Getting your ideas in order
In any written assignment you will be expected to organise and structure information from a range of sources.  This can mean you end up with a lot of notes and bits of writing you need to link together.
•	What should you select?
•	What are the relationships between ideas and concepts?
These are suggestions – experiment and find out what works for you.
1.	Aim to get a list of sections for your writing.
2.	There will be more than one possible order so experiment with the order.
3.	You need to link your ideas and points together to form a persuasive line of reasoning.
Highlight and group
Spread your notes out on the floor.  Using a highlighter pen, highlight key points and colour code them.  List the key points in groups (perhaps on record cards).  You can then decide on the ordering of the groups (e.g. by shuffling your cards).
Shuffle your key ideas around
Putting material into groups makes it easier to see how you might link the material together.  Playing around with the order can help you arrive at a line reasoning that will convince the reader.  Your reader will be able to follow your argument more easily if you have thought about the best order to use.
On screen
You can group key ideas as short summaries and shuffle these around in a document.  You can draft an outline plan based on the order you arrive at.
Post up your ideas
Sticky notes and postcards on a wall or table top can be used and moved around to get an order.  Key ideas or points can be summarised on a sticky note and stuck on the wall.  This helps you to get an overview.   Some ideas can be put to one side while others are moved to the centre.  You can colour code by using different colours of notes or different colours of pen.  You can also stick the notes in sections in a notebook or scrapbook.
Link together in diagrams
You can link your ideas together roughly in sketchy spider diagrams, grouped in family trees or more formally as well-thought out concept maps.  These can help you to link points and create a structure.
You can use concept mapping software, such as Inspiration and Mind Genius, available on university PCs.   There are also mind mapping apps you can use online.  
For example, using Inspiration allows you to turn your diagram into an outline for your writing.  Inspiration can be used on all open access lab computers throughout the University.
www.ed.ac.uk/iad