, and visually shows what you need to accomplish by date. I chose this strategy because I am a visual learner, and as a visual learner I needed a way to visually see how I would go about accomplishing the task of studying for my upcoming exam. I think this strategy proved to be very effective, both in my WRT 105, and my ART 253. I recommend the use of this strategy to all of those who feel overwhelmed by a large task. Don’t worry! With the Target Planner, you can get it done!

The Perfect Schedule

Learning reading, task/time management, note taking, problem solving, and exam prep strategies has helped me tremendously in my courses. Having to choose one specific method from one of these strategies is very difficult but the Fritter Finder method which is a time management strategy is a method I use every week. Even though I am an auditory learner this method has helped significantly.

Next week I have a math test in MAT 183 and an Industry report due in SOM 122. These assignments account for a major percentage of my final grade in these courses. I decided to choose these courses to plug into my Fritter Finder schedule this upcoming week. MAT 183 and SOM 122 require an ample amount of time to complete the given assignments, These assignment need to be organized efficiently in order to to be successful in these courses.

This strategy was extremely effective, by being able to write specific time periods on a during the week to complete my assignments and lay out study periods I was able to comprehend my assignments. Also being able to look at a block schedule that has the times I am completing the work highlighted, helps catch my attention to follow the schedule.

As a auditory learner this strategy doesn't exactly fit my learning style but I have learned how organize my assignments into a schedule that helps understand and comprehend the work. The materials used were my block class schedule, a highlighter and my schedules for SOM 122 and MAT 183. This strategy is perfect for me and will encourage me to complete my work efficiently thereby providing me with the opportunity to earn the best possible grade in my courses.

I chose this strategy because after reviewing all the strategies we have learned in CLS 105, this method stood out to me and was the one that I was using consistently. Fritter Finder has given me the best chance at completing my work in a timely fashion so I'm not studying or doing all my work the night before an assignment is due or test is given.

TART

For this weeks blog I used the reading strategy TART, which stands for terms, attend, read, and test. I used this strategy in my Psychology 205 course as well as my Philosophy 192 course. For both courses, I read through my textbook and highlighted all important facts, and things I thought the professor would bring up in class that week. For example, I went through each section, and highlighted the titles and used those as my abbreviations. I then highlighted important facts through each section, and used those as my test questions. I would then attend class and take notes as the professor was speaking, and see if any of the notes I took connected with what the professor was going over, and usually, I was on with a lot of the material. After class, I would go home and re-read my notes I took from the reading, as well as notes I took in class and came up with test questions I believed would be on the test. This reading strategy was great for me because it helped me to realize the outside reading is very important to complete each time to get a better understanding of what the professor is talking about each class. It is as if it gives you a head start on class for that day. I would recommend this reading strategy to anyone, no matter what type of learner you are.

How Effective Really is TART?

For this week's TECH assignment, the topic was Reading and the strategies available to choose from were TART and Charlie Reads SmarT. I analyzed the two and I immediately pushed Charlie Reads Smart to the side because I saw that it was more of a strategy that applied to writing and reading intensive courses and none of my courses are either of those, largely math-based. TART became my strategy of choice to utilize in my Linear Algebra (MAT 331) and Calc III (MAT 397) courses.

TART is a relatively simple four

I first used TART with my Linear Algebra class and it helped because out of all my classes it is probably the most definition/theorem-based class. Knowing the terms and theorems prior to class definitely helped in me better understanding everything that was being taught and once he spoke about one topic or section, I knew what was coming up next and already had a better idea of how the two related/connected. Often times in class he'll throw theorems on the boards with a couple examples but it'll take me a little longer to actually understand. Coming up with test questions wasn't as hard as I though it would be because a number of his questions are word based and are about just interpreting various theorems followed by numerical evaluations of them along with their formulas; and my questions were built off of my notes prior to and during lecture.step strategy whose letters stand for Terms Attend Read Test. STEP ONE is to go through the textbook and read and if necessary write down the terms and definitions that the professor may use in the upcoming lecture. STEP TWO is to actually attend lecture and paying attention to the professor's use of the terms and definitions from the textbook. STEP THREE is to reread your own lecture notes and then read the chapter or section(s) out of the textbook, taught/discussed in lecture. STEP FOUR is to create test questions that you think the professor may ask on the upcoming exam based on the material that has just been covered and to answer the questions.

TART for my Calc III class was a little different as it is not writing or word based AT ALL.

numbers. Prior to class I went through the text and wrote down the terms and theorems that I could find and in class it did help a bit but before it being discussed in lecture, it meant very little to nothing to me as opposed to Linear Algebra where I got a much better understanding by just going through the terms and definitions. My professor uses very involved examples in class and goes through them with enough time to make sure that we really understand the concept and with reStrictly numbers and when there are words used to describe theorems, it's strictly about

ading the textbook after class as well along with

my lecture notes, I completely understood everything in the sections and topics discussed. Coming up with questions wasn't extremely difficult although I did have a bit of trouble. With math that is involved as Calc II is it was difficult to come up with "nice" problems as it's almost impossible to get "perfect" numbers.

In the end the strategies worked out with my courses but they weren't necessarily the most efficient; a majority of the strategies presented in CLS haven't been the greatest because of the heavy math emphasis in my other courses, but there's always that strategy or two that happens to stick with me. TART is definitely a strategy that I can see myself using in future semesters as I pick up other types of courses that are more text, writing, or vocabulary based. This is a great strategy that would probably work much better for someone else with different courses so I can definitely say I would recommend this to others.

Visual Learners Guide to Reading

Hey all you Bloggers and Blog Readers, I have two new strategies I think you should try if you have an assigned textbook in a lecture based course. The reading strategy I tried this week is called TART, which stands for Terms, Attend, Read, and Test. I used this strategy in two of my class; Survey of Film History and Transmedia Studio. I found this strategy to be very effective in both my courses. For my Survey of Film History class, I first read through the assigned reading from our Film History textbook. The reading was fairly long in my taste but the text aids such as bolded wording, italics, and side captions helped out a lot. For example, the names of two important directors were bolded as such: “Erich Von Stroheim” and “Cecil B. DeMille.” Once I finished reading, I went back through the text and picked out the terms that seemed the most important. Of those terms, I selected a few that I thought my professor might bring up in the lecture. I gave each of the terms a short abbreviation, which helped me to quickly identify those terms when they were brought up during the lecture. I was surprised, more than half the terms I had selected were brought up during the lecture in my film history class. This was very helpful to me because I could finally see the connection between what I was reading outside of class, and what I was learning in the class. After the lecture I went home and re-read the text once more, just to clarify the main points in the lecture. After re-reading the text, I chose the information that was both in the book and touched on during the lecture and made them into questions. I made a total of eight questions that I thought might show up on the next exam and then answered them myself. This was a very informative process for me because I could see what information I knew very well, and what information I needed to look over and review. For example, I didn’t know all the members of the “Little five,” I ended up having to go back through the text to find that out. If I had to rate this strategy on a scale of 1-10, 1 being not effective at all, and 10 being extremely effective, I’d have to give this strategy an 8.5. It honestly was a very helpful strategy, I liked the fact I could now relate my text to the lectures we were having and connect specific terms from the book to what my professor was saying. I think the abbreviation section could be a little more detailed besides just making short abbreviations, maybe adding mnemonic devices that help the student remember the terms while they’re in class, but otherwise it worked great. I really felt prepared for my next exam after writing up the questions I had, it gave me a very realistic idea of what I knew and what I still needed to cover. Being a visual learner I chose this strategy so I could have a visual way of representing what terms I should look for in my lecture and seeing what questions I needed to focus in on. In my Survey of Film History, we are mostly graded on our journals and our exams. To me, the reading and the exam is the hardest parts of the class, so I wanted a strategy that could cover both area’s of concern and help me to feel less stressed about the exam when it comes time to take it. I think this strategy helped me to engage the text in a different way, I read through it looking for terms that I found important and that I thought would show up in a lecture, so It really helped me get through a text that normally I’d have a lot of trouble getting through. This strategy worked well for me in my Survey of Film history class.

I also used the TART strategy in my Transmedia Studio class. Every other week, we’re assigned a reading from my Professors choosing. Most of the time, the readings are not really long as they are very complex and dense. Most of the time, I have to re-read the article or text three or four times before anything even makes sense to me. I found the TART strategy to be especially helpful in the reading “Two Moments from the Post-Medium Condition” by Rosalind Krauss. Once I read it a few times for clarity, I began to write down terms that I found interesting or thought were relevant to our next lecture about modernism. After selecting the terms I created abbreviations for them to help me identify them when taking notes for the next lecture. Next I attended the lecture, which was very interesting actually, my professor made it very visual by using a lot of drawings and diagrams to represent the art history in the past. After the lecture, I kept track of all the main points and arguments my professor made, along with any terms I selected that he brought up or used. After the lecture, I came back to the reading and identified potential exam and or test questions that he could ask based on the reading and lecture. Since my Transmedia class doesn’t give exams, I decided to adapt the questions part of the TART by adding a part called “How these terms could be applied to my artwork.” So for example, one of my questions was “What is Kitsch Art? How can I apply this?” And what I did is first defined what Kitsch is, “Imitation art that tries to be Avant Garde” and then described how I could apply this idea to my own art: “I can keep this in mind when I’m producing my photographs by trying to shoot what has never been shot before, like shooting in a style that is purely my own creation.” I found this adaptation to be very helpful in that now I could apply the information I was learning in the readings and in the lectures to impact and improve my own art in the future. I think I’d rate this strategy for Transmedia studio a 9 out of 10. I think this strategy was very effective in helping me connect my readings, to the lectures, and ultimately to my artwork. Since I’m a visual learner, I selected this strategy for my Transmedia class because I wanted a way to visually see how my readings, and lectures could affect my thought process and understanding of art, by creating a way to show how it affects the art itself. Since we don’t have graded exams in my Transmedia class and our grade it mostly comprised of what we do with our artwork, it is important to ensure that the work I am creating is sufficient and shows signs of improvement in relationship to our learning of new material. If no improvement is made in the clarity of what we are trying to say, then it is apparent that we may not be learning the information in a useful way. In order for me to learn in the course I have to make sure I’m paying attention, taking notes, and full understanding the readings we are required to read. Overall, I think this was a very helpful and effective strategy, both in my Survey of Film History course and in my Transmedia studio course.

TA Understand Reading RT

This week in class we practiced the Reading Strategies: TART and Charlie Reads Smart. After testing out these strategies, I felt that they were difficult to comprehend, but after evaluating both the TART stood out to me would best fit my learning style as an auditory learner.

To get the most out of this strategy I chose the two classes that I have the most reading in. I decided to use TART in my WRT 105 and SOM 122 courses. These sections require enhanced reading. For WRT 105 I have to read sections of the Writing Analytically text book, and be able to annotate and comprehend the reading. For SOM 122 I have to read the novel Strategy for Sustainability and write a short paper comparing their business aspects to a specific company. I have to understand certain business terms and aspects of a company. For both these courses I take notes on my reading, while I read this week I highlighted the terms and definitions I felt were important and then went back and created shorter abbreviations for the terms I felt were extremely important. When my teachers briefly went over some of the reading in class I listened for the terms that kept coming up. Then reread those notes after class. After completing these tasks I used my chapter and lecture notes to come up with questions that I felt will come up on the test. After writing these questions ,answer them which will allow you to feel comfortable on the next exam.

This strategy was sort of effective for me. It did help me understand what I'm reading more clearly, but this method was hard for me to process and took me a long time to understand. This strategy did allow me to learn what types of questions will come up on exams, which will help on my next exams. Being able to take notes from listening and reading will also prove to be beneficial. Being able to write and answer possible test questions was a great preparation tool.

As an auditory learner, listening to my professors lectures and transforming what he is stating into notes is very resourceful. Using this strategy for these courses has allowed me to gain a better comfort level. The materials brought out in this strategy were my chapter and lecture notes, and my test questions and answers. This strategy will hopefully provide with the necessary tools to succeed in my classes.

I chose this strategy because it enabled me to take notes on my reading more efficiently then Charlie Reads Smart. Also I didn't really understand Charlie Reads Smart. I have been able to understand my reading and lecture note with this method and hopefully my questions will show up on the next test too. Comprehending my what I read is extremely difficult for me, and accepting this strategy is just another way to gain a better perception of what I'm reading, which will enable me to take more detailed notes.

Plug in notes

For this week's blog I used Plug in notes as an effective note taking strategy. I used this strategy in two courses, Philosophy 192 and Psychology 205. To study for my next exam, which is a midterm on tuesday in philosophy, I created a chart of all the questions and topics my professor said would be vital for studying, and made another column with the answers. I do not have a exam in Psychology for about three weeks, but I took all of the notes from the past few lectures, and created a chart with the questions that I thought would be most important, and the answers in the other column. Plug in notes is a good strategy for me to use because it lays out everything that is most important for you to know for the exam, it is very organized too, so you won't have trouble mixing up the questions from each section.

Plug-Ins to Keep Your Notes In Mind

For this week of classes, as a note-taking strategy, I decided to use Plug-In Notes. It's a very SIMPLE but yet very EFFECTIVE strategy that requires nearly no adjustment in regular not-taking techniques. The way it works is you take your in-class notes but after each section or topic, just skip five to six lines before beginning notes for the next section or topic. After class you go back to your notes and create a graphic organizer or some other illustration in the gaps, of the above notes taken. Based on the notes and illustrations a set of five to ten questions is made as a test or review for the end of the week when you return to your notes to answer these questions.

I used PLUG-IN NOTES in my Calc 3 and Linear Algebra classes and I found them to be effective as they forced me not to just go back to read through my notes, but to do so thoroughly. I also helped in the fact that the strategy didn't just end once the plug-ins were done, but continued as I had to go back at the end of the week to answers question based on my plug-ins as another review of the week's notes and topics. Often times I'll say that I'll go back to my notes after class or later but it won't end up happening but seeing the gaps in my notes remind me or entice me to do so.

As far as my personal experience with the plug-ins this week, I feel like it worked better with Linear algebra as compared to with Calc; I feel like it's because of the way the teachers present the material. Linear Algebra has a lot more written notes in terms of sentences and terms while Calc is more equation based and taught and learned by using a large amount of examples, seeing it in practice. My Linear algebra teaches with a lot of explanation and comparison so using a strategy like plug-ins to write out questions and answers and graphic organizers was convenient.

On a positive note of the overall strategy as a whole, it definitely is a useful one. Something I found helpful was the emphasis of the use of an illustration as a plug-in because it keeps is simple and more attractive and not bland when going back to review the notes, it's easier to see the information and quickly take it in. Plug-ins definitely seem to have fallen into the list of favorite strategies; despite the fact that it didn't work as well with Calc, but that wasn't much different than what I expected. It's a SHORT AND SIMPLE strategy that gets the job done and gets the job done effectively, making the process of review that much easier.

Plug In Notes

This weeks learning strategies had to do with note taking. This is an area I am not so good in but the plug in notes really made me take efficient notes. I decided to use this for my two lecture courses, SOC 101 and IST 195. I am a visual learner so making sure my notes have an aesthetically pleasing presence is important. When using the plug in notes, I filled the blank spaces in with important information of the previous topic. When plugging in I got to use different types of ways to elaborate the information. I used a chart comparing different types of USB plugs for my IST class. When I made this chart I got a chance to transform my regular boring notes, to a way that I can better understand and learn. This gave me a chance to evaluate all of the plug ins, which contained the most important information. In my SOC 101 class I got to fill in the plug ins with a venn diagram. This was perfect for me. I am a visual learner so making these charts and diagrams made it easy for me to understand the information better as well as make up questions easier. After class I got to make the Q and A table. This is always a great source to study from when studying for an exam. This is a way to put all of the most important information from that lecture, and create possible test questions and see where you need improvement. I found out that I need to study the Input section more than the Output section in my IST 195 class. This was useful information because I studied input more than output to spread my knowledge throughout all of the material. This is a great strategy to use during class, after class, and while studying. It gave me an opportunity to directly transform the most important information from the lectures and turn them into valuable questions. This was really beneficial when studying for the exams in these classes. I am definitely looking forward to how I do on my SOC 101 class on Monday. This note taking strategy was hugely beneficial to my learning, and my studying, especially in my lecture classes.

Visual Learner? Want Great Notes? Read This!

This week I used the Note Taking Strategies: Plug-in Notes and 1 Plus 3 Notes in my Survey of Film History Class. Each strategy provided me with a different way to record notes and develop questions that would assist me later in studying for the next exam. I found that using the 1 Plus 3 note taking strategy provided me with a much more organized and visual way of keeping track of my information. After taking notes as I normally would for a lecture, I re-read my notes until I fully understood the most important pieces of information. On another sheet of paper I created three sections titled A, B, and C. Section A upheld the left top half of the paper, Section B had the larger right half of the paper, and Section C took up the bottom half of the paper. In the first section I wrote down all the most important key points, topics, and concepts I found in my notes such as “G Melies, Pathe Frères, MPPC.” In section B I created a graphic organizer, or in my case a T chart. In the T chart I matched up the most important terms or concepts with their definition or description. For example, “Max Linder – Comedian, one of the first feature film stars.” At the bottom of the page in Section C, I wrote down all the questions I would most likely seen on the exam such as “What are Cambria ‘shots’” and “Who is Giovanni Pastrone?” I found this strategy to be very effective in helping me study and remember information. This strategy gave me a way to actually use my notes to predict exam questions, and study the most important and specific information amongst all the notes I took. Most of the time, my notes are useless to me because all I see are a bunch of works mashed together, but this strategy gave meaning to the information, and in a visual way I could understand rather than attempt to interpret. I felt like this strategy was very useful in finding what information was important and which wasn’t, it gave me a chance to sit down and really review my notes to focus on the vital material. Instead of a graphic organizer as the book suggested, I adapted this strategy by creating a T-chart for me. Since I’m a visual learner, I choose this strategy because of it’s unique way of organizing potentially boring and useless notes, into understandable and visually appealing notes that could organize all my important information. I found it was useful to have a visual aid that combined terms and concepts with definitions in a way I could relate to and understand. Since my materials and sources in the course are mostly from my lecture notes and films, it is important to develop visual aids that organize this into understandable information. Most of the course is listening and can drag on, so giving myself something to do while taking notes keeps the lecture interesting and keeps me taking important notes. Since my grade in this course is solely based on the essays I write and exams that are given, it is necessary to review all parts of the films we watch, and notes I take. Luckily for me, film analyzes aren’t too difficult because films are one of my strongest area of understanding because I’m a visual learner.

I also used Plug in Notes as a note taking strategy in my Survey of Film History course. For Plus in Notes, I took notes on the lecture and films we viewed as I usually would each week. However, instead of just filling up several pages of paper full of random notes, I left spaces between my notes to fill in with organizer’s that summarized the main idea’s and the details associated with it. Each time my professor would change the topic, or switch up the main idea, I would leave spaces for creating my organizer’s that for me summed up the most important piece’s of information from the notes as a whole. For example, I created a graphic organizer on which one side it say “What Montage is?” and on the other side says, “What Montage led to?” This strategy was very effective, it helped me in organizing the main points of my notes and also giving me direction into what the next section of notes were going to be about or discuss. This strategy proved extremely helpful to me as it gave a visual appeal to my otherwise visually boring notes. Its necessary for me as a visual learner to have visual appeals that interest me and pull me in to the information so I find myself trying to read through pages of unorganized notes that have no flow. With the Plug in Method, I was able to organize the importance of each section of notes, so when it came time to review I could pick out what I needed to know, where I needed to look, and how I should go about applying this information to creating exam questions. The plug in’s really proved their worth later when I had to go back through my notes to create questions that could potentially show up on the next exam. It was easy for me, I just went through my notes, looked at my visually appealing graphic organizers, and pulled out the specific information I thought was most necessary and seemed most relevant to the main idea of that specific lecture. I ended up writing seven questions total I that found to be the most likely to be seen again. For example, one of my questions was “What is Kuleshov Effect?” to which I wrote the answer “The arrangement of images can create certain ideals. This leads to montage and the creation of non-narrative films that convey messages.” I chose this strategy specifically for its use of visual organization within the confines of my notes themselves rather than on a separate sheet of paper. I like the idea of creating organization directly within my notes, it seemed to save time, and efficiently describe the focus of the lecture in clear, concise, visual terms. As I said before, this is mostly a lecture and film based course, so I need to have a good way to pay attention during the class period. The plug in notes gives me something to think about as I’m taking notes and keep me engaged. Since I’m graded purely on my performance on exams and written essays, it’s essential that I take good notes and keep of with watching the films assigned each week. The only adaptations I made to the Plug in notes were several smaller boxes within or next to the notes I took that more clarified what I wrote in that section, or more thoroughly described a specific detail. I think pulling apart my notes to visually see the specifics will definitely aid me on up coming exams and essays. I think both of these strategies will help inspire me to become a better note taker as well as a studier. I feel with these strategies I am more equipped to fully understand the seemingly unorganized and scattered information. These strategy organize my information in a visually appealing way that I can understand and use for studying more adequately in the future.

Easy Notes = Comprehension = A

This week in class we practiced the note taking strategies: plug in notes and 1 plus 3 notes. These strategies were difficult for me to understand at first but after practicing both I decided that plug in notes would fit me best as an auditory learner.
Following professor Blumin's instructions I chose the two classes I have the most difficulty in to test this strategy out. I decided to use this method in my SOM 122 and WRT 105 courses. These sections require heavy note taking. For the SOM 122 the exams I need to be able to comprehend my definition based notes, and my WRT 105 notes are essential for applying into my end of unit essay. For both these courses we take notes almost every class period, therefore this week I left spaces in between in between the major points we took notes on. In those spaces I wrote out an important word, catchphrase, or picture emphasizing the focus of that main point. After these classes when I made up the Q and A table, I was able to instantly point out what types of questions will show up on the exam, and what I should consider writing about in the essay.
This strategy was incredibly effective. Being able to review my notes and see an important word, catchphrase, or picture capturing the main point will help me memorize and better understand the topic. Also the Q and A map provides me with an adequate study guide that will enable me to view question that have a fair chance of coming up on my next exam, and will help me write a compelling essay.
As an auditory learner listening to my professors in these two courses and using this strategy benefited me. Using this strategy this past week has made me feel as comfortable as ever for my next exam or essay. The materials brought about in this strategy was making a Q and A chart and restructuring my class notes to best fit my learning style. This strategy is like striking gold, This will provide me with the necessary components to succeed in my courses.
I chose this strategy because it helped comprehend my class notes better the 1 plus 3 strategy did and this also provided me with an effective study guide. I have also taken good notes and have been able to efficiently study from them. This strategy just added another dimension to my note taking. The idea of writing a word, catchphrase, or picture expressing the main point of my note, is right up my alley. I will uses this strategy on exams and essays in all my courses.

Exam prep

This week I used anticipating test questions in two courses. I wrote in my notebook the subjects I had a question in, and where I got the questions. For example, my first question I wrote down was:
1: Philosophy- using syllabus- What is ethics?
I used the syllabus as a source, as well as from taking notes in class from the professors questions to the class. An example of professors questions is "What is operant conditional?" in the course Psychology 205 because it was something we went over in the lecture that day, as well as in the recitation later on that day, and my professor in the lecture said it would be on the test while he was going over it. I also used my questions as a source, where I would think of questions that I believed would be on the test due to how much they were brought up in class, or how much the material was used on the homework, or readings in the textbook. I like anticipating test questions as a exam prepatory strategy because it makes it very possible to know a lot of test questions by using these types of sources (syllabus, my questions, professors questions) to use as a study guide for exams.