When reading I like to have some basic supplies on hand, they are not required but I find them helpful.
- Pen(s) and or Pencils- I use the Pilot Precise V5, in red, blue, green, black, light blue, red, pink, and purple. However, you can use anything that works for you
- Highlights- I use thin tip highlighters in multiple colors. The text on articles tends to be tightly packed so the thin highlighter work best for precise highlighting
- Sticky note/ post it notes- I grab whatever is available, the size you need depends on how much you need to flag
- The most important part is to know your learning style- for me I need to listen to music in head phones to drown out any other distractions so I can truly concentrate- your needs will likely be different
After you have your supplies you are ready to start diving in!
Things to flag include the following:
- Key words specifically for the text- even if you know them you want to look up definitions because they may be used in a different context in research
- Words that are unfamiliar to you. You will want to mark them and look up the definition.
- Tip- I find using context clues to define words harder in academic literature than in daily reading. I typically keep a blank search bar open on my phone or computer to quickly search words
- Sentences that mention other papers or sources
- If you are doing a literature review and need further sources, or writing a paper, looking at the primary sources will give you the most unbiased information
