How to Write Information in a Cornell Outline Format

The Cornell Outline Format is one way of organizing notes by compartmentalization. Notes are taken during lecture and placed on one side of the paper while key words and concepts are recorded in a different compartment. This organizational format provides less space for taking notes and more space for analyzing and summarizing your notes. This helps prevent excessive note taking and, instead, focuses on only vital information that is most likely to appear on examinations or quizzes. It is also a good tool to use when taking notes for a research paper. Like all other note taking strategies, the Cornell outline becomes more effective with practice.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Creating a Template

1
Divide your paper into three sections. Measure about two inches from the bottom of the page and draw a line horizontally. Then measure about 2.5 inches from the left of your paper. Draw a line vertically. Your template should now consist of three separate parts for note taking in class, in an upside-down T shape.
- The Cornell outline is organized for almost any number of presentation formats to make scanning, locating, and studying notes easier.
- The outline is also aesthetically pleasing compared to page-after-page of unending, and often needless, note taking.
- You can find many Cornell templates online if you don't want to divide your own paper up.
2
Provide a heading. As with all note taking, your notes should be organized chronologically and topically by placing a heading at the top of the outline for each page. Staying organized will save you time and effort.
- Place the title of the lecture, the class, and date at the top of the page for easy reference. If you must take multiple pages of notes, make sure to add page numbers.
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3
Understand each section. The Cornell outline functions off of the 5 R’s: recording, reducing, reciting, reflecting, and reviewing. All three processes take place within the template you just created. Because this system can be applied to a diverse range of note taking environments it becomes a reusable and efficient system for studying.
- The largest column of your template is the note taking section. This is the only section you will use during class to record notes.
- The first column on the left, the cue column, will be used after class to help reduce your notes to key words and main ideas.
- The bottom section, called the summary, is also used after class to reflect on the meaning of the notes you took in 2-3 sentences.
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Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Taking Notes

1
Prepare for lecture. Before the lecture, take time to complete your assignments, finish your readings, review your notes, and do some background work online for upcoming lectures in order to prepare yourself for identifying important information. In other words, being prepared for class is just as important as attending class. Not being prepared for lecture often equates to you trying to write down everything that your teacher says.
- Usually assigned work is given in preparation for the lecture. Getting familiar with the overview of main ideas, support information, and important concepts will enable you to spend more time listening and participating in class rather than writing.
- Recognizing key words, definitions, and ideas before class reduces confusion.
- Preparation and taking fewer notes allows you to ask more questions, ever endearing you to your teacher.
2
Use smart note taking strategies. There is no single method suggested for taking notes in a Cornell outline format other than avoiding a formal outline. How you take notes will largely depend on what class you are taking. Since lectures move at varying speeds, it is best to be prepared on how you will take notes before going to class. Remember that during class, you are only recording notes in the large, right column. There are several techniques the Cornell method suggests:^{[1]XResearch source}
- Write short, telegraphic sentences and phrases instead of long, complete sentences.
- Write down key words. It's okay for these to be fragmented. For example, instead of writing "America declared its independence from Great Britain on the Fourth of July, 1776," write "Am. independence from GB - 4 July 76."
- Use symbols and abbreviations to cut down writing time.
- Focus on recording testable information such as big ideas, important definitions, and key supporting details.
- Stay organized by effectively using bullet points, skipping lines between ideas and topics, and writing clearly
3
Focus on clues. Every teacher has their own method of instruction but they teach in a way that focuses on content they want you to remember. Figure out the common clues your teachers provide by paying attention to specific cues. ^{[2]XResearch source}
- When a teacher repeats specific sentences, ideas, or concepts, it is important.
- Tone of voice, large gestures, and strongly emphasizing a point usually leads to a potential test question.
- If your teacher presents specific questions at the beginning of class or provides a summary at the end of class, it is usually important enough to be in your notes.
- If your teacher begins listing things – first, second, third, etc. – write them down.
- Excessive amount of time on a single point. Good idea that you get the point.
4
Save time. Without fail, there are students who waste unnecessary time that could be better spent doing something else because they did not take good notes from the beginning. ^{[3]XResearch source}
- Take notes efficiently and accurately the first time while in class. Avoid going back to your room and rewriting your notes from lecture. This activity bears no fruit and doubles your troubles.
- Forget the tape recorder or cell phone. Recording the lecture provides flexibility, but it is also passive learning. Not engaging in note taking usually means thinking about what’s for lunch.
- Shorthand, if it still exists, is not a cool idea in an academic setting. Remember shorthand has to be transcribed, costing you time and effort with no mastery of the material.
5
Take accurate notes. Listening to a lecture is important in gaining new knowledge, but in order to improve your study and work habits, write the notes down. Understanding what you hear in class does not equal to remembering it for the test. Taking notes enables you to retain important information and details that you will be required to recall at a much later date on an examination. ^{[4]XResearch source}
- The best way to remember is by putting large amounts of information into your own words, but be careful not to change the meaning or lose data.
- Keep your notes short and condensed. Avoid long, drawn-out descriptions and full sentences.
- Do not fear missing some information during the lecture. Teachers are usually looking for your ability to grasp large or comparative concepts and theories.
- Try to consistently use the same kind of paper, writing utensil, and notebook.
- If you missed something important, try to obtain the information as quickly as possible.
- Review your notes regularly to achieve a lasting memory.
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Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Reducing, Reciting, Reflecting, and Reviewing

1
Reduce your notes by using the cue column. After class, and as soon as possible, take time to reduce your notes by completing the cue column. The cue column is important for identifying key words or phrases that will trigger your memory to recall large amounts of information. ^{[5]XResearch source}
- Begin by highlighting key ideas, definitions, or phrases to identify what trigger words you will use in the cue column.
- Create questions that help you recall the information in the note taking column. This active learning technique avoids passively staring at a bunch of trigger words and, instead, helps you anticipate questions for the examination.
- If you are a visual learner, consider drawing pictures in the cue column rather than using trigger words.
2
Ask yourself good questions by reciting and reflecting on your notes. Taking notes, highlighting key phrases, and using trigger words is not always enough. Sometimes you need to ask yourself important questions and mull over your notes to digest all of the information properly. Place these important thoughts and answers in the summary column at the bottom of the page. ^{[6]XResearch source}
- Try answering questions about how well you understand all of the information. Could you teach the same lesson in your own words to a friend based on the notes you took?
- The summary section should only be a few sentences that condense and sums up that particular page’s notes, not the entire days’ lecture. This should be completed at the bottom of each page of notes.
3
Review your notes for the upcoming examination. After completing all of the above steps, you should have a ready-made study guide. As with any type of note taking, you should prepare for the examination a few days prior so that you do not cram. ^{[7]XResearch source}
- When studying, focus on the cue and summary columns. This is where all the important information should be located.
- Try not to move on the next page until you have mastered the information on the page you are studying. If you are having trouble, then you might have to take extra time to review the actual notes you took before breaking down the information.
- The Cornell outline method is not only designed to help you study better and get good grades but also to help your time management skills.
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Use this to prepare for any test.
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Handwriting notes is a more effective way of remembering things.
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