Good notes are short, in your own words, and useful for testing yourself later. Read the passage. Then make your notes using the Cornell method. When you finish, download your notes to keep.
- Notes: key points in short phrases, in your own words.
- Cues: a question that each note answers. Cover the notes later and test yourself.
- Summary: the whole idea in two or three sentences.
Why we forget, and how to fight it
Your goal: make notes you could use to answer "Why are short, regular review sessions effective?"
Shortly after we learn something new, we start to forget it. Without review, much of the detail can fade within days. This pattern is often called the forgetting curve.
The good news is that each time we successfully recall information, it fades more slowly. Reviewing a topic several times, with gaps in between, therefore keeps it available for longer than one long session.
Many learners prefer to review in a single block because it feels more productive. However, the effort of recalling something you have half forgotten is part of what strengthens the memory. For busy learners, this means short, regular review sessions can be more valuable than occasional long ones.
Well done. You have made a set of notes you can test yourself with. Cover the notes column, read each cue and try to answer from memory.
One example set of notes
Yours don't need to match. Look at how short the notes are, and how each cue is a question you could test yourself with.
| Cues | Notes |
|---|---|
| What is the forgetting curve? | We forget new info quickly; detail can fade in days without review. |
| What slows forgetting down? | Each successful recall makes the memory fade more slowly. |
| Why space reviews out? | Several reviews with gaps keep info available longer than one long session. |
| Why does one long session feel better but work less well? | Feels productive, but effort of recalling half-forgotten info is what strengthens memory. |
Summary: We forget quickly, but every time we recall something it lasts longer. Short, spaced review sessions use this, so they beat one long session, even though they feel harder.
Notice: about a third of the words of the passage, written as phrases, and every cue is something an examiner could ask.
Demo activity by Charlotte Crosby. Not affiliated with any professional body.