Great Writing 4: Great Essays Peer Editing Sheets

Peer Editing Sheet 1  U nit 2, Activity 13, page 62

Narrative Essay Outline
Writer: Date:

Peer Editor:

Topic:

1.  Is the hook interesting? If not, how could it be made more interesting?

2.  How many paragraphs are going to be in the essay?

3.  What action or event does each topic sentence show?

Paragraph 1:

Paragraph 2:

Paragraph 3:

Paragraph 4:

Paragraph 5:

4.  Is there a good ending to the action of the story? If not, can you suggest a change to

  the ending?

5.  What kind of ending will the story have—a moral, prediction, or revelation?

6.  Do you think this essay will have enough information? Does the story leave out anything important?

  Write suggestions here.

7.  The best part of the outline is:

8.  Questions I still have about the outline:

Peer Editing Sheets  1

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 Peer Editing Sheet 2  U nit 2, Activity 15, page 62
Narrative Essay
Writer: Date:

Peer Editor:

Topic:

1.  What are the three most memorable details in the essay? (Do not look back at the essay.)

a.

b.

c.

2.  Identify the hook. Is it effective? Make any suggestions here.

3.  What is the main point or thesis?

4.  Reread the essay and underline all the connectors that you can find. Does the writer use them

  correctly? Circle any connectors that are incorrect.

5.  Is the story in chronological order? If necessary make any suggestions for changes to

  the order of events.

6.  Does the essay have sentence variety? If not, mark the sentences that could be varied

  or make some suggestions for sentence variety.

7.  What verb tense does the writer mainly use? Is this tense used throughout the essay?

  If not, are the different tenses necessary or should they be changed? Use a highlighter

  to mark all unnecessary changes in tense.

2  Peer Editing Sheets

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8.  Does the conclusion effectively end the action? If not, write a few suggestions for a

  better ending.

Peer Editing Sheets  3

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 Peer Editing Sheet 3  U nit 3, Activity 11, page 86
Comparison Essay Outline
Writer: Date:

Peer Editor:

Topic:

1.  Is the thesis statement clear? If not, make suggestions for changes.

2.  Does the writer use the block or the point-by-point method of organization? Is

  this method effective for the subject? If not, make suggestions for changes.

3.  Does each topic sentence clearly state the point of comparison? If not, make

  suggestions for improvement.

4.  Do these two subjects have enough similarities and/or differences for a good comparison essay?

  If not, why not?

5.  The best part of the outline is:

6.  Questions I still have about the outline:

4  Peer Editing Sheets

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Peer Editing Sheet 4  U nit 3, Activity 13, page 86
Comparison Essay
Writer: Date:

Peer Editor:

Topic:

1.  In a few words, what is the essay about?

2.  Identify the hook. Is it effective? Make any suggestions here.

3.  Does each body paragraph contain a clear topic sentence? If not, underline any

  sections that need improvement.

4.  What method of organization does the writer use? List the main points

  that the writer compares.

5.  Are the comparisons supported with examples? (Ask Who? What? Where? When? Why? and How?)

  If not, put a star (*) next to the places that need supporting information.

6.  Does the writer use connectors correctly? If not, circle any incorrect connectors or

  any places that need connectors.

7.  Does the writer restate the thesis in the conclusion? If not, bring this to the

  attention of the writer.

8.  In the conclusion, does the writer offer an opinion or a suggestion about the two subjects?

  Do you agree with the writer’s final words? If not, why not?

Peer Editing Sheets  5

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 Peer Editing Sheet 5  U nit 4, Activity 14, page 110
Cause-Effect Essay Outline
Writer: Date:

Peer Editor:

Topic:

1.  What kind of essay will this be—a focus-on-causes essay or a focus-on-effects essay?

  Can you tell this from the thesis statement? If not, what changes can

  you suggest to make the purpose of the essay clearer?

2.  Read the topic sentence for each body paragraph. Is it related to the thesis? If not,

  mark the topic sentences that need more work.

3.  Do the supporting details relate to the topic sentences? If not, which paragraph(s)

  need to be developed further?

4.  The best part of the outline is:

5.  Questions I still have about the outline:

6  Peer Editing Sheets

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Peer Editing Sheet 6  U nit 4, Activity 16, page 110
Cause-Effect Essay
Writer: Date:

Peer Editor:

Topic:

1.  In a few words, what is the essay about?

2.  Reread the introductory paragraph. Do the ideas progress smoothly from the hook to the

  thesis statement? If not, what suggestions for changes would you make to the

  writer?

3.  Do all the topic sentences support the thesis statement? Mark any that do not and

  write the reason.

4.  Look at the supporting details in each paragraph. Are they related to the topic sentence?

  If not, underline the details that need revision.

5.  Check the connectors in the essay. Is it easy to understand the connection between the causes and

  effects? If not, what is missing or needs to be changed?

6.  As you reread the essay, check for wordiness. Circle any examples that you find and suggest a way to

  eliminate the wordiness.

7.  Does the writer restate the thesis in the conclusion? If not, bring this to the attention

  of the writer.

8.  Compare the introduction and conclusion paragraphs. Can you see logical connections between the

  two? If not, why not? What suggestions for improvement can you make?

Peer Editing Sheets  7

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 Peer Editing Sheet 7  U nit 5, Activity 13, page 134
Argument Essay Outline
Writer: Date:

Peer Editor:

Topic:

Answer the following questions. Circle Yes or No. If the answer to any of these questions is No, tell the
writer why and make any suggestions for improvement that you can think of.

1.  Is the hook interesting? In other words, does it catch the reader’s attention? Yes No

2.  Is the writer’s opinion clear in the thesis statement? Yes No

3.  Do the topic sentences in the body paragraphs support the thesis? Yes No

4.  In each paragraph, do the supporting details relate to the topic sentence? Yes No

5.  Are the counterargument and refutation strong? Yes No

6.  Does the writer restate the thesis in the conclusion? Yes No

7.  The best part of the outline is:

8.  Questions I still have about the outline:

8  Peer Editing Sheets

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Peer Editing Sheet 8  U nit 5, Activity 15, page 134
Argument Essay
Writer: Date:

Peer Editor:

Topic:

1.  In a few words, what is the essay about?

2.  Reread the introductory paragraph. Do the ideas progress smoothly from the hook to the thesis

  statement? If not, what suggestions for changes would you make to the writer?

3.  Do all the topic sentences support the thesis statement? Mark any that do not and

  write the reason.

4.  Look at the supporting details in each paragraph. Are they related to the topic sentence?

  If not, underline the details that need revision.

5.  Underline any modals. Are must, had better, or should used correctly to assert a point?

  Are may, might, could, can, or would used correctly to acknowledge an opposing opinion?

  Make suggestions for changes where necessary.

6.  Reread the essay and look for any faulty logic. If you find any examples, write them here and

  suggest a way to eliminate the faulty logic.

7.  Find the paragraph that contains the counterargument and refutation. Is the counterargument

  stated clearly? Is the refutation strong? Does it make another point

  in support of the writer’s argument? If necessary, suggest changes to the writer to

  make the counterargument and refutation more effective.

Peer Editing Sheets  9

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 8.  Review the essay for specific information, such as quotes, dates, and statistics. Did the writer give

  the source of this information in the essay? If not, highlight those areas on the writer’s

  draft and write “Need Citation!”

9.  Is the conclusion effective, that is, does it restate the thesis and the writer’s opinion?

  If not, how can the conclusion be improved?

10  Peer Editing Sheets

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Peer Editing Sheet 9  U nit 6, Activity 5, page 145
Reaction Essay Outline
Writer: Date:

Peer Editor:

Topic:

Answer the following questions. Circle Yes or No.

1.  Is the background information clear? Yes No

2.  Is the writer’s reaction clear from the thesis statement? Yes No

3.  Do the topic sentences in the body paragraphs support the thesis? Yes No

4.  In each paragraph, do the supporting details relate to the topic sentence? Yes No

5.  Does the writer restate the thesis in the conclusion? Yes No

6.  The best part of the outline is:

7.  Questions I still have about the outline:

Peer Editing Sheets  11

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 Peer Editing Sheet 10  U nit 6, Activity 7, page 145
Reaction Essay
Writer: Date:

Peer Editor:

Topic:

1.  In a few words, what is the essay about?

2.  Read the first paragraph (introduction). Is the background information clear?

  Is there any other information that might help the reader understand the prompt?

3.  What is your general opinion of the prompt?

4.  Does each body paragraph contain a different reaction?

Reaction 1:

Reaction 2:

Reaction 3:

5.  Are the reactions logical? If not, put a star (*) next to the places that you feel are unclear.

6.  Does the writer use connectors correctly? If not, circle any incorrect connectors or

  any places that need connectors.

7.  Does the writer restate the thesis in the conclusion? If not, bring this to the attention

  of the writer.

8.  In the conclusion, does the writer offer an opinion about the effectiveness or quality of the prompt?

9.  Do you agree with the writer’s opinion? Explain your answer.

12  Peer Editing Sheets

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