With this strategy, you re-read your paper five times. Each time you look for a different type of error. The first time you read your paper, you check for spelling errors. You find each of these and correct them. The second time you check for capitalization; the third time for order of words; the fourth time for punctuation; and the fifth time for grammatically correct sentences. It may take a long time to re-read your paper five times, but it may be the only way to concentrate on certain types of errors and find them. It may be too hard to try to find five different types of errors at one time.
S pelling.
  • Re-read your paper for misspelled words.

  • If you have a spell check, use it.

  • If you do not have a spell check, try writing the misspelled words different ways to see if one "looks right."

  • If necessary, use a dictionary to find correct spellings.
 An incorrectly spelled word has been circled in red.
C apitalization.
  • Re-read your paper to make sure all the words are correctly capitalized.

  • Words that need to be capitalized are:
    • Proper nouns.
    • First letters of names and titles of family members.
    • Important words in titles.
    • Titles of people.
    • Special events.
    • Days and months.
An example of capitalization.
O rder of words.
  • Re-read your paper to make sure that words are in the correct order and no words have been omitted.

  • It may be helpful to read your paper aloud. Point to each word as you say it to make sure that no words have been omitted, added, or mixed up.
 An example of word order.

P unctuation.
  • Re-read your paper to make sure that you have used correct punctuation.

  • Remember to check each of these types of punctuation marks.
    • Periods.
    • Question marks.
    • Commas.
    • Colons.
    • Semicolons.



Examples of different types of punctuation.

E xpress a complete thought.
  • Re-read each sentence aloud to make sure that you have used grammatically correct sentences.

  • Re-read for each of the following:
    • Complete sentences - each sentence has a complete thought.
    • No run-on sentences - all parts of the sentence are related.
    • Agreement - all parts of the sentence are in agreement (e.g., subject and verb and pronouns).

  • It may be helpful to re-read the sentences aloud to make sure that they sound "right."


An example of a sentence diagraming a complete thought.

 

     

Example
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