By: Allie Robbins, Managing Director, Academic Programs and Partnerships, Helix Bar Review®
If your outlines are filled with highlights, you are not alone.
Many bar review students rely on highlighting as they move through their materials, especially when studying on a computer. With so many colors available, it is easy to keep marking up more and more text.
It feels like you’re being productive, but it is not helping you learn as much as you might think.
Bar prep requires a more active approach.
You are not just reading. You are learning, organizing, and memorizing rules that you will need to recall and apply under time pressure.
Highlighting on its own is passive. It can create a false sense of familiarity. You recognize the words on the page, but you may not be able to recall or use them when it counts.
When everything is highlighted, nothing stands out and review becomes harder, not easier.
That said, many students like using color in their materials. If you are going to highlight, the key is to do it strategically.
Here are some tips to make highlighting actually work for you:
1. Know Your Why
Before you highlight anything, pause and ask:
• Why am I marking this?
• How will this help me remember or use the material later?
If you can’t answer those questions, skip them. The more selective you are, the more meaningful your highlights will be.
2. Read First, Highlight Second
Don’t highlight as you read for the first time.
Instead, focus on understanding the material. Then go back and choose what truly deserves emphasis. This turns highlighting into a deliberate decision — not a habit.
3. Limit Your Colors
More color isn’t better; it’s distracting.
Stick to two or three colors at most. This helps keep your materials clear and easier to review.
4. Be Consistent
If you do want to use multiple colors, give each one a job, and stick with it. For example:
• One color for rules;
• One for elements or factors; and
• One for examples.
Consistency helps your brain process and organize information more efficiently.
5. Don’t Just Highlight — Engage
Highlighting should support your studying, not replace it.
As you prepare for the bar, think about how you will use highlighting to learn and memorize the material.
• Will you add highlighted examples to your annotated outlines?
• Will you create flashcards, attack outlines, flowcharts, or practice questions from the highlights?
Highlighting isn’t the end goal; it should be a step in your process of creating effective study materials.
The Bottom Line
Highlighting can be helpful — but only if you use it intentionally.
Be selective. Be consistent. And most importantly, make sure your study strategy goes beyond simply marking the page.
Ready for More Study Strategies?
Check out additional Helix resources on Your Productive Study Space and Staying Social is a Study Strategy.