Writing checklist

The questions will help you identify the strengths and weaknesses of your essay, and show you where more work might be needed.

Structure

Question

Yes

No

Do you have an introductory paragraph which re-states the questions and tells the reader what to expect in the main body of the essay/report?

 

 

Is there a conclusion that sums up your answer and refers back to the title?

 

 

Do your ideas follow each other in a logical order?

 

 

Have you really answered the question?

 

 

Paragraphing

Question

Yes

No

Is the essay/report broken up into several paragraphs?

 

 

Does each paragraph contain one main idea?

 

 

Do you link from one paragraph to the next?

 

 

Style

Question

Yes

No

Does the essay/report sound right - does it flow?

 

 

Is it written in what you would call 'academic' rather than 'everyday' language?

 

 

Sentences

Question

Yes

No

Are there clearly defined sentences which start with a capital letter and end with a full stop or question mark?

 

 

Does each sentence have a subject (a noun or pronoun) and a verb?

 

 

Is the verb in the right tense: that is, in the past, present or future?

 

 

Have you used the singular or plural appropriately; is everything in the sentence consistent?

 

 

Have you followed the conventions for using commas, semi-colons, quotation marks?

 

 

Vocabulary

Question

Yes

No

Do you use a variety of words, rather than repeating the same words over and over again?

 

 

Have you used your own words rather than copied them from the course material or a book?

 

 

If you have used others' words then have you enclosed them in quotation marks and given a reference to say where they have come from?

 

 

Have you spelt all the words accurately? If in doubt,

 

 

 

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