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Proofreading Checklist (Staple to the front of your essay.)


Copy and paste the following into a Word document. Staple to the front of your essay.

 Your Name: ______________________________________

 Proofreading Checklist for Essay

I have checked my essay for the following (Please initial at the end of each bulleted item.):

  • The heading is in the proper MLA format; there is no extra space.
  • The header is in the top right corner. The header is in the correct font and size.
  • The introductory paragraph has a clear, specific, focused thesis.
  • The titles of the works I am discussing are written out in full with proper punctuation (upper-/lowercase), and within quotes as appropriate.
  • I do not begin paragraphs with quotes.
  • I do not state the obvious.
  • The margins all around are one inch.
  • I am not vague in my wording.
  • There are no typos or misspellings.
  • I have spelled the authors' names correctly.
  • Commas are inside quotation marks.
  • I have elaborated enough on the points I am making.
  • My quotes are short (words and phrases; at most, one sentence).
  • I have not written summary. I have analyzed (how and why effective).
  • I have included parenthetical citations—the number of the page only.
  • The period comes after the last parenthesis.
  • I am not too wordy or chatty.
  • I do not use slang.
  • The quotes I include are understandable.
  • The title of the essay is not a larger font or boldface or underlined.
  • The entire essay is double-spaced with no extra space anywhere.
  • I have used the literary present tense throughout.
  • When I shorten the titles of texts within the essay, I do not include ellipses points.
  • There are no run-on sentences or fragments.
  • The essay meets the page requirement.
  • I do NOT include too many quotes. Most of the essay is my commentary/ideas/elaboration.
  • I have proofread the entire essay several times.
  • I have made sure that I have not forgotten to include spaces when appropriate. For example, between the end of a quotation and the parenthetical citation.
  • I have stuck to my thesis throughout. I have not digressed.
  • I have reread the essay to make certain that all sentences are clear and not confusing.
  • Someone else has assisted me by proofreading my essay for mistakes.
  • My introductory paragraph is about five sentences.
  • My body paragraphs are about seven sentences.
  • If a Works Cited page is required, I have checked all formatting.      

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