Correcting and Proofreading Checklist

Spelling

_____Have you spelled all of the words correctly?  Have you used the dictionary?  (Read your writing backwards one word at a time when you check for spelling.  Then you can’t help but focus on each word and check it for spelling.)

Punctuation

_____Does each sentence end with an end punctuation mark?

_____Have you placed commas before the conjunctions and, but, or in compound sentences? 

_____Have you used commas to set off items in a series?

_____Are apostrophes in place to show possession or to mark contractions?

_____Have you properly punctuated any conversation with quotation marks?

Capitalization

_____Have you started sentences and conversation with a capital letter?

_____Have you capitalized specific people, places, or things?

 Usage

_____Have you misused any of the commonly mixed homonyms such as there, their, they’re, to, too, two, its, it’s, our, are, your, you’re?

 Grammar

_____Do your subjects and verbs agree?

_____Have you kept your verb tenses consistent?

_____Have you used any sentence fragments or run-on sentences?