Notetaking 101: Earning An “A” Virtually Every Time

Taking Notes While Reading

1. After reading a paragraph, find its topic sentence or main idea and highlight or underline it.
2. Now that you know the paragraph’s main idea or point, you need to look for important supporting details. Mark only the key words or phrases (not entire sentences) that support the main idea.
3. Mark specialized words (i.e., those in bold, italic, or colored print).
4. Use numerals to easily refer to steps, parts, reasons, etc. of material.
5. Make brief notes in the margin to indicate something of importance.
6. If several sentences together seem important, bracket them and mark them with a star or an asterisk.

Now that you have made notes in your text, you can use your highlighting and marginal notes to study. Reread only the information you have highlighted and marked.

Taking Proper Lecture Notes

* First recognize that there’s more content in a lecture than what the professor puts on the board, in a PowerPoint, etc.

1. Use a loose-leaf notebook rather than a notebook with a permanent binding, and write notes on one side of the page only. This way, you can see the pattern of a lecture by spreading out the pages.
2. Don’t cram too much information into small spaces. Paper is cheap, so use lots of it. Your notes will be much easier to read and work with if you leave sufficient space between ideas.
3. Write the name and date of the class on the first sheet for each lecture.
4. Enter your notes legibly because it saves time. Make them clear.
5. Be brief, and use abbreviations (see examples below).
6. Jot down examples that support the main ideas, giving attention to details not covered in the textbook.
7. Listen for signal words that indicate something important is to follow (e.g., First, Second, Next, Thus…).
8. Mark ideas that the lecture emphasizes with a box, an arrow, or some other special symbol.
9. Summarize notes in your words, not the instructor’s. Remember: your goal is to understand what she is saying, not to try to record exactly everything she says.
10. Do not doodle or play with your pen. These activities break eye contact and concentration.
11. Ask questions about points you did not understand.

Note-Taking Abbreviations

• Acronyms: Hollywood (HW), Classical Hollywood Cinema (CHC), Twentieth Century Fox (20^th C Fx). Although it will be reference many, many times in my classes, students should never write out the word Hollywood.
• First few syllables: Lumière Brothers (Lum Bros), Arrival of a Train at a Station ( Arr. Train Stn )
• Delete vowels from words until notes can be reviewed: technical (tech’l), speak (spk)

Generate your own Cornell Notepaper: http://eleven21.com/notetaker

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