EDITING CHECKLIST

Work through the project several times looking for the errors or weaknesses described below. Concentrate on usage the first time through, on mechanics the second time, and on proper credit for ideas the third time.

I. Usage

• Subject/verb disagreement
• Wrong tense/verb form
• Passive verbs
• Wrong word choice
• Necessary word omitted/extra words included

II. Mechanics

• Punctuation
  Missing, misplaced or unnecessary apostrophes
  Missing or unnecessary quotation marks
  Missing or unnecessary commas
  Missing punctuation at end of sentence

• Spelling
  Missing or unnecessary capitals
  Misspelled words

• Sentences
  Run-on sentences
  Fragments
  Lack of parallel structure in series
  Lack of varied sentence structure

• Paragraphs
  Unrelated information within paragraph
  Too long or too short for readability

III. Footnotes and Bibliography

• No credit given for ideas and quotations
• Incorrect format
  

Handout 12.3 Barbara K. Stripling and Judy M. Pitts, Brainstorms and Blueprints: Teaching Library Research as a Thinking Process (Englewood, Colo.: Libraries Unlimited, 1988).