5. Organize Your Notes

One way to organize your notes is in the form of an outline.  If possible, it may be helpful to you to create a basic outline before you gather all your notes.  This can help you stay focused on only the information relevant to your paper and ignore information that is not.  An outline is the blueprint of your paper.  The more detailed your outline is, the easier it will be to write your paper.

Each outline will be different, but generally, you start by listing your main topics.  Then, below your main topics, you list the details that you've found to support each main point.  Each main topic will likely become its own paragraph in your essay.  Your teachers and the librarian can help you create an outline for you particular assignment.  

Once you have your outline established, you can sort your note cards into the right headings. Arrange your notes in the order that you plan to present the information when you write. If you are turning your outline into your teacher for a grade, he or she may have particular expectations. For instance, instead using phrases like the example outline above, your teacher might want to see full sentences.