How to Teach Note-Taking Skills That Last

Note-Taking Must Be Taught

Most students are never explicitly taught how to take notes. They are told to "take notes" and expected to figure it out. Unsurprisingly, most student notes are either verbatim copying (which does not promote learning) or incomplete fragments (which are not useful for review).

Note-Taking Strategies to Teach

Cornell Notes -- Divide the page into three sections: a narrow left column for cue questions, a wide right column for notes, and a summary section at the bottom. During class, write notes in the right column. After class, generate questions in the left column and write a summary at the bottom.

Two-Column Notes -- Similar to Cornell but simpler: main ideas on the left, details and examples on the right. Good for middle school students learning to organize information.

Sketch Notes -- Combine drawings, symbols, and words to represent information visually. This works well for visual learners and for concepts that have spatial relationships (like science processes or historical timelines).

Outline Format -- Main topics as Roman numerals, subtopics as capital letters, details as numbers. This works best for well-organized lecture content.

How to Teach It

Model First -- Show students your own notes. Take notes in front of them during a video or reading, thinking aloud about your decisions: "This seems important because the teacher emphasized it, so I will write it down. This is an example, so I will indent it."

Provide Scaffolding -- Start with partially completed notes where students fill in key information. Gradually reduce the scaffolding until students take notes independently.

Practice and Feedback -- Have students practice with low-stakes content. Review their notes and give specific feedback: "You captured the main ideas but missed the key vocabulary terms."

Use Notes for Review -- If students never use their notes, they will stop taking them. Build in review activities that require notes: partner quizzes, study groups, or open-notes assessments.

Digital vs. Handwritten

Research generally favors handwriting for deeper processing because it forces paraphrasing (you cannot write fast enough to copy verbatim). However, digital notes are better for accessibility and organization. Teach both and let students use what works best for them.