Study Notes That Stay in Sight

How to Use Sticky Notes for Studying on Your Mac

1. Write One Topic per Sheet

   Click the top sheet of a pad and type the topic on the first line, such as Cell biology; a plain first line becomes the bold title. Press Return and add the points to learn.

2. Give the Subject Its Paper

   On the “Board” (the frosted tray with three pads), point at the three-dot pill at the pad’s edge (“Tools”) to open the tools; on the “Classic pad” they are always out. Choose “Type & Paper” (Aa) ▸ “Paper”, one paper per subject. A locked paper shows a padlock and opens the “Peel & Stick Pro” screen.

3. Add a Formula by Hand

   On the Board, pick up the “Pen” from the tray; on the Classic pad, click “Draw” in the tools. Write with your mouse or trackpad, then click “Put the Pen Down” in the tools to type again.

4. Peel It Off Beside Your Work

   Drag from the bottom band of the sheet away from the pad and let go beside your reading. Let go too early and it sticks back down. Without Pro, if 3 notes are already pinned, the sheet flies back onto the pad.

5. Tick Off Your Study List

   Write one task per line, then click in the first task and choose “Checklist” in the tools (on the “Classic pad”, it is under ☰ “Lists & More Tools”). That line and every line below it get a box, and the title stays as it is. Peel the list off, then click a box on the pinned note to tick it; your app stays in front.

6. See Every Note at Once

   Click the Peel & Stick icon in the menu bar and choose “Corkboard Overview”. ⌥⌘Space opens it too, unless macOS already uses that shortcut on your Mac. Press Escape to go back.

Sticky Notes for Studying, in Sight While You Work

Sticky notes for studying keep what you’re learning where you’ll see it: a formula beside the problem set, exam dates beside your timetable, new words beside your reading. Study notes and revision notes on your Mac work the same way: each sheet you peel off a Peel & Stick pad floats above your other windows and follows you to every Space.

A pinned note never takes focus, and apart from its checkboxes it is read-only, so a stray click can’t change your words. Double-click it to edit it on its pad, then peel it off again. Without Pro you can keep 3 notes pinned at once; with Peel & Stick Pro, as many as you like.

Watching a lecture full screen? When the app in front fills a whole display with one window, as full-screen video does, pinned notes fade to 40% opacity. To keep them clear, choose “Settings…” from the Peel & Stick icon in the menu bar and turn off “Fade notes during full-screen video and presentations”. Notes can appear over full-screen apps, but macOS can’t promise every case: some full-screen Spaces can still cover a note.

Color-Code Study Notes by Paper

Give each subject one paper, say “Mint” for biology and “Canary” for history. Four papers are free on every plan: “Canary”, “Soft Pink”, “Mint” and “Vellum Blue”, which turns see-through once pinned. Peel & Stick Pro adds eight more papers and four cloud styles, for 16 in all, including “Graph”, with a printed blue grid for formulas, and “Legal Pad”, with ruled lines and a red margin rule. See all 16 papers.

On the Board, each pad hands you its next color with every new sheet, so change a sheet’s paper before you peel it. On the Classic pad, each new sheet uses the paper you last chose. “Choose Ink” offers nine named inks, or any color you mix, for both the words and the pen, and warns “Hard to read on this paper” below 3:1 contrast.

A Study Notes App for Mac With a Pen

Draw what’s slow to type: a structural formula, an arrow between ideas, a small graph. Write with the Pen using your mouse or trackpad; the line’s width follows your speed, and there is no pressure sensitivity. The Pen and the Eraser are free on every plan.

Peel & Stick Pro adds the “Marker”, the “Fountain Pen” and the “Highlighter”, which blends into the paper so a key term stays readable. To search, choose “Open Vault” from the Peel & Stick icon in the menu bar: the Vault window finds typed words only, not handwriting, so type the terms you’ll want to find. More in our guide to handwritten sticky notes on Mac.

Sticky Notes for Students: Study Lists and Exam Dates

Pin today’s study plan as a checklist and tick each hand-drawn box as you go; see our guide to a to-do list sticky note on your Mac desktop. To review everything at once, “Corkboard Overview” lays out your pinned notes where they sit on each display, then the notes resting on your pads, up to 48 cards in all. Press ⌥⌘Space to open it; on many Macs macOS already uses that shortcut, so if nothing happens, choose “Corkboard Overview” from the Peel & Stick icon in the menu bar. More on sticky notes on a second monitor.

For an exam date, open the Shortcuts app, add the Peel & Stick action “Set Reminder”, choose the note and the date and time, then run the shortcut. When that time comes, Peel & Stick chimes, and if you allow notifications, macOS shows “A note is asking for you”. The reminder comes once, and only while Peel & Stick is running. See how to create a sticky note with Shortcuts on Mac.

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