Whether you are a student studying for an exam or looking for a way to learn a new topic, take a look at making flashcards.
For example, I’m currently interested in options trading. It’s a very broad topic and there is a lot of technical jargon. Flashcards have helped me to easily create, store and organize notes.
Pair this with Notion, an all-in-one workspace, and I’ve got a perfect tool to help review option strategies and trades at the tip of my hand.
In this article, I’ll take a look at how you can use Notion to set up study flashcards that will make studying easy!
How To Make Flashcards In Notion
Follow these steps to create flashcards in Notion:
- Create a new page in Notion, or open an existing one that you want to use for your flashcards.
- Add a new “Gallery Database” to the page. You can add this by typing in /gallery and clicking on “New database”.
- Click on the Page 1 gallery. Now we’ll add in a few properties.
- The flashcard question will be added to the title of the page.
- Topic (select): describes the genre/topic the flashcard is in (ie. Put Options)
- Result (text): the “back of the flashcard” aka the answer to the flashcard
- Answer (formula): the formula will reveal the answer when you click on the “Reveal” checkbox. The formula is if(prop(“Reveal”) == false, “Answer Hidden”, prop(“Result”)). If you modify the property labels you’ll need to adjust the formula accordingly.
- Reveal (checkbox): works with the Answer property to reveal the answer.
- Latest Review (date): describes the last date the card was used.
- Progress (status): I set 4 options for progress. No knowledge, moderate knowledge, good knowledge, and archive. This will help with filtering the flashcards based on how much further study needs to be done. The “Archive” status sends the card to the archive and out of the active deck.
- Now we tweak a few visual settings in the Gallery view. Click on database setting (…). Under “Properties”, show the “Name”, “Reveal” and “Answer” properties. Additionally, under the “Layout”, you want the following settings:
- Card preview – None
- Card size – Medium
- Open pages in – Center peek
- When you check the “Reveal” box, the flashcard answer will be automatically shown. Now all you need to do is populate the database with your questions and answers!
Related article – How To Add Image To Gallery View In Notion
Board Database View
Another view that I like to use for studying is the board view. You can set up boards by topic and then split them by level of understanding (Progress property).
- Add a new view by clicking on the “+” in the database view bar. Select the “Board” view.
- Under the view settings (…), change the “Group” to “Progress”. Again, under “Properties”, show the “Name”, “Reveal” and “Answer” properties
- Now under “Filters”, click on “Add advanced filter”. Here you can filter out archived cards and show only specific topics. For example:
There are a few additional ways to slice and dice your flashcards so give me a shout if you have any questions.
How Do You Use Flashcards While Studying?
Now you’ve got your own flashcard system set up in Notion, I’d like to point out a few tips on how you can use these flashcards to maximize your study time:
- Create flashcards that are clear and concise: Make sure that the question and answers are clear and simply worded. It defeats the purpose of having flashcards if you have slabs and slabs of text.
- Organize your flashcards: You can organize them by category or subject, or even tag them to make them easy to filter and find. Find what works for you.
- Customize the flashcards for you: You can also customize the flashcards for your own learning style by adding images, videos, sounds or even writing examples that are more meaningful to you. It’ll be hard to show all of that on the examples shown above, but consider adding all that to the underlying Notion page and click on the page to find out more.
- Make the flashcards yourself: Making the flashcards yourself can be a way to actively engage with the material, this can increase the chances of memorizing the content.
- Use active recall: When reviewing flashcards, try to actively recall the information on the back of the card before checking. This will help to reinforce the content in your memory.
- Space out your study sessions: Instead of trying to cram all of your flashcards into one study session, spread them out over a longer period of time. Research suggests that reviewing information multiple times over a longer period of time leads to better retention and recall than trying to cram all of the information into one short study session. (I get it… I’m guilty of this too!)
- Consider using other methodologies: Flashcards are a good tool to memorize information, but they’re not the only ones. Use flashcards in conjunction with other study methods, such as summarizing the material in your own words, teaching it to someone else, or practicing problems.
Are Flashcards Effective For Studying?
Flashcards can be an effective tool for studying. I tend to find them better for memorizing and reviewing specific pieces of information, like vocabulary words, dates, or formulas. The use of flashcards can help you to actively engage with the study material and test yourself, leading to better retention and recall of the information.
Additionally, Notion flashcards can be a convenient and portable study tool. The flashcard setup shown above can be easily accessed on your phone so you can review flashcards when you have a spare moment, like waiting for a bus or in between classes.
That being said, you should also be aware that flashcards are a tool for memorization, not for a deep understanding of the content. So, if your goal is to understand the material well, you should use other methodologies along with flashcards.
Are Flashcards Better Than Notes?
Flashcards and notes serve different purposes, and the choice between the two will depend on what you are studying and your personal learning style.
I’ve already mentioned the pros and cons of using flashcards, but what about notes?
I find that notes are generally better for organizing and summarizing information (second brain anybody?). Notes help you to identify and link the main ideas, concepts, and key takeaways of the material.
So there’s no right or wrong method of studying. It will ultimately boil down to personal preference and what you’re studying for. My opinion? Use both as they can complement each other.
Thanks for reading and I hope you found this helpful!
Other Notion tutorials you may also like:
- Notion Foundations: Using Notion Databases
- Is Notion Good For Note Taking?
- 7 Notion Features To Save You Time