In 1955 F.L. Pilling came up with a way of expressing a Scottish Country Dance as a series of sequential pictograms. This was continued by various successors, most notably Keith Rose, until today almost every Scottish Country Dance has its own little crib diagram. The basic format of a crib diagram is well defined by the Scottish Country Dancing Dictionary.

This same approach may be applied to other styles of dance. Most figures used in Regency English dances also appear in Scottish Country Dances (not surprising since many of the early Scottish Dances were just Regency English ones), but Playford style dances need a few extra figures which had died out by the Regency period, modern English dances require new concepts such as working outside the minor set, while Contra and Square dances need figures which did not show up until long after the Regency period.

In addition to that the music can be different. (Crib diagrams note the music in the upper right hand corner of the header). Scottish country dances are mostly jigs, reels, and strathspeys, with waltzes getting an occasional look in. There is one Scottish country dance which is a slip-jig (Strip the Willow) but the notation makes no provision for this and calls it a jig. These four musical types are denoted by "J", "R", "S" or "W". Medleys are represented by "M". English country have dances in other styles: 3/2 music, 3/4 music which is not a waltz (like minuets), slip-jigs, and the occasional look-in like 6/4. I will use "SJ" for slip-jig, and for 3/2 music "3/2", etc. For reels played with 4 counts to the bar I will use "S".

English, and Contra, dances usually care about the internal structure of the tune, and little "A1", "B2" indictors will be placed in the upper left corner of each figure which begins that strain.

The initial formation of the dance is placed in the bottom right corner of the crib diagram. Scottish dances are mostly 3 couple dances in 4 couple sets, or 2 couple dances in 4 couple sets. The equivalent English (and Contra) terms would be "triple minor" and "duple minor". So instead of "3C/4C" I use "TM" and instead of "2C/4C" I use DM. I use 1ˣ to indicate that the 1s should start crossed over (in the rare indecent dances I would use 2ˣ to mean the 2s start crossed over). I shall also indicate multiple progression in this area.

Here are the figure additions I have made so far: (these are grouped by function, and then alphabetically)

Note that the English cross/change is slightly different from the Scottish one, as the English usually don't take hands and the Scottish usually do. This slight difference doesn't seem worth creating a new symbol for.

The Scottish allemandes and poussettes are wildly different from the English originals and I shan't use their abbreviations.

As I mentioned earlier I need some way to indicate interactions outside the minorset. I have chosen to grey out these dancers. Normally that means they are inactive, but these can be very active so to distinguish I have placed macrons above (for dancers from the minorset above the current one) or below (for dancers from the minorset below): The first indicates the 2nd woman from the minor set above this one, the second the 1st man from the minor set below, and the third shows the threes from two minorsets below.

You can see how some of these are used in the dance Newcastle:

The first line of pictograms shows everyone doing an in a double, and back, then setting to partner, setting to corner, and then the whole thing repeats.

The second line shows everyone arming right with partner, then the men do left hands across while the women chase clockwise, then arm left, men chase counter clockwise while women right hands across.

In the third line, everyone does Sharp Siding with partner, sets right and honours partner, and then passes them left. Then Sharp Siding with the next person, set right and honour, and pass left.

And so on

The dance Barham Down uses 3/2 music and has interactions outside the minorset: