Grade 10th English Essay Rubric

Body Paragraphs - Focus/Organization and Development:

• Details: Checks for inclusion of details from text(s) (quotes and paraphrasing).
• Relevance: Checks if details are on-topic.
• Sufficiency: Checks if there are enough details.
• Explanation: Checks if the writer clearly explains the details.

Conclusion - Focus/Organization:

• Concluding Statement: Checks if the thesis is restated.
• Compelling Statement: Checks for a compelling closing thought.

Overall - Focus/Organization:

• Structure: Checks for a clear beginning, middle, and end (typically 4+ paragraphs).
• Transitions: Checks for the use of specific transition phrases, such as:
  • Intro/Con: To begin, In ___, To Conclude, etc.
  • Compare/Contrast: Likewise, Similarly, On the other hand, In contrast, etc.
  • Add detail: In addition, Additionally, Moreover, Furthermore, Another example is, etc.
  • To explain: In other words, To illustrate, This proves/illustrates/shows, This leads one to conclude that, According to____, etc.

Writing Style - Language:

• Formal Tone: The essay must NOT use phrases like "In my opinion", "I think", "What do you think?", or "This paper is about".
• Vocabulary: Checks for academic vocabulary used on grade level.
• Sentence Variety: Checks for varied sentence structures.

Proofreading - Conventions:

• Errors: Checks for little to no usage errors.
• Understandability: Checks if the essay is understandable even with mistakes.