My first blog

I am utilizing many different reading and note taking methods during the fall. I have learned many useful techniques during this program and intend to use all of them.

I will use a modified Cornell method for note taking. I am currently using a modified Cornell method but for the fall I will print sheets out and use them. The modified Cornell method has helped me very much in many note taking scenarios.

For reading I will continue to use my own method by listening to music and teach other people. Teaching other people the reading helps me understand it and put it into words. Listening to music also helps me greatly. I can drown out all my distractions with music and focus on my studies. I am planning on studying everyday even when I don’t have class.

The new note taking strategies helped me get ahead in Dr. Garcia’s Cultural Anthropology class. We recently had a test and since I used these methods I did very well with a 99% overall. It helped me understand the the text we were reading more and quicker. It took longer to read the piece but when I read it I fully understood it almost immediately. These techniques are helping me exceed in Dr. Garcia’s class.

There were several times when I was made aware of my thought process. Once when I was helping someone learn the material I realized I didn’t understand it until I had to say exactly what it was out loud. I also realized when I had two earbuds in not many people bothered me and even with one I still couldn’t hear anything anyway. When I read the summary of the piece it summarized it enough so I could answer questions on the piece.

My strengths somewhat reflect my note taking methods. I am analytical which means I always challenge other people’s ideas and that lends to the teaching method. I am always correcting wrong information I hear and helping people find the right answer. I also have individualization which means I focus on the individual. This helps me focus with music because I focus on myself when studying. These strategies reflected my strengths fairly well.

Some reading strategies I used are listening to music to block out distractions, helping people understand the piece, and made a summary in my head. Music really helped me focus as I was constantly being distracted by people and the outside world. Helping people understand the piece helped me by making me understand the piece in simpler terms therefore making it easier to understand. making a summary of the major points in my head helped by allowing me to know what I need to know without the filler content.

The music helped me the most I feel because it eliminated my biggest struggle: distractions. I have always been easily distractable and it has been the biggest annoyance while doing homework and studying. When I have music in I can’t hear much of anything due to my hearing loss so any distractions incoming are blocked by my deafness. While we can’t always listen to music it most certainly does help me a significant amount.

I’d like to keep all my new strategies because I’ve found they’ve helped me greatly in my studies. Before this I was not a very active reader and now I find myself understanding the material better. Making summaries in my head helped a lot as well so I understand the material much better. Teaching people was also helpful as I am planning on being a teacher and I find it helps me to learn how to teach as well as the source material.  And as I’ve mentioned music has helped me the most in life and studying in helping block out distractions.

I can make these strategies into almost every learning situation by tweaking them a bit and using the SMART goal model. I would make a plan before I read or learn and understand what I want to do or learn. I will make sure it’s a tangible goal like read x amount of chapters or learn x amount of info. I will make sure it is achievable by not saying “I’ll read the whole book” or “I’ll do all my homework in an hour” and that it is able to be achieved. I will put realistic timers on my learning and reading and make sure it is done on time.

 

Learning how to play cymbals was one of the most challenging experiences I have ever taken on. I started when I was 13 in my High school’s indoor marching percussion line before I was even in high school myself. I was drafted by a senior member out of my middle school line. I was very enthusiastic when I first started, little did I know how many hours, sweat, blood, and tears I would pour into this simple instrument. I spent hours and hours and hours learning and repeating the basics of this very simple instrument. I worked tirelessly at it with only very short breaks in between seasons. I worked my way up the ranks until I eventually made it to section leader my last tow years in the line. My dedication and skill got me to where I am on this instrument. NOT DONE

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