Note Taking Basics

Taking good notes is the key to research. Students should keep in mind these basic guidelines as they take notes:

• Notes should be brief (key nouns, summaries of key ideas)
• Notes should be labeled by source and page number
• Good notes keep track of source information--author, titles, pages, publisher, city of publication, date of publication, etc., and
• Good notes mark and carefully record any quotations the writer will use in the research paper, including short phrases. Writers should use long quotations sparingly.

Anything that a students uses in the research paper that is based on something the student has read should be documented (Some instructors may allow students to skip documentation for information considered general knowledge). Students must be able to document any ideas or information in their papers that is taken from or based on material read during research.

Note Taking Resources

• Notetaking Skills: An Introduction
• California Polytechnic State University Note Taking System
• Penn State University Center for Academic Achievemen Note Taking Strategiest
• For Students: Strategies for Avoiding Plagiarism
• Cmap
• Frame Technique
• Beyond Cut and Paste

ENGL1010 Composition I