Cornell notes template with a filled example

Copy the blank Cornell notes template

This plain-text adaptation stacks the three areas so they stay readable on your phone. Copy it into a document or use Print guide. For a side-by-side sheet, use the builder above and choose Print / Save as PDF. It places cues on the left, notes on the right, and the summary underneath, with more room for the notes.

COURSE / PROJECT:
TOPIC:
DATE:
SOURCE / PAGE / RECORDING:

CUES / QUESTIONS
[Questions to answer with the notes covered.]

NOTES
Main idea:
Explanation or steps:
Example:
Details to check:

SUMMARY
[Explain the main point in your own words.]

NEXT REVIEW
[Questions to revisit or ask in class.]

The template and filled example are editorial resources, not a built-in Phrase template. You can use them without creating an account or installing an app.

What goes in each area?

Cornell’s Learning Strategies Center describes a routine of recording, forming questions, reciting, reflecting, and reviewing. The layout supports that work. Filling every space is less useful than writing questions that help you revisit the material.

A filled example: one design lesson

Below is one design lesson filled in across all three areas. Read the cue column first: every line there is a question you could be asked, which is what makes the sheet worth returning to.

COURSE: Introduction to design
TOPIC: Writing a project brief
DATE: [class date]
SOURCE: Example lesson written for this guide

CUES / QUESTIONS
1. What does the brief need to identify?
2. Deliverable or constraint?
3. Which is which in the poster exercise?
4. What comes first?

NOTES
1. A brief states the audience, the problem, and constraints.
2. A deliverable is an output. A constraint limits the work.
3. Poster = deliverable. Two-week deadline = constraint.
4. Confirm the brief before choosing a format for the work.

SUMMARY
The brief defines who the work serves, what it addresses,
and what limits apply. Separate the output from its
constraints before deciding how to make it.

NEXT REVIEW
Explain why a deadline belongs under constraints.
Ask whether the assignment also specifies a budget.

Notice the budget question stays unanswered. Nothing in the lesson specifies a budget, so the example keeps it as a question to ask. That distinction matters when an incomplete note later becomes a study answer.

Fill the page in two passes

1. During class or reading, use the notes area. Capture the explanation and one useful example. Add a page number or approximate recording time where you may need to return.
2. Soon afterwards, reread the notes and repair gaps you can verify. Write a cue beside each substantial idea. Prefer a question you can answer over a copied heading.
3. Write the summary after you understand the page. Explain its main point in a few sentences; leave detailed examples in the notes area.

You may need more than one page for a topic. Start another when the argument changes or a worked problem needs space. Shrinking your handwriting to fit a template makes the next review harder.

Use the cues to check what you remember

Cover the notes column and answer a cue from memory. Uncover the explanation, compare it with your answer, and mark what you missed. Cornell calls for returning to previous notes regularly; choose a repeatable place in your week to do that.

In the example, cover “Poster = deliverable” and explain the distinction yourself. Then try another example, such as a report with a page limit. A hesitation tells you which part to revisit; it does not mean the page needs more decoration.

When a cue works well as a short recall question, you can turn it into a flashcard. The worked example shows how to keep each card focused and check its answer.

Adapt the layout to your material

For mathematics, leave the working and diagrams in the notes area; use cues to ask why a step is valid. For reading, keep page references beside claims. For a lecture, pair an uncertain definition with the moment you need to replay.

If you use Phrase, record or import the material first, then paste the headings into the generated note. The recording or reading stays available as its source. Ask the assistant to turn the cue column into flashcards, a quiz, or a mind map, and each one keeps a link back to the note it came from. Pro includes the AI features at the allowance shown in the app, and media conversion uses cloud processing. The method itself works on paper too.