Read the question.
Find the task.

Start with the action

Identify the instruction: are you being asked to explain, compare, discuss or evaluate? The topic tells you the area; the task tells you what to do with it.

Notice the limits

Look for a period, place, population, concept or set of readings that narrows the discussion. Write those boundaries beside your question.

Try a provisional answer

Write one sentence that says what you currently think. It is a starting point to challenge through reading, not a conclusion you must defend at all costs.

Make the next reading purposeful

List the questions you need to answer before your position can become more precise. Use those questions to guide your reading notes.