Killing common sense?

i find it a struggle to balance between teaching common sense and giving very specific instructions so that students can follow exactly.

For example, turning to the blank page next to page 70 and write this down.

Telling students to write this down on a blank page resulted in a little commotion: 'cher! Write where? Huh?? Which blank page??

I thought to myself: this is your own notes, arent you the best person to decide where to write it on? Do I have to make such small decision for you?

Am I giving good instructions or have I become one of the accomplices in killing common sense in our future generation?

I certainly do not want to be the accomplice in crime.