I've developed a new way of reading, which is something I probably should have done a long time ago. I'm not the type of person to take notes as I read because I find it distracting. However, as I began my independent study course in writing, I knew I had to change some of my habits if I wanted to effectively convey the thoughts I had while reading the required texts. So, I dug through my desk drawers and pulled out my 4-pack of neon Post-its (with dispensers) and a category for each color: blue for interesting quotes, orange for questions I had, green for "musings" or passages that I wanted to comment on, and pink for anything else (which has developed into flagging a theory or process that I want to try). Armed with my pen and post-its I set out to read in a completely new way.
So far, I've found that it's not as distracting as I thought. I prefer writing my thoughts on post-its and then typing them into my journal at a later time. I've found that it's not the note taking that distracts me, it's switching back and forth from book to laptop (which usually means a quick check of Facebook and Google Reader) that takes me away from my intended task. I like the color coding system I developed because it's a quick visual way for me to see what parts have made an impression, and in what way. I've found that I'm thinking on a higher level as I read. I've switched from reading for pleasure or information and started reading from a more critical perspective.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Ashley, you are going to succeed at whatever you do if you keep up this level of metacognition and diligence. I'm serious. This simple post about your self-designed method of note-taking demonstrates your creative problem solving and self-knowledge. I'm impressed. As a future teacher, I challenge you to think about where and how you learned to be a creative problem solver. How can you teach young people to be creative problem solvers too, who can assess their own learning styles and design methods of studying that work for them?
Post a Comment