Editing Paragraphs
After making big changes to improve a paragraph, you need to make little changes (editing) to correct any remaining errors. You'll look for problems with sentences, punctuation, capitalization, grammar, usage, and spelling. The following activities will help you edit your writing.
Editing for Sentences
Every sentence needs a subject and a verb. The subject is the person, place, thing, or idea that the sentence is about. The verb tells something about the subject.
If a group of words does not have a subject or a verb, it is a fragment.
To fix a fragment, add the part that is missing—subject, verb, or both.
Fix fragments.
For each fragment, add what is missing: subject, verb, or both. Change punctuation and capitalization as needed.
Editing for Correctness
Commas are the most often used and misused punctuation marks. When you edit your paragraph, use commas in the following ways:
- Place a comma after each item in a series (except the last one).
- Place a comma after three or more introductory words.
- Place a comma before and, but, or or when you are joining two sentences together into a compound sentence.
You will need a hammer, a saw, and a drill.
After building the floor, we built the walls.
I built the wall on the ground, and Dad lifted it into the tree.
Fix commas.
Insert commas where needed in each sentence.
Editing in Action
When you edit, you check to make sure your paragraph is correct.
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Paragraph Before Edits
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Commas were added and a fragment was fixed.
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Paragraph After Edits
Teaching Tip
The edits shown here use standard symbols for inserts and deletions. Students can use these symbols or their own notation system. The key is that changes are clearly marked.
Edit with a checklist.
Read each line in the checklist. When you can answer each question with a yes, check it off.
Checking Grammar and Usage
- Are sentences complete (no fragments)?
- Are words used correctly (your/you’re, their/they’re, its/it’s)?
Checking Capitalization, Punctuation, and Spelling
- Do compound sentences have commas before and, but, or or?
- Do series have commas after each item except the last?
- Do commas follow introductory word groups of four or more words?
- Are the first words in sentences capitalized?
- Are the proper names of people, places, and things capitalized?
- Do commas and quotation marks set off quotations?
- Is every word spelled correctly?
Publishing Paragraphs
When you publish your paragraph, you make it public, sharing it with others. First, you need to make a clean final copy of your work. Then you should find ways to share what you have written with classmates, your teacher, your family, and your friends.
Publishing a Final Copy
Create a final copy of your paragraph.
Include your revising and editing changes and read over your work a final time. (If you are working on a computer, spell-check your work.)
Reflecting on Your Writing
Reflect on your writing.
Complete the following form to think about what you learned.
Teaching Tip
Reflection helps students think about the learning they have done and retain new skills.