A guide to the Cornell method of notetaking.

1. Note taking 101

3. CONCENTRATION
Am I making this
easy on myself?

4. In class
Don’t write down
every word
Come up with your
own shorthand
Pay attention to
cues: pauses,
repetition, changes
in delivery
Visuals: If teacher
underlines it, so
should you

5. Find the
thesis
Where could it be?
-There is no golden rule
for finding where a
thesis statement will be
located
-Multiple readings will
be required
-Don’t assume.
Highlighting on the first
read through might not
be the best idea

6. About Point
 1. In one sentence tell what the
paragraph is about.
 2. Go back and find the one sentence in
the text that most resembles what you
said. Highlight that sentence.

7. Cornell Method
= More organized
notes
=Allows students to
quickly identify key
words and concepts
=You have created
your own study guide

8. Cornell Method Step 1
 1. Record main ideas
and concepts on the
right side. These are
general notes. Put
them in your own
words
 2. Skip one line
between ideas and
several lines between
topics
 3. Don’t use complete
sentences

9. Cornell Method Step 2
 Review and Clarify1.Review your notes
2. Pull out key words,
concepts, terms,
places, dates, WHO,
WHAT, WHERE,
WHEN and Put these
in the left hand
column

10. Cornell Method Step 3
◦ Summarize
1. Take all of the info
and condense into a
short summary. The
summary may be in
sentences or short
phrases.