Good class notes are essential to good study skills. What are good notes？ Many students fall into the trap of attempting to write down every word the teacher speaks. This is unnecessary， but even worse， it’s confusing. The key to good notes is identifying the most important things to write down.
　　做好課堂笔记是学习技巧中至关重要的一环。什么样的笔记才是好的笔记呢？许多学生陷入了这样一个误区：他们试图把老师讲的每一个字都记下来。其实没有这个必要，更糟的是，这会让人产生困惑。做好笔记的关键是确定最重要的东西并将其写下来。
　　If you read back over previous class notes， you will see that each day’s lecture will usually be about a specific chapter or topic. Your notes will make more sense to you if you identify a common thread and create a frame in your head before the lecture begins. When you understand the overall theme or message for the day， you will be able to identify important facts and understand why they matter. When you start with a frame in your head， you can see where each fact fits within the frame.
　　如果你阅读之前的课堂笔记，你会发现每堂课都涉及一个具体的章节或者主题。如果你在课前能确定讲课的主线或在脑海中构造一个知识框架时，笔记会对你更有意义。当你理解了当天课程总体的主题或内容，你就能够识别出重点内容并且能理解为什么他们很重要。当你在脑海中有了知识框架，你就能明白每个实例适用于框架哪个地方。
　　How to identify a theme for notes？ If the teacher has assigned a specific chapter or passage for the next class， you can be pretty certain that the next lecture will focus on that. Even if the information is a little different （and teachers often add important facts to the reading）， the theme or topic will often be the same.
　　如何确定笔记的主题呢？如果老师为下一节课指定了一个特定的章节或文章，那么你就能比较肯定下一堂课将以此为中心。即使讲课的内容有所不同（老师经常会添加一些重要的内容），主题往往是相同的。
　　Sometimes you can try a strategy to make your task much easier： Taking notes before your class and then reinforcing those notes as you listen to your teacher or professor. Science shows us that we learn from revisiting material. The more active you are in your study habits， the more time you put into preparing for class， the better you will be when the test day arrives.
　　有时候你可以尝试这样一个策略，使你的笔记做得更轻松：在课前记笔记，然后在听老师或教授（讲课）的时候充实你的笔记。科学告诉我们，我们通过温习材料来学习。你的学习习惯越主动，课前准备的时间越长，考试时你的表现就会越好。
　　Sometimes your lectures can be a re■stated version of， or reinforcement of， your textbook reading. If this is the case， your job is to read your assigned passages and create an outline containing the most important points that are covered. As you write， be sure to leave plenty of blank spaces between the lines of your outline. You will carry this outline to class and fill in supplemental information as you listen to your lecture. It’s a good idea to prepare the outline for the lecture. You can go through and highlight new vocabulary words in a single color， like yellow or pink. Next， you may go back and highlight new concepts in a different color， like blue. You will find that the color coded highlights act as markers on a road map； they serve as flags to help you navigate quickly from topic to topic if your teacher tends to jump around. 　　有时候课堂内容是教科书内容的复述或者加强。如果是这样的话，你要做的就是读你老师指定的内容，并写出一个包含最重要的要点的大纲。写大纲的时候，一定要在大纲每行之间留出大量空白。把这个大纲带到课堂上，在你听课的时候，在大纲上填写补充内容。为听课准备提纲是个好主意。你可以用单独的颜色，如黄色或粉红色，标出新词汇。接下来，你可以回顾并用不同的颜色，如蓝色，标记突出新的概念。你会发现，不同颜色的标记就像是路线图上的标示一样。如果你的老师讲课时较有跳跃性的话，这些标记会像旗帜一样帮助你从一个主题到另一个主题快速浏览。
　　In addition， you may find that it helps to draw pictures while you take notes. But this doesn’t mean you should draw without aim while the teacher is talking！Instead， you may find that you can understand a theme or overall picture of a class lecture when you turn words into diagrams or charts.
　　另外，你可能会发现做笔记时画出图表会有助于学习。但这不是指你应该在老师说话的时候涂鸦！你可能会发现，如果将文字形式转换为图表形式，你能更好地理解整堂课的一个主题或整体的概貌。
　　Some teachers will assign readings on one topic and lecture on something completely different. When this happens， you must find the relationship between the reading and the lecture. Another good way to identify a theme for the day is to ask the teacher. Before each lecture begins， simply ask if the teacher can provide a theme or framework for the next class. Your teacher will probably be very glad to be asked.
　　有些老師会指定某些主题的阅读材料但讲课时的内容却完全不同。如果遇到这种情况，你必须找到这些阅读材料和讲课内容之间的联系。另外一种确定每日课程主题的好方法就是询问老师。在每次上课之前，直接向老师询问能否给出下一堂课的主题或知识框架。老师很可能也会为你的询问感到高兴。