NOTE TAKING:

D. D. Millett, RN, BS

Note taking: Most importantly, find a seat that you can see and hear the

lecturer from the best position in the class. Nursing school is intense and lectures are packed with information and subject material that cannot be just memorized, but must become ingrained within you. This will be the foundation of your entire career as a nurse.

Be prepared with proper writing utensils that you know write well and use a notebook with plenty of pages and space.

Bring with you a highlighter and several different pens: blue (2) or black (2) for your main text writing, red for questions (may be used later when you review your notes). Always be prepared!

Note Taking: 

THIS PORTION OF THE

NOTEBOOK IS

WHERE YOU WILL

WRITE QUESTION

S THAT PERTAIN TO YOUR NOTES.

 

1

For the best, easiest way to take notes and learn the material, draw a vertical line down the outer third of every page of your notebook. It should look like this:

Note Taking: Write the main portion of your notes in blue or black, your

preference. Then the questions you have about what your notes are about will be written in a different color, i.e. red, on the right portion of the line (taken when you are reviewing your material) .

The questions you write will force you to KNOW or have an intimate understanding of the notes that you took from lecture…you will be able to answer the questions like you would if it were a quiz or exam.

This ensures that you KNOW the material you will be testing on; and not allow you to only peruse your notes and assume you know what they contain or feel like you know them inside and out, including all definitions.

Note Taking:1. Be alert to ALL key points or words, and give

yourself plenty of space to write down the vital portions of the lecture. If you miss part of something, leave a space and pick it up later.

2. You may use your own words when you take notes so that you understand what was said later, but be CERTAIN to write down exactly the points that the lecturer has said – as these are where test questions will come from later.

3. When taking notes, think and understand what is being said by the lecturer…do not just write everything down.

LISTEN!4. In medicine, there are key abbreviations, learn some of these now, i.e. the abbreviation: “” means “before” – a word

used in note taking a lot! This will save you time and in addition, you will be learning medical abbreviations and already using them successfully.

Note Taking:5. Create or learn other abbreviations or symbols that

mean something to you, i.e. use “RR” to mean “Re-Read” a portion that you may have not completely understood or want to go over again.

6. Use a highlighter [even color coordinate these for “knowing” (i.e. yellow highlighter) something versus “MUST KNOW” (pink highlighter)] or use asterisks or a symbol that means to you: “IMPORTANT!”

7. After class, review your notes the first time, filling in definitions or parts that you may have missed. Then write on right side of the vertical line in your notebook paper (in a

different colored pen), questions that you can then later use to

quiz yourself to see if you know the material. You will surprised at how well this technique ensures you KNOW it and instead of thinking

you know it.

8.Review, Review, Review!! Learning about medicine and the nursing procedure is a lot of work, and you are building a foundation of information and material that will define your entire nursing career.

9. Note taking is where it begins. Learn the medical abbreviations and Latin prefixes and suffixes because then you will have an important clue of the meaning of the word. For example, “a” generally means “without.” Therefore “anemia” means “without” or few healthy red blood cells and “anoxia” means “without” or little oxygen.

10. If at all possible, get permission to record the lectures, as you will be shocked at how much you miss in class.

Note Taking:There is a definite art in note taking…and in nursing school, you MUST have a complete understanding of this to ensure saving time, capturing all content given in lecture, and be alert to the most “meaty” part of the lectures.

If you make a mistake in writing a word, begin now to learn the technique that you LEGALLY MUST use in Nursing Documentation: Simply cross a SINGLE HORIZONTAL LINE NEATLY through the incorrect word, and the correct word is written along side of it.Example: “The patient stated he had two reactions.” In reality, the patient had three; therefore, the correct documentation reads:

“The patient stated he had two three reactions.”

• Find your way of taking the best notes for YOU, so that you will have no problem locating certain chapters or sections within your notes. Your nursing school notes from lectures to clinicals will be the best way for you,

besides osmosis, to learn the massive amounts of material that you must not just learn, but MASTER. It is NOT easy, but being a nurse is one of the most rewarding, gratifying, challenging, and even noble careers one can choose. You can, and will, succeed!