This document provides tips for taking concise notes while reading texts. It recommends writing brief notes that capture key details like characters, repetitions, contrasts, and out-of-place elements. Notes should include the page number and briefly describe important characters when introduced. Repeated words, ideas, or themes and contrasting elements that stand out should also be noted. Taking focused notes on such essential elements can help with understanding themes and performing well on tests, rather than copying entire passages verbatim.

1. Taking Notes
How to keep easy, short notes on
everything

2. A tip on note taking --
• Students complain that notes take too much time or
interrupt their flow of reading. I agree, if you take poor
notes. Notes briefly describe something. The key word
is briefly.
• Example when reading a story: If you come upon a
character named Fred who is described in great detail
on page 24, you could copy the entire descriptive
passage. OR you could write "24. Fred -description."
That takes only a few seconds, and you're back to
reading. Record the page number with each note.
Here is an example:

3. Examples:
• Imagine finding a new character in your story, Fred, on page 24. He's a
character, so you record the note.
• After reading the next two chapters, you notice that Fred does or says
many things that show he is optimistic about life. You record the examples
of his conversations showing optimism(happy, hopeful, excited) -- that's
repetition (when the story repeats words, ideas, or themes several times.)
• On page 120, Fred meets Ralph who is pessimistic(negative, dark,
hopeless). [Note: “120. Ralph. Meets Fred.”]
• Since you have already established Fred as optimistic, you notice clearly
the contrasting(very different) character of Ralph. Ralph seems to be,
maybe, the opposite of Fred. You know this is going to be an important
meeting, so you read carefully. Often, authors use progressions like this to
reveal their themes or main ideas. Unfortunately, most readers skip over
such details. Don't be such a reader. Record the examples of Ralph’s
Pessimism. This will probably be important in essays or tests.

4. Taking notes from Text
• Taking detailed notes doesn't mean to write
down everything that happens in the book.
Instead, you're looking for items of
importance to help you understand the
deeper meanings of the work. Here are a few
things to look for.

5. Characters
• --When a new character is introduced, record
it in your notes. Do not waste much time
writing down a complete description; it is
already there in the book. Just record the page
so you can refer to it later. Not all characters
are equally important, but you will not know
which are major characters and which are
minor until you finish the book. Better to be
safe. Record them all BRIEFLY.

6. Examples:
• …“It only puts me in
Gryffindor” because Harry
did not want to go in
Slytherin. Beaming again,
Dumbledore says, “exactly
… Which makes you very
different from Tom Riddle.
It is our choices, Harry …
far more than our
abilities.”… page 162.
• Note: “162;TOM RIDDLE;
Harry compared to Tom.”

7. Repetitious things
• - If an important test approaches, your teacher
will remind you at the beginning of class and at
the end. Why? Because its IMPORTANT. The same
goes in literature or texts. If an author has an
important point to make, he will repeat it in many
ways: sometimes by having a character use the
same words, go to the same place, or talk to the
same people again and again. So watch out for
such repetitious items in your reading. Even if you
do not know why the author repeats something,
write it down anyway. Sometimes all your work
becomes clear later (and sometimes it does not).

8. Examples:
• “Nory was a Catholic because her mother was a
Catholic, and Nory’s mother was a Catholic because
her father was a Catholic, and her father was a Catholic
because his mother was a Catholic, or had been.”
• I looked upon the rotting sea,
And drew my eyes away;
I looked upon the rotting deck,
And there the dead men lay.
• “I felt happy because I saw the others were happy and
because I knew I should feel happy, but I wasn’t really
happy.”

9. Out-of-place things
• --If you want to stick out from the crowd, one of the easiest ways is
to dress in a different way. The stronger a statement you wish to
make, the more outrageous your costume. Authors use the same
trick in literature. We call the technique ìcontrast.î A contrast
presents the reader with something different, sometimes strikingly
different, which encourages the reader to examine differences to
discover meaning. If you go to a party thinking it's a costume party,
and you're the only one wearing a mask, you would stand out much
more than if everyone were wearing masks. Keep an eye open for
such contrasting items: contrasting people (rich/poor, happy/sad,
strong/weak), contrasting places (city/country, mansion/shack),
contrasting times (old/new, old fashion/modern,
morning/afternoon/evening, young/old), contrasting settings
(light/dark, sunny/rainy, peace/war), contrasting feelings
(calm/angry, quiet/loud, shy/outgoing, frightened/confident).