Annotating Like a Pro

Annotating isn't just important for students while they are in school- it's an extremely valuable life skill. Whether someone is reading for fun or for an assignment, annotating helps them concentrate, which in turn allows them to absorb more information. Annotation isn't always a natural skill, though, and most students benefit from being explicitly taught how to annotate effectively.

In this class, students will learn various aspects of annotation. Students will be provided with thorough explanations and examples of these annotating methods, as well as practice how to annotate a text themselves. This class is geared to not only teach students how to mark their text in a sensible way, but also to touch on active reading in order to identify and take notes on key information that should be written down during reading. After we examine and practice the various ways to annotate, we will evaluate the pros and cons of annotating versus more traditional note-taking so that students can each identify which style will work best for them when reading.

All in all, this class will be jam-packed with information in a highly interactive way, with the majority of the work happening in the here-and-now of the class session. By the time this class is over, students should be comfortable with annotation, as well as have an increased ability to successfully annotate a text on their own.