Cornell Notes and Mind Maps (Cathy Watson)

Howdy folks!

I am checking in to see how staff are progressing with using Cornell notes for Year 7s and hopefully Year 8s. I am noticing that some of my students are starting to slip with their usage/neatness and have made a note to myself to stick to my classroom routine of ruling up a new notes page at the start of each lesson.

Some hints for using the cue and summary sections:

• use the last 5 minutes of class to get students to write their cue questions.
• use the first or last 5 minutes of class to get students to write the summary.
• give the students a word limit for the summary (no more than 20 words).
• get students to write definitions for new words in the cue/summary section and then highlight the word in the notes section.

Many classes are starting to do tests - are you encouraging the use of mind maps for revision? I made my Year 9s do one and had to remember that I hadn't taught them how to do it properly, so had to teach them again!

If you need any help implementing Cornell notes and mind mapping into your class, or any other instructional strategy please come to see me for a chat and support. You can find me in the Science Office or Room 30.

Keep smiling

Cathy Watson
High Quality Teaching Team Coordinator