Reading Notes: Thoughts and Reactions
Mrs. Oliner
Content: What should be in my notes?
• details.
• events.
• conflicts (internal, external, man versus man, etc.).
• literary features, especially symbols and their
meaning.
• ideas about theme and extended metaphors
• personal connections
• feelings & sensations (e.g. initial reactions, mood,
tone, etc.)
• identify & flag important quotations
Techniques: How do I take these notes?
• bullet thoughts
• write a minimum (fragments only)
• use shorthand or abbreviations (e.g. btw. for
between)
• be neat and write legibly
• underline quotations or document the page number