

Free PDF of Note Making Styles
Taking down notes is an important activity for students. There are different reasons behind taking down notes in a classroom. However, the most common reason is recalling the information gathered and to prevent forgetting the important points. Note making styles are crucial, especially when students are getting ready for their exams. So, note-making helps them greatly with their exam preparation.
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Taking down a note in the correct way is not as easy as it sounds. It is not that you simply jot down everything that you hear. Note writing format is all about summarizing the core concepts as precisely as possible in your own words.
What are the Advantages of Note Making ?
At a glance, note making helps you in the following ways.
Understand what you are learning and clarify the thought process.
Stay active and get engaged with the lectures, revision, and reading.
Identify and select the key ideas.
Revise the study-materials before exams.
Organise the noted points, ideas, and make connections.
Plan and structure various assignments.
Therefore, understanding the note making format is pivotal for all as it helps us in many ways.
What is the Format of Note Making?
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The question here is how to implement note making. There is not one, but many formats available for note making.
Outline: The outline method is one of the best and popular note making methods among college students. It helps in structuring the notes in the right way, and this further helps in saving significant time for editing and reviewing. When it comes to note making format, the outline method plays an important role, especially for the newbies. This method is the easiest and, thus, is preferred by many. You can also add bullet points to represent various topics and subtopics.
Split: Split is also a good method for note making. In this method, a blank page of your notebook is divided into a couple of columns (split). The first column consists of the standard notes, and the other follows the summary. This is one of the most common note making formats used during lectures.
Diagram: In the diagram method, notes are represented by various free-hand drawings based on the subject. The primary topic is connected to related ideas. This method is easy to understand because of visual communication.
Mindmap - A map usually works here to present the main points. Images and texts are parts of this Note writing format. Here the information is linked in a proper sequence. It is similar to a flowchart.
Prompt Format – Question and answer are usually highlighted here in this note writing format. The idea here is not to make the notes lengthy. This is an easy way for the revision of the notes.
How does Note Making Work?
As you read through this section, you will get a clear idea of note making.
The Generic Format of Note Making
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This may not be a piece of useful advice for many, but writing down examples in the notes can also help a lot. If you do not know how to do note making or if you are looking for an easy note making format, make sure to include the examples in a couple of ways. Also, you should add-
Heading
Subheadings
Points
Sub-sub headings
Keywords
What are the Procedures of Note Making?
Maintaining a simple procedure for note making is important for the understanding of students. The procedures of note making include reading the passage carefully and underlining the sentences which you feel are important. This will help in making headings and subheadings. To get a fair idea, you can also make a rough note, initially. An important point to remember is, organizing the points logically and in a sequence. When re-writing the note in your own language or words, make sure that idea or message is not changed. This clarifies how to implement note making.
Important Points for Note Making
Avoid writing long sentences, especially in headings and titles.
Never away from the topic or the message.
You can ignore information which is not that important.
Be specific and clear.
Use appropriate indentation.
As a thumb rule, you do not have to think much when taking down notes. Just have a fair idea of the methods, so that note making becomes easier based on the situation and purpose.
Note making is a technique of recording important points from a lecture, meeting or reading. There are three main note making styles: outlining, mind mapping and spider diagrams. Each has its own advantages, procedures and important points. Let's take a look at each style in more detail.
Outlining is the most popular note taking style. It involves breaking down information into headings and subheadings with key words and phrases. Advantages of outlining include that it is easy to follow, helps you focus on the topic and can be used for revision purposes. The procedure for outlining is as follows:
Mind mapping is a useful tool to use when you have a lot of information to process. It involves drawing an image that contains the main topic in its centre and radiating out other images/ideas branching off from it. The advantages to mind mapping are that it is great for visual learners, helps you think more creatively, aids memory retention and can be used as revision notes or presentations.
spider diagrams are similar to mind maps, but use lines instead of circles. They are good for visualising information and seeing relationships between ideas. Advantages of spider diagrams include that they are easy to create, can be adapted as you go along and help with problem solving.
Importance of Note Making
It is important to note take because it helps with memory retention. It also allows you to focus on the lecture, meeting or reading without getting distracted by your surroundings. Finally, it can be used as revision notes and help turn information into knowledge which will stay in your brain for longer and improve your grades.
Here are Some Benefits of Note Making
Note Making allows you to understand and retain information.
Note making is a skill that we all use in everyday life, whether it's from watching a movie or TV show, reading the newspaper or listening to someone speak at an event., you will become better equipped for future learning contexts where these skills are required of you. These include lectures at university/ college , meetings with colleagues and presentations . In addition, practice makes perfect - if you keep up with this task over time while regularly applying the same techniques each time (outline headings before going into detail; draw images instead of words), eventually it will be second nature.
It helps you focus on the task at hand.
When we are taking notes, our minds are focused on what is being said in front of us and not wandering off. This is especially beneficial when attending long lectures where it's easy to get lost if you're not concentrating fully on the speaker. Furthermore, having concise and well-organised notes will help reduce any anxiety or stress that may come with preparing for an assessment.
You can use them for revision.
The best way to learn and remember information is to revise it regularly. This involves reading over your notes, highlighting the key points and practising exam questions. Not only will this method help you get a better grade on exams but it'll also free up more time.
Best ways to Study Note Making:
There are a few things you can do in order to maximise your learning when it comes to taking notes.
Get into the habit of making notes on a daily basis, even if it's just for five minutes. This will help improve your skills and make the task less daunting when it comes to actual assessments.
Outline headings before going into detail; draw images instead of words. As mentioned earlier, this will help with memory retention and understanding/ recalling information at a later stage .
Try different note taking techniques (e.g mind mapping, spider diagrams) until you find one that works best for you. Everyone learns differently so what may work for someone else might not work as well for you .
Take practice exams and revise your notes regularly. This will help embed the information in your mind and improve your grades on final assessments.
FAQs on Note-Making Styles for Effective Learning
1. What is note-making and why is it an important skill for commerce students?
Note-making is the active process of recording key information from a source, such as a lecture or textbook, in a structured and concise manner. For commerce students, it is a crucial skill because it helps in understanding complex topics like accountancy rules or economic theories, improves memory retention of facts and figures, and makes the revision process before exams much more efficient and organised.
2. What are the essential components that every effective note should contain?
To be effective, your notes should always include a few key components to ensure they are useful for later study. These are:
A clear Heading or Title to identify the main topic.
Sub-headings to organise different sections of the topic.
Key points and keywords, often using abbreviations or symbols for speed.
Relevant examples, data, or formulas that illustrate the concepts.
A brief summary section at the end to encapsulate the main idea in your own words.
3. What are some of the most effective note-making styles for learning?
There is no single 'best' style, but several popular methods are highly effective depending on the subject and your learning preference. Common styles include:
The Cornell Method: Divides the page into sections for main notes, cues/questions, and a summary.
The Outlining Method: Uses a hierarchical structure with headings and bullet points to show the relationship between topics.
Mind Mapping: A visual method using a central idea with branches for related concepts, great for brainstorming.
The Charting Method: Uses columns to organise information, ideal for comparing and contrasting facts or characteristics.
4. How can I determine the best note-making style for myself?
The best style for you depends on two factors: the subject matter and your personal learning style. For subjects with a lot of factual comparisons like Business Studies, the Charting Method might be ideal. For understanding broad concepts in Economics, Mind Mapping could be more effective. The best approach is to experiment with two or three different styles for various topics and see which one helps you recall and understand information most easily.
5. What is the main difference between taking notes from a textbook and from a live lecture?
The primary difference is control over pace. When reading a textbook, you can pause, re-read, and take your time to structure your notes perfectly. In a live lecture, you must listen, process, and write simultaneously at the speaker's pace. This requires you to be more selective, use abbreviations, and focus on capturing only the most critical points that the lecturer emphasizes, which may not be in the textbook.
6. Is simply copying information from a source considered effective note-making?
No, copying information word-for-word is a passive activity called note-taking, not note-making. Effective note-making is an active learning process. It requires you to process the information, identify the most important ideas, and write them down in your own words. This act of paraphrasing and summarising is what strengthens your understanding and makes information easier to remember.
7. Why is using abbreviations and symbols a highly recommended practice in note-making?
Using abbreviations and symbols serves two critical purposes: speed and clarity. During a fast-paced lecture, writing every word is impossible. Abbreviations (e.g., 'mktg' for marketing, 'govt' for government) allow you to keep up. They also make your notes more concise and less cluttered, which helps you quickly scan and review the key ideas later without getting lost in long sentences.
8. How does the practice of note-making contribute to developing critical thinking skills?
Effective note-making goes beyond simple memorisation; it trains your brain to think critically. The process forces you to actively distinguish between main ideas and supporting details, identify logical connections between concepts, and structure information hierarchically. This act of organising, prioritising, and summarising knowledge is a fundamental exercise in critical thinking.
9. How do digital note-taking apps compare to the traditional pen-and-paper method for commerce subjects?
Both methods have distinct advantages. Digital tools (like tablets or laptops) offer easy organisation, search functionality, and the ability to embed links or images. However, pen-and-paper is often associated with better memory retention due to the physical act of writing and offers fewer digital distractions. For commerce subjects that involve drawing graphs or complex formulas, many students find the flexibility of pen and paper more intuitive.
10. What is the best strategy if I fall behind while taking notes in a very fast-paced class?
The worst thing to do is panic and stop. The best strategy is to skip a line or two as a placeholder for the missed information and immediately start writing down the current point the teacher is making. Trying to recall the missed point will only make you fall further behind. After the class, you can ask a classmate or consult your textbook to fill in the blank spaces.

















