Sabtu, 26 Mei 2012

Bar tips: the MBE notebook

Barbri is fantastic, but I also need to work on personal organization and educating myself outside of the scope of Barbri. Which is why  I'm creating a new line of posts in which I seek organizational tips from fellow Bar students/lawyers, as well as give a rundown of my organizational process, so to speak.

Topic of the day: creating a Bar MBE notebook.

I actually plan on having two notebooks: one for MBE and one for essay. But since this is the world of MBE, I'll stick to that one (for now). For those of you who aren't taking the Bar this summer but will in the future, I'm not sure how much you know about this exam. I knew of the subject matter, but no one differentiated (to me, at least) which was on the MBE and which was on the essay portion before this summer. Which leads me to my notebook breakdown, subject by subject (and a couple of other relevant tabs):

1) MBE Practice Tips 
2) Constitutional Law
3) Contracts
4) Criminal Law/Procedure
5) Evidence
6) Real Property
7) Torts
8) Practice Exams/Answers

There are six subjects on the Multistate Bar Exam--actually seven, if you consider how Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure are TOTALLY different cups of tea, but whatever. Lawyers don't go to law school to learn how to count (although Criminal Sentencing Guidelines are apparently exempt from this statement). 

Disclaimer: this binder is going to be REALLY big. I've actually got to go buy a binder that I find adequately intimidating enough to handle all my Bar nonsense. I'm also investing in the good tabs: the ones with front pockets, in case I actually sit down and define all the words I need to flip through on a daily basis. Or in case I'm a dumbass and forget to hole-punch necessary items the first go around, and need somewhere to stick those notes so I don't lose them. 

At any rate, these tabs will handle the following information, although I'm not sure if I want to get some of those smaller Post-it tabs (the good ones) to ultra-compartmentalize it:

1) Outline of the subject--this will be the precise outline (2 pages or less)
2) Relevant definitions
3) Chart/Template I'm modifying, based on this amazing site's example
4) My kitchen sink outline
5) Quizzes I've taken on this subject
6) Supplemental material from the web

As you can see, this can get overwhelming quickly. On the other hand, I feel extremely motivated when I can see my progress right in front of my eyes, which is why this will probably be the best approach for me. I understand not everyone learns the same way, which is why it's important to realize your strengths and weaknesses, and then plan accordingly. 

Have I overlooked anything? Do you have any tips for me that have been helpful to you? 

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