Note taking template: free printable PDF
A note taking template is a page with a topic line, room for headings with short points under each, and a box for questions to follow up. Print the blank sheet below and use it in class: one heading per new idea, short points beneath it and open questions at the bottom. The filled example shows a lecture on supply and demand.
Prints on one A4 or Letter page without the website around it. Pick "Save as PDF" in the print dialog to get a PDF.
Example: lecture notes on supply and demand
StudyPDF turns a lecture file into a summary with key points, and every point links to its page. Make notes from my materials
How to use it
- 1
Print the blank sheet or save it as a PDF. Fill in your name, the course and the date.
- 2
Write the lecture topic on the first line.
- 3
Each time the lecturer starts a new idea, write a heading. Leave a few lines below it.
- 4
Under each heading, add short points: key terms, numbers, causes and examples. Skip full sentences.
- 5
When something is unclear, write it in the questions box and keep going. Ask or look it up after class.
- 6
Within a day, read the sheet, fill the gaps and turn each heading into a question you can answer without looking.
A note taking template is a page with a topic line, room for headings with short points under each, and a box for questions to follow up. Print the blank sheet below and use it in class: one heading per new idea, short points beneath it and open questions at the bottom. The filled example shows a lecture on supply and demand.
This is the outline method on one page. It works best when the lecture follows a clear order, such as a textbook chapter or a talk with slides. If the lecturer jumps around, the Cornell notes template copes better, because you sort things out afterwards.
Keep points short: a term, a number, a cause and its effect. If you write full sentences, you stop listening. The questions box is for what you did not follow, so you can ask or look it up while it is fresh.
Print on A4 or Letter at 100 percent. Saved as a PDF, the sheet also works in a notes app on a tablet.
Or let StudyPDF fill it
Have slides or a script to work from? Upload the file to StudyPDF, press New material and pick Summary. You get a TL;DR, key points and a prose summary with citations to the source page, built from your own file. Ask Bo when a point is unclear. A free account is enough, and the summary exports as PDF.
Questions and answers
What is the best template for note-taking?
It depends on the class. An outline sheet suits lectures with a clear order, a Cornell page suits lectures where you want to test yourself later, and a mind map suits topics with many links. Try one for two weeks before you switch.
What is a good format for taking notes?
Short headings, short points and a place for open questions. Use your own words, leave space between ideas and read the notes again within a day.
What are the 5 R's of note-taking?
They belong to the Cornell system: record, reduce, recite, reflect and review. You record in class, reduce notes to cues, recite them out loud, reflect on what they mean and review them over time.
Does Word have a note-taking template?
Word and Google Docs let you build your own layout, and many sites offer editable files. This sheet is the other route: print it or save it as a PDF and write on it by hand.
