Sketchnoting: A Better Way To Take Notes

I recently sat down with a freshman to help him study for a biology test. I asked him to get out his notes and he pulled out a few worksheets that had fill in the blanks. I said tell me what you know about photosynthesis...there was little he had to say. Even though he filled in blanks and listened to the teacher read slides of information-he never took the content and made sense on his own of what photosynthesis was. He didn’t have drawings that he created to tie words to concepts, there was no color on the worksheet to help his brain pull out main ideas.

This student was missing out on the benefits of taking notes in a better way-sketchnoting. So that’s how we studied-I guided him through a few review sessions using sketchnoting so he could take ownership of the content and recall it later for the test. And it worked! BTW...it always works 🙂

Really don’t we all want students to have access to the content we teach?

Students want to be taught in such a way that they feel empowered in accessing the content on their own. They will put in the time and effort to do the work when the assignment is set up for success and can see their efforts will pay off in the future.

So what’s the answer for getting students to do the work and have amazing success? And the answer to saving you time and headaches with all those worksheets and boring notes?

SKETCHNOTES!

Sketchnoting the Weibert Science way is a visual note-taking technique that combines color, images, text, and a template to help students record and organize information.

Here are several ways sketchnoting helps students learn:

Enhances Understanding: By translating information into images and symbols, students can better grasp complex concepts, making them easier to understand and remember.

Boosts Engagement: The creative aspect of sketchnoting keeps students engaged in the learning process, helping to maintain their attention and interest.

Improves Memory Retention: Visual elements aid memory retention. Students are more likely to remember information when it's presented in a visual format along with text.

Encourages Active Learning: Creating sketchnotes requires active participation and critical thinking, prompting students to process information rather than passively absorb it.

Promotes Organization: Providing a template to sketchnote from helps students organize their thoughts logically, providing a clearer overview of the material.

Fosters Creativity: Sketchnoting encourages students to express themselves creatively, which can enhance their motivation and enthusiasm for learning.

You may be wondering - really isn’t this just drawing? I don’t have time for students to draw-I can’t even get through my unit without running out of time. My students don’t do any work for me now, there is no way they are going to put in this much work to take notes like this. Sketchnoting is about connecting several proven strategies together for students to be able to move content over into long term memory, take one strategy out, and content doesn’t connect in the same way.

I have many research articles over on my Padlet (look under sketchnotes-research) to support the great learning I see happen on a daily basis in science classrooms. This article focuses on drawing in science.

My favorite resources to use are the Noun Project and Flaticon. Both sites help students come up with ideas for simple drawings. Remember, it’s not about the art but about the content. I also love the book The Sketchnote Handbook by Mike Rhode.

All four pieces are needed!

Both the teacher and the student need to be taught how to sketchnote. This takes some time and practice.

Take a look at my Spring Bundle to get you started when you head back to school!

3 Must Do’s When Teaching Your Students to Sketchnote

Use a Sketchnote Bootcamp-It can seem easy-like I can teach my students to draw-I got this all on my own. But what I have found over my years of training is that most teachers were never trained on how to draw and consider themselves bad drawers. My Bootcamp does all the work for you! I know you aren’t an expert in sketchnoting-so let me train your students for you. In 1.5 hours time, your students will be ready to go! Run a bootcamp the first week back for the next semester!

Use a Template-You need to learn how to template out your assignments. Giving students a blank page and saying make a sketchnote is not going to get you good results. Students dread blank pages that they have to fill themselves. How you set up the page from figuring out how to use the space to writing the directions correctly-this is how you get amazing student work. My eBook teaches you how to template!

Give Plenty of Time to Practice- Most likely, no other class gives students the opportunity to sketchnote. Students won’t believe that you are giving them choices to process and encouraging them to use cool pens. Students will need time to learn and practice. Students get frustrated when time is cut short and they couldn’t finish. This will take up class time-but it’s so worth it!

I know-it sounds to good to believe! Sketchnoting the Weibert Science way really does work! Students and teachers alike become fully engaged and happy to do the work. Gone is the boredom of filling in worksheets. Gone are the lost worksheets. Gone are the hours of you standing at the copy machine. Come join me in my online community-you can start with the Spring Semester Bundle or go for it and own it all in my Phenomenal Science Training.

Let's change up and enhance your science teaching for the new semester!

Resources To Help You Succeed:

Spring Semester Bundle-combines the eBook, Sketchnote Bootcamp, and a great PDF resource to keep you focused when implementing sketchnotes-offer available until 1/30/25.

Sketchnote Bootcamp-trains your students how to sketchnote over 1.5 hours of time. You will click through the slide deck and your students will be trained. It comes with a resource folder with ready made templates to use right away.

eBook-helps you to learn the first steps of Phenomenal Science Notebooks. You will learn strategies such as: how to set up notebooks, the what and how of sketchnotes, how to design a template to move away from worksheets, and tips and tricks for all the ways of using notebooks in your classroom!

Phenomenal Science Training- Get everything Weibert Science trains on! This training is a self-paced, on demand training, to learn how to create interactive notebooks with engaging lessons using templates and sketchnoting. You get the Bootcamp plus the 150 page interactive workbook that walks you through how to sketchnote, template and add to your units with unit templates.