Cornell Note Taking Method

Have you heard of the Cornell Note Taking system? This note-taking method has been around for ages, but I think the value of it gets forgotten. So I thought I’d give it a bit of a plug today.

It’s a very concise and organised way to compile and collect notes prior to study. Here’s a quick summary of it, but do take the time to research a bit more about it, if you want more info.

1. SPLIT THE PAGE INTO 4. A section at the top for the subject, topic, date etc; a large margin worth 1/3 of the page on the left; a large note-taking section on the right; and finally a space at the bottom for the Summary. 

2. WRITE THE ESSENTIALS AT THE TOP. That’s fairly self-explanatory, otherwise notes can get all jumbled.

3. THE NOTES. When in class, write your notes in the Note-Taking Area. Write in point form with bullets, include diagrams, arrows of information relationship, mind-maps, and use abbreviations. 

4. KEY WORDS/ CUE WORDS. Once you’ve written the notes, then write the que/key words on the left margin. This is essential, as it makes you critically think about ‘what’ you have actually written. It’s also good to write ‘teacher-type’ questions here. The ones you might find in a test.

5. SUMMARY. In the summary section write a summary (duh obviously) about the notes on the page. This is an important step, as it tests whether or not you know what you just wrote about. If there are holes in the information, and you’re not able to write the summary, then you need to get more info or ask the teacher. 

6. REFLECTION. Write a reflection about the information in the summary section too. Focus on how you think this info relates to the rest of the info in the unit, or how it relates to the whole subject in general. This makes you think even more critically about the content, rather than just trying to rote learn like a robot. Sorry. 

Next post will be about Cornell Notes with a ‘TWIST’ !! STAY TUNED.