Organized Charm: October 2014

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Visual Notes: Crash Course


How much more likely are you to read an infograph than an actual article or research study? Probably a lot more likely, right? In fact, 90% of info transmitted to our brains is visual! "Yeah, so what?" you might be asking. So... have you ever considered using visual notes for studying instead of just writing out a bunch of words? You know, a little like creating your own infograph? I started doing this for two reasons:


  • #1: When I was in high school, we had a teacher who would allow us to create a 1-page study guide that we could use on our tests. I know, I know... sounds so easy, right? And you are right, it was easy. But here is what our teacher knew: He knew that we would spend SO MUCH time analyzing and evaluating what information to put on those study guides, that we would secretly be learning more information the whole time we were creating them! Pretty sneaky, huh? 


  • #2: I am a visual learner. And you probably are, too. In fact, 65 percent of us are visual learners! This is why we may get overwhelmed when we open a document/e-mail/textbook that just has dense paragraphs and paragraphs full of words. And I don't mean for that to sound as bad as it may sound (like we're too lazy to read a book or something). It's just that images, like charts or graphs or illustrations or photographs, can make it easier on our eyes and our brains because they improve a document's readability

In fact, when I was in my Educational Psychology class a few years ago (favorite one ever, btw), our professor told us that one of the jobs within that field is to create those little images and tables in textbooks! I just thought it was pretty cool... I never even thought about why they were in there! Now I notice them all the time (AND I actually pay attention to them)!  


Now, whenever I'm feeling particularly overwhelmed by a topic, I try to put all of the most important info onto ONE PAGE using a mixture of bullet points, charts, drawings, keywords, whatever I think will help! I created a study sheet of visual notes for my most recent certification exam (the last one ever. YAY!). Luckily, I took photos of this one because, as you know, studying is a little like working out: If you don't photograph it, it doesn't count.

As you can clearly see, stick people are my specialty. Just look at Jean Piaget's glasses.
Remarkable talent. 

So, how about this: How about if, the next time you're studying for an exam, you comb through your notes and your textbook and create an infograph-style study sheet. One sheet (or poster) with pictures to quickly trigger certain concepts in your brian with a few keywords or major facts to remember! Then hang it up somewhere where you will see it frequently throughout the day (like above your desk or on your mirror to look at while you're getting ready). 

Maybe you'll be able to get a little more into studying using a method like this than you would if you had to sit down, pull out your notes, and flip back through pages and pages of your own handwriting! I have included some examples of "visual notes" to inspire y'all! Also, there are links to several different sites that mention them (and other things) as well! 

Of course I love this one by Liz Cazaly because it's about education, too! Win-Win!

This one is by Austin Kleon (of austinkleon.com) achieves what I was TRYING to do in the photo above.  

And this one by Guilia Forsythe makes it easy to scan through the categories of the topic! 



Here are some links to sites that are
not drawn by Kindergarten teachers
actually informative on this topic 
talented at drawing visual notes 
...helpful





Remember, it doesn't have to be good to be effective!
Thank goodness! :)



Do you take visual notes or have you ever tried? How do you typically create study guides? Have you tried that trick of putting them on your mirror (or somewhere in your home)... if so, did it help or not help? 

Sunday, October 26, 2014

Write Notes in Your Own Words


I can't really remember when I started doing this, but I'm pretty sure it was sometime around my Junior year of undergrad. Okay. Wait a minute. Actually, I can tell you exactly when I started doing this! I remember it like it was yesterday... it was indeed the fall semester of my Junior year. Apologize by OneRepublic was on the radio every 15 seconds and Facebook was still the only social media network we needed.


I was in a World Civilizations class (which somehow made me hate my favorite subject... history!). My professor was wonderfully nice, but she literally, LITERALLY typed entire pages/paragraphs of notes onto her PowerPoint slides. At first, I joined the whole class in frantically trying to copy each slide word for word, until I figured out that I could quickly read the paragraph, then paraphrase it into one or two sentences.

It was like reaching this super state of zen or something.


I was able to stay so calm during her lectures while everyone else stressed about the slides. And yes, that is the only time in my life that I have been less stressed than... oh, I don't know, anyone else. A lot of people went on to drop or fail that class (her tests were also 100 questions long). But not me. In fact, I did so well that it ended up being my first time to be exempt from an exam! Once I started grad school, I learned why paraphrasing the notes helped me so much.


And I totally love the reason because... it's science! It turns out that what I was doing (just to save my hand from getting a cramp) was called active listening. Instead of mindlessly copying words without thinking, I was forcing myself to comprehend the material before I could write it. That way, when I re-read my notes, I totally understood them because they were all in MY own words to begin with! 


On top of active listening, this gave me ownership over the notes... I created themThey were my wordsmy examples; not my professor's. And we all love the things that we create, right? That's why teachers aren't supposed to use red ink to grade papers anymore... It's just too traumatic for us to see our beautiful creations all covered in that mean-old red ink!


 Below, I have listed some articles on effective note taking, but the one I like the most is University of Reading because it compares Active Note-Taking and Passive Note-Taking! Passive Note-Taking includes things like underlining, highlighting, and copying from Power Point slides! All of our favorite things to do! When you look around your classroom, you are probably swimming in a sea of Passive Note-Takers!


BUT who wants to do more work and get less out of it? No one, that's who! So check out these examples of Active Note-Taking! Go into class with a purpose and with questions about the topic! Try to connect the new information you're learning to other information that you already know! Think of your own examples. And, of course, write notes in your own words! (unless you need to remember a direct quote, obviously).



Less writing, less study time, and better understanding of the topic?

Ummm... yes, please! :)



Here is a really cool article about Effective Note-Taking from University of Reading!



Do you take notes in your own words? Why or why not? 
If not, do you think you might start now?

Saturday, October 25, 2014

Note Organization Checklist



Keeping up with class notes can literally get a little messy sometimes. I didn't start rewriting mine until my junior year of college when my Landforms professor mentioned it... but ever since then, my newly-rewritten, color-coded notes have acted as study guides for upcoming quizzes, tests, and exams! 

So, knowing exactly where to find what information is super important! And obviously, it required a system! The way it looks has transformed over the years, but the main idea stays the same!



- KNOW ALL OF YOUR UPCOMING EXAM DATES -
Every semester, there are a certain number of quizzes and exams. They are almost always on the syllabus (I don't think I've ever had a college professor give a "pop quiz")... so there is pretty much NO reason not to be prepared for them! 

When I rewrite my notes, I try to make them look like a study guide... or an infograph... or something else remotely interesting to look at! Hence, all the different colors, silly doodles, and bullet points! Try to fit as much important info as you can onto one page!




- KEEP ALL OF YOUR NOTES IN THE SAME PLACE -
Then keep all of the notes from every class together and in chronological order! Last year, I tried out a filing system. This year, I'm using a binder. Some years, I just put them in a designated side of my class folder

Different things will work for different people (and different professors' teaching styles), so don't be afraid to change it up! Just be sure to be consistent with whatever system you choose to use! Keeping all the notes together is the most imperative part of keeping them organized!




- LABEL EVERY SINGLE PAGE WITH DATE & TOPIC-
Be sure that each page of notes is labeled with a date and topic header. This will help you quickly flip through the top of your papers as you look for particular chapter notes or notes from a specific time frame! 

Since tests are usually organized by a few chapters at a time (Chapters 1-4, or 5-8), it's helpful that these notes are all back-to-back wherever you choose to keep them. If you've been writing page numbers in your notes, you probably know exactly which pages the questions will come from, too! 




- INCLUDE GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS & OUTLINES -
And if you used a graphic organizer to help you rewrite your notes, definitely don't leave that out! Date and label them just like you would any other page of notes! In my opinion, these are some of the most helpful "study guides" because they are just very visually-easy to read. 

A good combination is to outline the actual textbook chapter and rewrite your class notes using a system that works for you! Between those two documents, you should have all info you need for the exam!




- MOVE "OLD" NOTES AFTER THE EXAM/QUIZ -
Once I finish with a particular section of notes, I either put them in the back of the "notes" section or I paperclip them together to let me know that I'm finished with that information. Don't throw them away! 

It's always nice to keep them around just in case you need to revisit something in the future... or if you have a (*DUN DUN DUN*) comprehensive exam at the end of the semester! (aka: how you know your professor really hates his/her life and wants you to be miserable, too).

If that's the case, better start those flashcards now!




-MAKE FREQUENTLY-VISITED INFO EASY TO FIND- 
Finally, don't be afraid to use some "mixed media" to help you quickly identify useful information in your notes! Post-It's, Sharpies, Washi tape are all awesome ways to draw attention to information that you'll need to find quickly again (...and again... and again) throughout the semester! 

At the end of the day, "organization" is a pretty subjective word, so you need to find out what it means to you and implement the best practices for yourself to keep up with the information in your notes!




And even though I joke about comprehensive exams, don't let them stress you out either! Because so much information is covered on them, nothing really gets too in-depth so I actually think they're easier than exams that cover more narrow scopes of information. 

If you don't take away anything else from this post, take away these two things: 
MAKE YOUR NOTES EASY TO READ & KEEP THEM TOGETHER!

Everything else is just the compulsive-freakishness-icing-on-the-cake! :) 


How do you keep your notes organized throughout the semester! Do you tear them out of your notebook or just flag the pages? Or if you keep notes on your computer/iPad, how do you save/study them?!

Thursday, October 23, 2014

How I Make Flashcards


Because a photo is worth a thousand words (and a few paragraphs) today's post is written Sarah Vickers-style (and I say that out of love for her and her stylish ways). Well, with two exceptions: I took these photo myself and everything "featured" in them is less than $10 altogether. Okay, fine... three exceptions because I captioned the heck out of these photos to make up for the lack of writing! 

Okay, here are some flash cards I've made over the past year (and saved because they're obviously priceless). 

This is a cardboard gift box from Starbuck's, which turned out to be the perfect flash card holder!

My number one rule of flashcards is: MAKE THEM INTERESTING. The more colorful, the less I hate looking at them!

Aside from these markers, I really love the Crayola Tips ones (the skinny, white markers). PERFECT for notes!

I use whatever helps me remember the material: an acronym, a chart, an example, a picture... the sillier, the better!

For information that I'm already pretty familiar with, I just write some bullet points or a definition. 

Once I start studying, I highlight things I need to work on for next time... so apparently, I didn't do so well on this one!

Real-life examples are the best because they're just so memorable and obvious! 

For new or more challenging information, I get more in-depth by drawing charts, examples, graphs, pictures... this one is from some silly show on Bravo... but it worked perfectly for the definition! 

I worked in a restaurant over the summer and the menu was... though for me.
Whatever the opposite of a "foodie" is. That's me.

Graphic organizers even find their way into my flashcards! I used my Papermate Flair pens for these pictures, btw!


Do you make flashcards to help you study? I've heard it's helpful to cut the corners off... but I've never tried that, have you? Do you use pictures on your flash cards, too?!

Monday, October 20, 2014

3 Ways to Form Study Habits



Sometimes it’s easy to make yourself sit down and do some schoolwork (like when your assignment is due tomorrow) and other times, you kind of need a little boost of motivation to sit down and get started on it. That doesn’t mean that you’re a slacker, or lazy, or a bad student. It’s hard for everyone to force themselves to work on things that don’t necessarily have a sense of urgency. Schoolwork and studying really rely on discipline and habit. It takes work and organization… and even planning (YAY!).

We often hear that it takes 21 (or is it 28?) days to form a new habit.  And, with that already in the back of my mind, I heard something pretty interesting earlier this year when I was researching for the 4 Rules for Effective Studying post. In that post, there is a video of a lecture from a professor (Dr. Marty Lobdell), and he suggests a really cool idea: having a “study lamp”. I kind of blended those two ideas together and came up with a couple of other ways to create a study habit/routine in my everyday life.

So, here are 3 tricks that you can use to get into the habit of studying daily, too! 


1: Use a "Study Lamp"

This is the idea from Dr. Lobdell. He especially suggests it for students who study and sleep in the same room (aka bedrooms and dorms). A “study lamp” is a lamp (obviously) in your study area that you only turn on when you sit down and actually start on your schoolwork. When you get up to take a break, turn the lamp off. And don’t use this lamp for any other reason! The reasoning behind this is that your mind eventually gets into the habit of going into “study mode” when the lamp is turned on.

2: Designate a "Study Chair"

That idea kind of inspired me to think of some other things that could trigger that kind of conditioned response. Consider designating a “study chair”. A place where you always sit when you’re working, but that you don’t use for anything else. Since we moved into our loft, I’ve been using one specific chair at our dining table as my “work station”. Even though I sit at that table for dinner and other things, I never use that particular chair unless I’m working. When I’m there, I know it’s time to get stuff done!

3: Buy a "Study Candle"

Along those same lines, I also recently did some research on Aromatherapy, which I am just fascinated by. Did you know that smell is our biggest link to memory? I can still spray the body spray I wore in high school (Love Spell!) and immediately be brought back to those memories. And the smell of dew-covered grass in the morning reminds me of all the soccer and softball games I played as a little girl. The same with the smell of the beach of course! So, I thought, why not do the same with studying?

I have a “study candle” that I light when it’s time to get some schoolwork done, and a “relaxing candle” that I light when I’m ready to calm down my mind, turn off my electronics at night, and just be present in the moment. When I looked into the scents that would be most effective for working, the things that I found were just SO interesting! Different scents have different effects on our brains, such as boosting confidence, creativity, and focus. There are some links below to take you to some of these articles!

Here are some scents that may help boost your productivity:


Cinnamon: Concentration and Focus
Jasmine: Calmness, Confidence, Energy, and Optimism
Lavender: Calmness
Lemon: Calmness, Clarity, and Concentration
Peppermint: Clarity, Concentration, and Creativity
Rosemary: Energy & Memory

And here are the different scents that I use at different parts of the day:


Morning: Jasmine, Peppermint, or Rosemary
Night: Jasmine, Lavender, or Lemon
Studying: Cinnamon, Lemon, Peppermint, or Rosemary
Writing: Jasmine or Peppermint



This, this, and this are some interesting articles to check out if you want to read more about aromatherapy or the Olfactory Bulb (the reason smell and memory are closely linked)! There are even more scent suggestions in the articles, the ones listed above are just my personal favorites. Just a few helpful things to keep in mind while you’re walking down that oh-so-alluring candle aisle at Target! 

… it gets me every time! :) 



Do you use any of these kinds of tricks to get yourself into the habit of studying? Have you tried using aromatherapy ever? Do you have a special routine or space designated to “study time”? 

Saturday, October 18, 2014

Inspiration Board Cheat Sheet


Inspiration Boards are one of my favorite things to check out on Pinterest! They are just one of those things that you don’t really notice… until you do. I’m always like “ooh, I love this workspace!” and then when I go back through my “Office.” board, I notice that they all have this one thing in common: inspiration/motivation/vision boards. Does this sound like something that Chris from Parks & Rec would do? Yes. But also, they can be the perfect reflection of your personality and your future goals! 

Not only that… remember the Feng Shui post from a couple of days ago? The ideal position for your desk is somewhere where it faces the door but, if that just isn’t possible (like in a small apartment, bedroom, or dorm), the next best thing is to make the wall “disappear”. Inspiration Boards are the perfect way to do that! They can be a source of inspiration, motivation, encouragement, pride in past accomplishments, and just something that is nice to look at after hours of reading or writing or crying because math is hard

There are literally TONS (okay, fine… there are figuratively tons) of examples out there! But what makes the perfect “recipe” for an inspiration board? Here is my oh-so-humble opinion:

Here’s a perfect one from Lauren Conrad (of course)!

Choose a color scheme

Your space should reflect you! Some workspaces are really dreamy looking with whites and subdued colors. You’ll want that to carry over into your inspiration board. Others are full of bold colors, or maybe bright pinks and turquoises! Whatever your design-style is, make sure that your board goes along with it and isn't distracting or out of place. Also, add a little depth with tickets, ribbons, cards, etc! 



Can we please talk about the absolute genius-ness of this clipboard inspiration board from Trendenser?! 

Gather things that make you happy

This is pretty simple. Think of things that make you smile when you see them! Do you love the color pink? Penguins? Pretty dresses? Traveling? When you find or take photos of things that you just absolutely love, stick these up here! They will provide a safe haven for your mind when you’re feeling all depleted from reading a textbook that is likely droning on about something that bores you. 



This one from Megan at Honey, We’re Home is super girly and stylish. LOVE!

Give yourself something to look forward to

There is also the “vision board” part of inspiration boards. The part that reminds you why you do whatever it is that you do! Where do you want to be 10 years from now? What field of work do you hope to be in? Where do you want to travel? Choose photos or quotes or headlines or pictures of people who inspire you! And don’t forget to include your long and short term goals! Create a “big picture”! 




I love how this one found on Flickr. just blends in with the rest of the space!

Include Your past accomplishments

Have you won a blue ribbon for something? Or maybe received a certificate for some type of special recognition? What about photos from graduation, or your acceptance letter or test scores? Put these up here! A big part of staying motivated is to remind yourself of your past achievements! When things get hard, just look back and think, “This was challenging, but I did it. If I could do it then, I can do it now.”



Here’s another clever alternative to a “board” from Warm Home Decors!

Throw in some personal photos

Did you know that you can print out Instagram photos? Of course you did because I am the last person on Earth to find this out. I like Instas better than regular photos! Why? Because they really force you to choose one thing to represent an entire event and to focus on finding the beauty in everyday life. Print out a few of your favorites! Remind yourself that, even though your life is crazy, it is also beautiful!  



Inspiration boards are a great idea for a study space because they can just keep you motivated and on the right track by reminding you of what you’ve already done, what you’re doing now, and what you will do in the future! 

They can help you turn your dreams into goals, your goals into plans, and your plans into real life! :) 



Do you have a bulletin board or “inspiration board” in your study space? What kinds of things are on it? Has it helped you stay motivated when your schoolwork gets frustrating? 

Friday, October 17, 2014

Computer File Organization



Today’s post is about computer file organization. This is one of those topics where a picture is worth a thousand words… so I’ve included a ton of photos to help explain it! The main rule that I follow for organized computer files is to name every document and file it in the correct place the first time you use it! This way, you will always know where to look for it! I also like to name things by their complete, full, name with a date… just in case there are multiple documents for the same project (which there usually are). 

Here is my desktop screen. I keep one folder for each big thing in my life (you know, the ones that produce a lot of Excel & Word documents). For me, they are school, this blog, and school. For you, they may be each individual class… or sorority commitments… or work. Just whatever the 3/4 (5, 6, 7) biggest document-producing things in your life are right now!


This is my “University of Memphis folder”. I got this computer in 2012, so that’s why these files start there. If a file is active, it’s highlighted in green; if it’s “closed” it’s highlighted in gray. This just makes it super easy for me to click through the correct files more quickly!


Within my “2014” folder, there are two smaller folders, one for each semester.
Within the “Fall” semester folder, there are folders for each of my classes. So, right now I’m kind of considering graduation a class because there are so many deadlines to meet and so much paperwork to fill out that it really feels like an additional class!


This is the only class I’m in this semester (which is how I’ve been able to post almost everyday). Within this class, we are really working on one big project for the entirety of the semester! However, we did still have to do some of those crazy online discussion (they are my nemesis. seriously). But now we’re done with discussions, so the folder is gray. My project is still active, plus this professor sends out additional instructions in his e-mails, so I copy them to Word docs and save them in a folder.


I typically give each large assignment/paper/project its own folder. In this class’ case, we have one large (60ish page) paper but we’re writing it about 10 pages at a time. Below are the different sections of the paper that we have worked on so far. The green ones are the ones that are still in progress, whereas the gray ones are the ones that have been approved/finalized. Organizing projects like this enables me to be able to take notes, copy articles, type outlines etc. and to keep them in the folder of the project they’re for. 


For example, this is the “References” folder pictured above. Of course, there are even more folders… I saved any articles that cited strategies in the “Strategies” folder, any articles I’d like to cite in the “Articles” folder, there is an APA checklist (because there is always SOMETHING that’s a space off or not italicized)! Then I also created a couple of Word documents with quotes that I liked or possible references. 


Finally, here is the inside of the “Articles” folder. As you guessed, it contains articles that I’ve downloaded from online. 


Anyway, so that’s it! That is how I’m able to find all of my documents whenever I’m looking for them!

Now if I could just do something about all those 10,000 photos in my computer… :)



How do you organize your computer files? Is this too detailed for you or do you think it would help keep things together? 
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