Comments on: How to Decide What to Highlight While Reading

on 4/8/2008 i am a cronic highlighter and i would like to solve this problem...

i often look at my papers and notice the entire thing is yellow w/ small islands of white...

the things said here do help me a lot...and i do like the thing about haxing the used text books...

but i still have the problem of highlighting too much...

any tips or suggestions would be greatly accepted

on 4/8/2008 i am a cronic highlighter and i would like to solve this problem...

i often look at my papers and notice the entire thing is yellow w/ small islands of white...

the things said here do help me a lot...and i do like the thing about haxing the used text books...

but i still have the problem of highlighting too much...

any tips or suggestions would be greatly accepted

on 8/8/2006 I have found that it is pretty neat to put a star (written in pencil) at the beginning and ending portions of what you think is important to highlight.

Then, it is a good idea to just write down what you have put stars by. Such a thing is good for retention.

When you are done with finals week, you can erase what you put stars by and sell those books back for a little money.

When I first started at University, I highlighted everything and have books I will never use again that are highlighted big time. I missed out on making a little money selling them back because of that, but I always keep my ears open if anyone needs a book, you know? Like, I know my younger brother is going to use my old history books. But, I wished I learned sooner about highlighting.

So, just work your starring and underlining technique in pencil and please write down what you mark because that is really good for your memory.

on 11/22/2005 Highlighting the huge volumes of pages in the many texts students are required to sift through these days takes a whole lot of time, effort and skill. Time is scarce, so use it wisely. Instead of buying new books, borrow or buy used ones - preferably those which have plenty of highlighting in them already.
1. You save money.
Used books are much less expensive than buying new, especially if they're a little beaten up and they've been written in. When you're ready to turn around and sell them, you're much more likely to make most or all of your money back than if you had bought new. Buy used, save money, eat something!
2. You save time.
One or more other students have already located most of what is important to remember and have either highlighted or underlined it. They may also have jotted down useful notes and examples. That cuts down on the reading and highlighting work you need to do. If you're a really slow reader the time you save can be considerable. Now you can spend more of your valuable time studying only what is most important.
3. Quality Control
Not everybody is skilled at picking out the important information and weeding out the fluff. If you have the opportunity to choose from two or more used books, see which one has been highlighted best. How many chapters were highlighted? Was it done neatly? Examine a chapter or two to see if what is highlighted is what you would have marked. If you know the previous owner got an A in the course, you should be in good shape.

When comparing used books, spending a little more on the one which has been highlighted more thoroughly and with better quality will be worth it in the long run.

on 11/22/2005 If you find yourself doing a lot of highlighting, make it a goal to highlight no more than 20% of the text.

on 11/22/2005 If you highlight everything that seems important on the first read-through, you will end up with an all-yellow text. Instead, skim the material once without highlighting to develop an overview of the section. After meditating on what you have just read (I like to read before a commute to/from class), re-read the material with more depth of purpose. Highlight key ideas, processes, or names with your over-view impressions in mind. Then, re-read the material to make more notes in the margin until you have mastered the material.

on 12/22/2005 If you use different colors, you might try highlighting the dialog in a specific color.

on 11/22/2005 Always highlight names, anything in bold, the title, and everything that's underlined! Don't forget dates!

on 11/22/2005 Read the first and last sentence of each paragraph. Authors use these sentences to state and restate the most important ideas in the paragraph.

on 11/22/2005 pay extra attention to the title. The title gives out what the thing is all about, right? You don't go on highlighting something about apple is good when the title is Orange the fruit.

on 11/22/2005 Use a different color highlighter pen for different topics. It helps you find what you want easily during revision time, and is particularly useful for dyslexic people.

on 11/22/2005 After you've highlighted something, you will benefit more if you write something in the margin explaining in your own words why you highlighted it or what it means. Highlighting alone isn't enough.

on 11/22/2005 Don't be afraid to highlight things in bold - after all, the writer thought they were important. Also if you can get a peek at your instructor's textbook, I'm always fascinated by what is highlighted there. And remember, they write the tests. ...

on 11/22/2005 Make sure to only highlight important information, as too much highlighting can get very confusing later.

on 11/22/2005 It helps to break down the info you're highlighting into subcategories by circling the word, then highlighting the information pertaining to it. For a history text you can circle the famous person or the date, then highlight the pertaining information.