What exactly belongs in an outline?

[BrandonTexas]

I want to start outlining for my first semester here in about a week.  The problem is, I really don't know what to put into an outline.  Does this sound like a complete list that will be helpful for exames?

Topic (i.e. intent or battery)
     - Relevant cases
     - Relevant rules
     - An explanation that makes sense to me

New Topic
    - Same stuff

Sorry if this is a stupid question, but noone has really explained it to me at school.

[Stephon Devante]

Yes I think that's about right, except you probably don't need to know the cases unless it is a well known landmark case. Other than that, just the rules and various exceptions per topic.

[jimmyjohn]

Why are you outlining already?

[BrandonTexas]

So I don't have to later.  I am going to start at the end of this week I think.  btw, I am calm.  I am just trying to make the best use of my time so I don't have to work as hard around finals.

[slacker]

I'd also question why you're outlining so early. The reason to outline is to make sense of a large amount of information. You might want to wait until you get a fuller view of a subject before outlining will be more than an exercise in typing.

[racheles05]

If you look around online you can find sample outlines. Student organizations also have them. It varies by professor, though. For some classes I needed more details in my outline than others. For one class that I can think of, I didn't outline at all.

[NotReally]

I thought the same thing as you at this point.  My first two weeks I outlined everything on saturdays.  Eventually I got busy and quit studying on saturdays and then when I went back to start outlining at the end of the semester I realized my first outlines were crap and that I needed to have a bigger picture before I outlined. 

That said, I think you should cater your outlining to whether it is an open book or closed book test.

If it is opoen book then you can make it reference friendly.

If it is closed book, then you make it memorizing friendly.

For example in both you probably want to have the the rule first.

I. Negligence
A. Requirements for Negligence to Exist
1. Duty
2. Breach
3. Damage
4. Causation
B. Duty
1. Explained
a. The legal obligation either to act or not act in a specific way to not cause damage to another individidual

[bayarealawschool]

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