Successful Annotation: The First Step

When we responsibly study any text, we record our observations in writing.  Later, we can use these observations for interpretation and discussion, but we first enter our reading of any text by annotating, or taking careful notes, as we experience it. 

For each of the six primary texts that you will read for ENGL 1102 this semester, you will take careful notes using a method below that works best for you and yields the most detailed results.  You will turn in these annotations along with each Essay Project’s materials and then again at the end of the semester. Most of the time, students who take careful and copious notes remember the films/texts better and can complete more detailed textual analysis. Annotation skills also spill over into the majority of other university classes where copious reading is the norm.

Methods for Winning Annotation, Complete with Helpful Links:

1.  Begin any reading event by preparing: gather a writing utensil, notebook, and dictionary. Read any supplemental materials provided to you either in the text itself or from class notes/discussions, and consider the genre from which the reading comes.

2. Reference AWR, pages 22-27 for tips about asking critical questions as you read. Such questions can form a foundation on which detailed notes can build.

3.  You could begin with the K and W of the KWL Method before you pop in the movie or begin to read the text at hand.  K stands for what you already KNOW about the film or text and what you’ve learned from the supplemental materials you read or class discussions/notes.  W is what you WANT to know about the film or text—how it uses language or image or argues a specific point, for example, questions surrounding your assignment’s goals or what the main conflicts are and how characters work to resolve them.  L, what you LEARN from your viewing, is the part of annotation comprised of your thoughts after you’ve read/viewed.  Expectedly, this section of your annotations will be the longest and most complex as it involves you recording new knowledge you have gained and going back on successive viewings/readings to answer your own questions or to add to the notes.  In the “L” section, you can record whether your expectations were met, can discuss new information you found, disappointments, surprises, confusion, etc.  Using KWL to annotate can help immensely as you form a bond with the films you must view and texts you must read.

4.  Another suggestion to create marginal notes is the “Split Annotation” method.  To do this, divide your page or even designate two facing pages of your notebook as “Film”  or “Text” and “Viewer” or “Reader”—On the “Film” or “Text” side, record only ideas related to what you SEE and HEAR or PERCEIVE THROUGH LANGUAGE—plot, color, camera angles, lighting, structure, dialogue, music, etc.  On the “Viewer” or “Reader” side, record what you FEEL and THINK as you view or read—confusion (ask questions on this page), sadness, disgust, etc. 

5. Make use of the “SQ3R” tactic. Note that one of the “R’s,” review, is an ongoing process, which means that readers continuously examine what they read to make sure they understand plot events and begin seeing larger patterns for analysis.

6. If reading a poem, consider employing the S.O.A.P.S Tone technique, either by writing directly on the poem itself or on sheets of paper. 

7.  If viewing a film, turn on the subtitles.  Remember, too, you have links to scripts on your class’s resource page. Always rely most, however, on the actual dialogue in the film.  Watch and listen carefully so that you can provide accurate documentation and analysis. 

8. Try the “look away” routine when reading long chunks of a text. That is, from chapter to chapter or section to section, stop, look away, and see if you can summarize what you’ve read. You might write down brief summaries after these sections which can help you remember what you’ve read.

9.  For each film we view, use the information provided on each DVD.  Listen to DVD commentary for ideas and detail.  Watch the “Making Of” selections when available.  Dive headlong into these texts by immersing yourself in the information the producers and directors, actors and writers seek to provide you! 

10.  Know that the key for annotation is to record; that is, you need a written record of each reading or viewing experience so that you can successfully write a detailed analysis of the work. Most of all, remember: annotation is an exercise that allows you to begin the all-important process of interpretation through analysis.