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App idea for remembering what you read in non-fiction books

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chaos
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App idea for remembering what you read in non-fiction books

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Attention all non-fiction lovers who struggle to remember what they read!

Hi guys, I have been having an issue for years with forgetting most of the info I read in non-fiction books. In search for solutions, I have researched spaced repetition and active recall as techniques for improving learning and retention, and personally find them really helpful.

My brother and I are considering making an app around this idea. We are carrying out a survey to gauge interest in the idea, and figure out what features might be useful.

We would really appreciate feedback from this group as there seems to be a lot of people here who have experience in the area. Link to survey is attached below for anyone who might be interested! Any comments below also much appreciated!

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/5R5RJGX

Many thanks,
C and R
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LevV

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Re: App idea for remembering what you read in non-fiction books

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This is an important and worthy project you’re on to. But, you should know that others have given this much thought over the years. One of the best, a book I read in the 70’s and is still being sold today is Adler’s “How to Read A Book”.

More specifically, below is the outline of a strategy I used with my students as a teacher. This is a more elaborate version of my system. You can find it along with much more important information on the subject at:

https://fs.blog/reading/

Taking Notes

The Blank Sheet

The single biggest change you can make to getting more out of the books you read is using the blank sheet method.
Over the years I’ve tested multiple approaches and this one works best for simplicity and effectiveness — it will 10x your comprehension overnight.
The blank sheet primes your brain for what you’re about to read and shows you what you’re learning.

Here’s how it works:
1. Before you start reading a new book, take out a blank sheet of paper. Write down what you know about the book / subject you’re about to read — a mind map if you will.
2. After you finish a reading session, spend a few minutes adding to the map with a different color.
3. Before you start your next reading session, review the page.
4. When you’re done reading, put these ‘blank sheets’ into a binder that you periodically review.

Why does this work so well?
The blank sheet primes your brain for what you’re about to read and shows you what you’re learning.
When you first start with a blank sheet, you’re forced to search your memory and put on paper what you know (or what you think you know) about a subject.

As you read, you literally see that knowledge grow as you add new knowledge to the foundation. Often, you’ll even remove things you thought you knew.

Reviewing what you knew about a subject, as well as what you learned before a reading session not only improves memory and recall but helps connects ideas. Most of the early connections come from putting the authors’ raw material onto your foundation.

If you don’t know anything about the subject before you start, don’t worry. You’ll be able to borrow the scaffolding in the book to get you started.

As your cognitive fluency in a subject grows, you’ll start connecting ideas across disciplines, disagreeing with authors about specific points, and even developing your own ideas.

When you’re done with the book put the page into a binder. Review the binder every few months. This last step is essential for establishing deep fluency and connecting ideas across disciplines.

Conventional Notes
Forget the teacher that yelled at you for writing in your book when you were a kid. You bought this thing. It’s your property. You need to write in the margins.

Here is a very simple process to take notes while reading:
• At the end of each chapter write a few bullet points that summarize the main idea or specific points. Use your own words and not the authors. Try and connect it to something in your life — a memory or another idea. Also, make note any unanswered questions you had while reading.
• When you’re done the book, put it down for a week.
• Pick up the book again and go through all your notes. In a lot of cases, reading your notes will be as good as reading the book again.
• On the inside cover write out the main idea of the book using your own words. If you find yourself stuck, review your notes. (This is called the Feynman Technique). Writing is the process by which we often discover we don’t know what we are talking about.
• You can even make a custom index on the back cover with themes or topics.

• (Optional) Copy out the excerpts by hand and put them on the back of your blank sheet from above or type them out and put them into Evernote. Tag accordingly.

The point of both conventional notes and the blank sheet is to connect new knowledge to old knowledge and point out gaps in your understanding. Writing about what you read is a great way to see what you’ve learned.
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