The SQ3R Reading Strategy with (adapted) Cornell Notes

SQ3R Developed by Francis P. Robinson, a psychology professor at Ohio State University, during WWII. Robinson was looking for a way to help Army personnel read and master technical texts in accelerated college courses they were taking to prepare for service in the War. SQ3R is now a proven strategy used in all levels of education to help readers understand and remember what they read. “Seven Pioneering Adult Literacy Educators in the History of Teaching Reading With Adults in the United States” by Tom Sticht www.nald.ca/fulltext/sticht/feb05/seven.pdf

S = Survey Q = Question R = Read R = Recite (Note-Taking) R = Review

SURVEY Before you begin reading a chapter or section of your textbook, look it over. Use the text features! Read the title, headings, and sub-headings. Try to understand how these ideas relate to each other. Do they compose an outline? Read any introductory material. Look for questions at the beginning and at the end of the chapter or section; you will be expected to know the answers to these questions by the time you finish reading. Look for vocabulary terms at the start of the chapter or section or boldfaced throughout the text. You’ll need to know what these terms mean. Look at the illustrations, captions, tables, graphs, and maps throughout the chapter or section.

QUESTION While you survey the text, create questions about the text. Ask: who, what, when, where, why, and how? Turn headings and sub-headings into questions. “I wonder...” can be used in many situations when you are having difficulty thinking of a question. “Why is this important?” is a great critical thinking question. Write down your questions. Asking questions gives you motivation and a purpose for reading. It can help you decide which information is important in the text. When you finish reading, check your understanding: can you answer your questions?

READ Read the entire section or chapter. Pay attention to headings and sub-headings as you read and think about how those ideas fit on the “outline” for the chapter. Pay attention to the meanings of boldfaced terms. Search for the answers to your questions as you read. Suggestion: Mark the information that answers your questions with a “tape flag” so that you can find it again quickly when you take notes. Do not stop to take notes while you read. Strive to understand how ideas relate to each other.

RECITE At the end of each section or chapter, pause and answer, in your own words, the question you asked yourself for that portion of the text. The recitation step would be a great place to take some notes! Suggestion: Use the Cornell Note-taking System.

The Cornell Note-Taking System Developed by Walter Pauk at Cornell University to help students take better notes from class lectures. Uses a column, divided-page format. Encourages students to use a six step process starting with the initial lecture and continuing through mastery of the new learning. Although originally intended for use during lectures, the Cornell System can be adapted for use with SQ3R.

Formatting Cornell Notes Fold or divide paper vertically (hotdog style) leaving a 2/3-wide column on the right and a 1/3-wide column on the left Allow at least a 1-inch margin around top, left, bottom, and right sides of the paper Don’t write on the back sides of the paper. Leave at least one line of blank space between each new question/ key word and its corresponding notes. This “white space” gives your eye a visual break and helps your brain understand which chunks of information go together.

Using Cornell Notes with SQ3R The questions you developed in the Q step of SQ3R will be written in the narrow left column of your notes. The questions could also be re-written as key words or phrases. The answers to the questions or ideas that clarify the key words will be written in the right column. Taking notes is the RECITATION step of SQ3R. One teacher I know calls these “flash notes” because you can fold back the right column and quiz yourself using the left column as a prompt.

Example of Format for Cornell Notes What was 18th Amendment? ratified (passed) 1919 banned (prohibited, forbid) making, selling, and transporting alcohol Causes of 18th Amendment reformers wanted to prevent alcohol abuse goal = save grain during WWI for food rather than alcohol Effects of 18th Amendment decreased amount of alcohol people drank saloons went out of business (+ and -) arrests for drunkenness declined increased smuggling illegal alcohol – esp. by organized crime groups illegal saloons (speakeasies) began business 21st Amendment

REVIEW Continue using the SQ3R strategy section-by-section or chapter-by-chapter throughout your unit of study. Periodically, review your “flash notes.” Your Cornell notes give you a perfect way to quiz yourself over the information you’ve read. Ask a family member or friend to quiz you over your notes. Frequent, short reviews of your notes are more effective than “cramming” before a big end-of-chapter or unit or semester test.

Prepared by Laura Patton Indian Woods Middle School September 2007 Sources: “Seven Pioneering Adult Literacy Educators in the History of Teaching Reading With Adults in the United States” by Tom Sticht www.nald.ca/fulltext/sticht/feb05/seven.pdf “SQ3R: A Reading Technique” www.collegeboard.com/student/plan/college-success/26666.html “The Cornell Note-Taking System” http://ccc.byu.edu/learning/note-tak.php