From the Corner to the Block

            I suppose I should not have sat down to write about how to use Evernote the night before I had to teach it. 

            I did actually start the assignment earlier than that. I had just begun to use Evernote for note taking a few days prior when I was handed the card saying it would be my tool to explore, so I just continued what I was doing. I learned the ins-and-outs of making notebooks, organizing my notes, and syncing (and losing) information on multiple devices. I should have realized than I needed to look into it more on Friday when I learned of the checkbox feature for to do lists by looking over someone’s shoulder in class. 

Then came Sunday night, when I sat down with a plan about how I was going to write a guide to note taking in Evernote. I decided to look up a few tips and shortcuts to add. I watched a few tutorials for ideas on how to use it. It was quite surprising how many features Evernote has that I had never noticed. It a pretty nifty tool, and much more powerful than I had anticipated. 

 

What I discovered was that there are many little features that could be very useful to some and completely unnecessary for others (I really cannot imagine why anyone would need to have all their tweets sent to and saved in a note). Instead of laying out the step-by-step for every feature, I chose to focus my guide on what you can do with Evernote and what it can be used for and then allow readers to pick what they want to explore further. I decided to begin with a simple explanation of what the tool is, hit some important information, and throw in tips and tricks people might find interesting along the way. I think my guide came together pretty nicely.

I suppose the biggest takeaway for me is something teachers have to learn quickly: plan, plan ahead, and plan to revise your plan.