Editor’s Guide
Please edit only the sections you’re
being asked to edit!
Editing for Fluency
• To edit for fluency, you must READ OUT LOUD!
• Begin when your teacher instructs you.
• Add missing words missing letter if needed,
using a caret symbol.
• Write “SP?” over any words which you think may
be misspelled (or words you find it hard to read).
• Do they ever have incomplete sentences (like
starting a paragraph with “Paragraph about John
Adams”)? Write “sentence fragment” near these.
Editing for Organization
Part 1
• As they move from one paragraph to the
next do they use transition words like:
thus
similarly yet
therefore
whereas in common
since
unlike
related
because
however hence
• Does the essay have an introduction that
leads into the essay in an interesting way?
• Does the essay have a conclusion that
wraps things up?
Editing for Organization
Part 2
• Did they indent each paragraph adequately
(measure with your thumb). Count to see if they
have five paragraphs. If they could indent
farther, make a paragraph symbol.
• Check the thesis statement, body paragraphs, and
conclusion. Do the sentences match their outline?
If not, let them know what needs changed.
• Does the thesis fall at the bottom of the first
paragraph? If not, let them know where the thesis
should go.
• Did they rephrase the thesis at the top of the last
paragraph? If not, let them know that they need
to rephrase the thesis in the conclusion.
Editing for Organization
Part
3
• Is there a centered title at the top of the page? If
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•
•
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not, write “title needed” or “center your title”.
Delete any Roman numerals or other marks that
appear in the margin.
Are they using top, bottom, and side margins
correctly? If not, draw a line and write the word
“margin” for them.
Did they remember to double-space? If not, write a
note reminding them to double-space.
Did they write on the back of the essay? If so, please
write a note saying, “Do not write on the back of the
page.”
Editing for Word Choice
• Do you think they took good notes before writing
this essay? Did they get any of the information
from the Wikipedia article wrong? If you
remember the facts differently, tell them.
• Can you count 10 vocabulary words in the body of
the essay? If not, make a suggestion to that
effect at the end of the essay.
• Does the writer ever use personal words (my, me,
I, you, we, us, etc.)? If so, circle these and write
WC above the circle.
Editing for Word Choice Part 2
• If there are any sentences which are poorly
worded or need clarification, indicate this with
the letters “WC.” Explain the problem in the
margin, as needed.
• What do you think of their title? Can you help
them come up with a better title by reading the
essay from the bottom up?
• Did they ever use abbreviations like & instead of
“and”? If so, delete these and write the correct
word on top. “R.M.S.” doesn’t count. It’s fine.
• Do they ever misuse a word? If so, write a note
saying “check the meaning” next to that word.
Edit for Conventions
• Use proofreading symbols to fix mistakes
like speeling, punctuaton and other errors
• Is their own title correctly capitalized? If
not, please add the correct proofreading
symbols. Never quote or underline your
own title (unless your title is also the name
of a ship).
• Did they underline and capitalize R.M.S.
Titanic?
• If you think they might have misspelled a
word, write SP? over the top.
Editing for Conventions
Part 2
• Did they remember to use parenthetical citation?
If not, use a caret to insert a citation for them:
–
–
–
–
(Wikipedia).
(“From a Lifeboat” pg. 412).
(“A Fireman’s Story” pg. 411).
(“R.M.S. Titanic” pg. 398).
• Did they remember to use quotation marks around
the words that came from a book or Wikipedia
article? If not, put the quotes in for them.
Editing for Conventions Part 3
• Did they ever misspell one of the characters’ names,
like captin Smithe or J bruce Ismy? Use
proofreading symbols to correct these kinds of
errors.
• Look at every instance when the student used
apostrophes (or any word that may need an
apostrophe), and ask yourself, “Is this a contraction
for something?” or “Does something own something
else?”
• Focus on the comma rules we’ve learned. Look for
conjunctions like and and but. Do they ever have
two complete sentences where a comma is needed?
Do they have run-on sentences? Fix these.
Edit for Voice
• Does the person ever copy from their outline
without using complete sentences? For example,
do they ever have opening words like “This is my
paragraph about Ismay”? Tell them this sounds
strange.
• Do they ever talk about Titanic as if the reader is
also familiar with the story? Pretend you’re from
India, and you just happen to run across this
essay online. What needs to be explained better?
Write the questions an Internet visitor would
have if they stumbled across this essay online.
Editing for Voice Part 2
• Do their introductory sentences lead into their
thesis statement, or does it sound kind of choppy
when you read the introductory paragraph? Offer
advice on blending the opening sentences into the
thesis, if necessary.
• Does the writer introduce each quotation? Or
does he/she just stick the quote in without
leading into it:
• “Three were millionaires, and one was Ismay” (no intro)
• According to the fireman aboard Titanic, three of the men in the
lifeboat “were millionaires and one was Ismay” (offers intro)
Edit for Ideas and
Content
• Did the writer answer the question, “Who is
responsible for the Titanic disaster?” If not, tell
them that they’re off-topic and make suggestions
for improvement.
• Review each paragraph. Did they use quotes that
really prove their thesis? Make notes in the
margin where you think they need a better
quotation—specifically one that really acts as
evidence in proving their thesis.
• Your teacher is going to do a survey to see what
topics are being covered. Be prepared to tell your
teacher who this writer believed was responsible
for the Titanic disaster.
Edit for Ideas and
Content Part 2
• Do you believe the writer has chosen a topic that
challenges himself/herself? If you think this
person picked an easy topic, just to get the
assignment done, make a polite note about it at
the end of the paper.
• Here are some possible polite statements you
could use:
– (If the student chose a challenging topic) This must
have been a really tough topic! I’m impressed!
– (If the student chose an easy topic) You’re pretty
smart. You could probably pick a harder topic for future
essays.