Cheatsheets

Okay! You made it! The last and final practical application of the Core Content Mastery Method is Cheatsheets. Now, we do have a specific resource called a cheatsheet, but what we’re referring to here is any short, quick resource that helps the student master the content.

So – think about what kind of one-page resource you would provide. How can you abridge the topic down to one page? We make them clear and concise and they focus on a specific topic. What would you have wanted as a nursing student – is there a resource you found yourself looking up over and over again that you would’ve wanted quick access to? We like for them to be graphics heavy with the important information spelled out for them.

So here is an example of a cheatsheet. A main image with brief explanations and arrows. So this one specifically is stroke symptoms by location. So if a student has a patient whose history shows a stroke in the middle cerebral artery – they’ll know what findings to expect in that patient. On the right you’ll see what we call a Pathochart. This is one of my absolute favorite resources. We drill down the pathophysiology into a few sentences, then provide the most important assessment findings, diagnostic tests, nursing priorities, management, and medications. This now becomes a one-page resource for all things crohn’s disease.

So drilling concepts down into a one-page resource provides just one more way to give the learner what they need to master the concepts. Now that you’ve finished reviewing who we are, what our pedagogy is, our core tenets, and 7 tips to implementing it, the next module will be a way for you to demonstrate what you’ve learned. Feel free to go back and review any lessons you want to and use them as a resource as you complete that assignment! Now, go out and be your best self today. And, as always, happy nursing!