Organization • The internal structure of the piece

Key Qualities:

• Creating the lead: The beginning grabs the reader’s attention and leads him or her into the piece naturally. The beginning entices the reader to keep reading, providing a tantalizing glimpse of what is to come.
   
• Using sequence and transition words: The piece contains a variety of carefully selected sequence and transition words, which are placed wisely to guide the reader through the text by showing how ideas progress, relate, and/or diverge.
   
• Developing the body: The piece is easy to follow because the details fit together logically. The writer slows down to spotlight important points or events and speeds up when he or she needs to keep the reader moving along.
   
• Ending with a sense of resolution: The writer sums up his or her thinking in a natural, thoughtful, and convincing way and has anticipated and answered any lingering questions, giving the reader a strong sense of closure (Culham, 2014, pp.40-41).

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Voice • The tone and tenor of the piece

Key Qualities:

• Establishing a tone: The piece shows how much the writer cares about the topic. The piece is expressive and compelling, whereby the reader feels the writer’s conviction, authority, and integrity.
   
• Conveying the purpose: The reason for writing is clear. The writer expresses his or her point of view appropriately for the form (narrative, expository, persuasive, or other), which adds interest to the overall message.
   
• Creating a connection to the audience: There is a strong interaction between the reader and the writer. The writer has considered what the reader needs to know and the best way to convey it by sharing his or her feelings and opinions about the topic.
   
• Taking risks to create voice: The writer expresses ideas in new ways, which makes the piece interesting, original, and fresh. The writing sounds like the writer because of the particular use of words and phrases that have a “just right” effect (Culham, 2014, p.41).

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Word choice • Vocabulary used to convey meaning and enlighten the reader

Key Qualities:

• Using strong verbs: The piece contains many action words, giving it punch and pizzazz. The writer has stretched to find lively verbs that add energy to the piece.
   
• Using striking words and phrases: The piece contains many finely honed words and phrases that make it stand out. The writer employs creative and effective use of alliteration, similes, metaphors, and/or other literary techniques.
   
• Using words that are specific and accurate: The words are precise, often reflecting content- or information-based vocabulary that the reader needs to understand the message fully. The writer has chosen nouns, adjectives, adverbs, and so forth that create clarity and bring the topic to life.
   
• Using language effectively: The words have been selected to capture the reader’s imagination and enhance the piece’s meaning. A deliberate attempt to choose the best word over the first word that comes to mind is evident (Culham, 2014, pp. 41-42).

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Sentence fluency • The way words and phrases flow through the piece

Key Qualities:

• Capturing smooth and rhythmic flow: The writer has thought about how the sentences sound. If the piece were to be shared aloud, it would be easy on the ear. The writer uses phrasing that sounds almost musical and is therefore a joy to read.
   
• Crafting well-built sentences: The sentences are carefully and creatively constructed for maximum impact. Transition words such as but, and, and so are used successfully to join sentences and sentence parts.
   
• Varying sentence patterns: A variety of sentence types (simple, compound, and/or complex) enhances the central theme or story line. The piece is made up of an effective mix of long, complex sentences and short, simple ones.
   
• Breaking the “rules” to create fluency: If the piece contains fragments, they add style. The writer may use one word to accent a particular moment, such as, “Bam!” If the writer uses a conversational tone, the sentences might begin with informal words such as well, and, or but. The writer breaks rules intentionally to make that dialogue sound authentic (Culham, 2014, p. 42).

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Conventions • The mechanical correctness of the piece

Key Qualities:

• Checking spelling: Sight words, high-frequency words, and even less familiar words are usually spelled correctly. When less familiar words are spelled incorrectly, they are phonetically correct. Overall, the piece shows control in spelling.
   
• Using punctuation and indenting paragraphs: The writer handles basic punctuation skillfully. He or she understands how to use punctuation to add clarity and style. Paragraphs are indented in the right places. The piece is ready for a general audience.
   
• Inserting capitalization: The use of capital letters is consistent and accurate. An in-depth understanding of how to capitalize dialogue, abbreviations, proper names, and titles is evident.
   
• Applying grammar and usage: Words and their prefixes and suffixes have been combined to form grammatically correct phrases and sentences. The writer shows care in using the correct grammar and usage. The writer may break rules of Standard English for stylistic reasons but otherwise shows consistency and control (Culham, 2014, pp. 42-3).

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