A writing checklist anchor chart is a helpful tool to guide writers through essential steps to produce clear and polished writing.
- Capitalization
- Begin each sentence with a capital letter
- Capitalize proper nouns
- Capitalize titles and headings
- Use capital letters for acronyms
- Punctuation
- End each sentence with appropriate punctuation
- Use commas to separate items in a list
- Use quotation marks for dialogue
- Apply apostrophes for contractions and possession
- Use colons and semicolons correctly
- Grammar
- Ensure subject-verb agreement
- Use correct verb tenses
- Check for consistent point of view
- Use appropriate pronouns
- Spelling
- Check for common spelling errors
- Use spell check tools
- Verify the spelling of uncommon words
- Sentence Structure
- Vary sentence lengths
- Avoid run-on sentences
- Check for sentence fragments
- Use transitions to connect ideas
- Clarity and Coherence
- Make sure each paragraph has one main idea
- Ensure logical flow between paragraphs
- Eliminate unnecessary words