Paper edit I did not have time to time these slides. Sorry…

Materials you’ll need  Writing utensil  Highlighter  Notebook paper

Note to paper authors  You are about to put a lot of work into this paper. Grumble silently.  By the time your paper gets to me, it should be as near to perfection as you can make it.

Self-edit

1 st read  On a piece of notebook paper  Read through your paper slowly (give your brain time to process as opposed to auto- correct).  Read through the rubric and score yourself against each criterion.  Provide rationales/explanations for each score.

2 nd read  Review your thesis. Give yourself something to prove. If the thesis is obvious, then there is no reason for the reader to continue with the rest of the paper.  Underline each time in your paper that you support your thesis statement.

3 rd read  Cross out the words “you” and “I.”  Cross out all weak language like “I think” or “I believe.”  Be sure that “it’s” is used as “it is” and that “its” shows possession.  Be sure that “there,” “their,” and “they’re” are used correctly.

4 th read  Read through it again. Make sure all your verbs, except those in quotations, are present tense.  Eliminate run-on and fragment sentences.

Writer-generated question  At the top of your draft, write a question that focuses on a specific part of the draft that you want to be addressed by the reviewer.  Examples:  How well do I support my thesis?  What is my best (or worst) paragraph, and how is it different from the others?

Pass your paper to another student.

Peer editors  Write your name on paper next to a number indicating which peer editor you are.  Correct any misspellings (regardless of which editor you are).  Make comments directly on the paper, not aloud to the author.  If you cannot read it, you’ll have to skip it. Handwriting is important.  There must be a new peer editor for each peer slide. You may not edit the same person’s paper more than once.

Peer editor 1  Write “1” and your name on the paper.  After reading, and on the notebook paper, respond: a) What I liked: b) What didn’t work: c) What I don’t understand: d) Response to writer-generated question:

Pass the paper to a different student.

Peer editor 2  Write “2” and your name on the paper.  Highlight weak words that don’t embody the idea. An outstanding paper has powerful vocabulary that stimulates the reader and conveys the intended meaning in an interesting and natural way. Give suggestions.  Highlight weak sentences that don’t flow well or are too long to make any sense. An outstanding paper has an easy flow and sentence sense that makes the text easy to read aloud. Give suggestions.

Pass the paper to a different student.

Peer editor 3  Write “3” and your name on the paper.  Highlight (in a different color from the previous editor) all examples from the text that are explicitly analyzed. Offer suggestions on those examples that are not analyzed. Paraphrase is not analysis.  Respond, also, to the writer generated question.

Pass the paper to a different student.

Peer editor 4  Write “4” and your name on the paper.  Look at the structure of the essay. Should the paragraphs be switched around? The piece should have a strong sense of direction, balance, and flow. This is more complicated than it sounds in this essay that may use many different quotations. They should be artfully woven together.  Look at the transition sentence at the beginning of every body paragraph and the conclusion. Does it link the two paragraphs in a logical and fluent way? Give suggestions.

Pass the paper to a different student.

Peer editor 5  Write “5” and your paper on the paper.  Look at the introduction. It should be inviting and should make a statement that is beyond the obvious, that has to be proven. Make some evaluative comments.  Look at the conclusion. It should be satisfying and should not simply repeat the introduction. Make it thoughtful and leave the reader with a new idea to ponder. Make some evaluative comments.

Pass the paper back to the owner.

Reflection  Read through all your comments. If you need clarification from an editor, ask.  On your piece of notebook paper, respond in writing:  What you did well  What you still need to improve on  THEN, score yourself again against the rubric criterion and give support/rationales for EACH criterion score.

Next Tuesday 29 September  Bring in your hand-written final draft. This must be in blue or black ink.  Staple it to all of your peer editing materials.