Punctuation & Capitalization Punctuation & Capitalization
Expert Expert
Punctuation
• Does every statement end in a
period?
• Does every question end in a
question mark?
• Are exclamation points (!) used
correctly?
• Are commas used to separate items
in a series (first, second, and third)?
• Is there a comma and conjunction
(and, but, or) connecting two complete
sentences?
• Do commas surround appositives
(Kayla, the dog, barked happily.)?
Capitalization
• Does the first word in every
sentence begin with a capital letter?
• Are all proper nouns (names)
capitalized?
• Are the big words in the title
capitalized?
Punctuation & Capitalization Punctuation & Capitalization
Expert Expert
Punctuation
• Does every statement end in a
period?
• Does every question end in a
question mark?
• Are exclamation points (!) used
correctly?
• Are commas used to separate items
in a series (first, second, and third)?
• Is there a comma and conjunction
(and, but, or) connecting two complete
sentences?
• Do commas surround appositives
(Kayla, the dog, barked happily.)?
Punctuation
• Does every statement end in a
period?
• Does every question end in a
question mark?
• Are exclamation points (!) used
correctly?
• Are commas used to separate items
in a series (first, second, and third)?
• Is there a comma and conjunction
(and, but, or) connecting two complete
sentences?
• Do commas surround appositives
(Kayla, the dog, barked happily.)?
Capitalization
• Does the first word in every
sentence begin with a capital letter?
• Are all proper nouns (names)
capitalized?
• Are the big words in the title
capitalized?
Punctuation
• Does every statement end in a
period?
• Does every question end in a
question mark?
• Are exclamation points (!) used
correctly?
• Are commas used to separate items
in a series (first, second, and third)?
• Is there a comma and conjunction
(and, but, or) connecting two complete
sentences?
• Do commas surround appositives
(Kayla, the dog, barked happily.)?
Capitalization
• Does the first word in every
sentence begin with a capital letter?
• Are all proper nouns (names)
capitalized?
• Are the big words in the title
capitalized?
Complete Sentences
Expert
Does every sentence have a:
• Subject—Who or What is doing the
action.
• Predicate—What the subject is
doing.
Does every sentence make sense?
• Is it possible that…
Make sure:
• Both complete sentences in a
compound sentence are combined with a
comma and a conjunction (and, but, or,
because). ie. My mom went to the
store, and my dad stayed home.
Complete Sentences
Expert
Does every sentence have a:
• Subject—Who or What is doing the
action.
• Predicate—What the subject is
doing.
Does every sentence make sense?
Capitalization
• Does the first word in every
sentence begin with a capital letter?
• Are all proper nouns (names)
capitalized?
• Are the big words in the title
capitalized?
Complete Sentences
Expert
Does every sentence have a:
• Subject—Who or What is doing the
action.
• Predicate—What the subject is
doing.
Does every sentence make sense?
• Is it possible that…
Make sure:
• Both complete sentences in a
compound sentence are combined with a
comma and a conjunction (and, but, or,
because). ie. My mom went to the
store, and my dad stayed home.
Complete Sentences
Expert
Does every sentence have a:
• Subject—Who or What is doing the
action.
• Predicate—What the subject is
doing.
Does every sentence make sense?
 • Is it possible that…
Make sure:
• Both complete sentences in a
compound sentence are combined with a
comma and a conjunction (and, but, or,
because). ie. My mom went to the
store, and my dad stayed home.
Spelling Expert
(Grab you’re your dictionary!)
Make sure:
• All words are spelled correctly. If
you’re not sure, look it up.
• All proper nouns are spelled
correctly.
• All contractions are spelled
correctly (do+not = don’t)
Which one’s right?
• there, their, they’re
• to, too, two
• your, you’re
• it’s (it is), its (possessive)
Singular, Plural, or Possessive
• Singular—one noun (dog, cat)
• Plural—two or more nouns (dogs,
cats)
• Possessive—something belongs to
a noun (the dog’s bone)
Spelling Expert
(Grab you’re your dictionary!)
Make sure:
• All words are spelled correctly. If
you’re not sure, look it up.
• All proper nouns are spelled
correctly.
• Is it possible that…
Make sure:
• Both complete sentences in a
compound sentence are combined with a
comma and a conjunction (and, but, or,
because). ie. My mom went to the
store, and my dad stayed home.
Spelling Expert
(Grab you’re your dictionary!)
Make sure:
• All words are spelled correctly. If
you’re not sure, look it up.
• All proper nouns are spelled
correctly.
• All contractions are spelled
correctly (do+not = don’t)
Which one’s right?
• there, their, they’re
• to, too, two
• your, you’re
• it’s (it is), its (possessive)
Singular, Plural, or Possessive
• Singular—one noun (dog, cat)
• Plural—two or more nouns (dogs,
cats)
• Possessive—something belongs to
a noun (the dog’s bone)
Spelling Expert
(Grab you’re your dictionary!)
Make sure:
• All words are spelled correctly. If
you’re not sure, look it up.
• All proper nouns are spelled
correctly.
 • All contractions are spelled
correctly (do+not = don’t)
Which one’s right?
• there, their, they’re
• to, too, two
• your, you’re
• it’s (it is), its (possessive)
Singular, Plural, or Possessive
• Singular—one noun (dog, cat)
• Plural—two or more nouns (dogs,
cats)
• Possessive—something belongs to
a noun (the dog’s bone)
• All contractions are spelled
correctly (do+not = don’t)
Which one’s right?
• there, their, they’re
• to, too, two
• your, you’re
• it’s (it is), its (possessive)
Singular, Plural, or Possessive
• Singular—one noun (dog, cat)
• Plural—two or more nouns (dogs,
cats)
• Possessive—something belongs to
a noun (the dog’s bone)
 Idea Expert
(Put those thinking caps on!)
Make sure each sentence:
• Makes sense.
• Relates to the surrounding
sentences.
• Is a complete thought or idea (Is it
possible that…?)
Make sure each paragraph:
• Is indented.
• Focuses on one idea.
• Has a topic sentence and a
concluding sentence.
• Uses transition words to move
smoothly from one paragraph to the next
(first, next, finally).
Make sure the title:
• Is creative.
Relates to the topic of writing.
Idea Expert
(Put those thinking caps on!)
Make sure each sentence:
• Makes sense.
• Relates to the surrounding
sentences.
• Is a complete thought or idea (Is it
possible that…?)
Make sure each paragraph:
• Is indented.
• Focuses on one idea.
• Has a topic sentence and a
concluding sentence.
• Uses transition words to move
smoothly from one paragraph to the next
(first, next, finally).
Make sure the title:
Idea Expert
(Put those thinking caps on!)
Make sure each sentence:
• Makes sense.
• Relates to the surrounding
sentences.
• Is a complete thought or idea (Is it
possible that…?)
Make sure each paragraph:
• Is indented.
• Focuses on one idea.
• Has a topic sentence and a
concluding sentence.
• Uses transition words to move
smoothly from one paragraph to the next
(first, next, finally).
Make sure the title:
• Is creative.
Relates to the topic of writing.
Idea Expert
(Put those thinking caps on!)
Make sure each sentence:
• Makes sense.
• Relates to the surrounding
sentences.
• Is a complete thought or idea (Is it
possible that…?)
Make sure each paragraph:
• Is indented.
• Focuses on one idea.
• Has a topic sentence and a
concluding sentence.
• Uses transition words to move
smoothly from one paragraph to the next
(first, next, finally).
Make sure the title:
 • Is creative. • Is creative.
Relates to the topic of writing. Relates to the topic of writing.
 Subject-Verb Agreement
Expert
Remember:
• The subject is always doing the
action.
• The verb must make sense with the
subject of the sentence.
For example:
I am going to the store. NOT
I are going to the store.
Verb Tense:
All of the verbs in the writing assignment
must be in the same verb tense.
• Past: Already happened (walked,
was walking)
• Present: Happening now (walk,
walks, is walking)
• Future: Will happen (will walk, will
be walking)
Subject-Verb Agreement
Expert
Remember:
• The subject is always doing the
action.
• The verb must make sense with the
subject of the sentence.
For example:
I am going to the store. NOT
I are going to the store.
Verb Tense:
All of the verbs in the writing assignment
must be in the same verb tense.
• Past: Already happened (walked,
was walking)
• Present: Happening now (walk,
walks, is walking)
Future: Will happen (will walk, will be
Subject-Verb Agreement
Expert
Remember:
• The subject is always doing the
action.
• The verb must make sense with the
subject of the sentence.
For example:
I am going to the store. NOT
I are going to the store.
Verb Tense:
All of the verbs in the writing assignment
must be in the same verb tense.
• Past: Already happened (walked,
was walking)
• Present: Happening now (walk,
walks, is walking)
Future: Will happen (will walk, will be walking)
Subject-Verb Agreement
Expert
Remember:
• The subject is always doing the
action.
• The verb must make sense with the
subject of the sentence.
For example:
I am going to the store. NOT
I are going to the store.
Verb Tense:
All of the verbs in the writing assignment
must be in the same verb tense.
• Past: Already happened (walked,
was walking)
• Present: Happening now (walk,
walks, is walking)
Future: Will happen (will walk, will be walking)
walking)
 Peer Editing Cards: How To

• Make enough copies of the templates so that every student will have one card (there are 4
cards per page).
• Cut the cards.
• Place students into groups of five. Distribute cards to students. Each group should have:
1-Punctuation & Capitalization Expert
1-Complete Sentences Expert
1-Spelling Expert
1-Idea Expert
1-Subject-Verb Agreement Expert
• Students will now use the cards to peer edit the specified writing assignment. Students
will look for only what is written on their card and make the necessary corrections.
• Allow approximately five minutes per paper. Once the five minutes have elapsed, have
students pass their paper to the person on their left.
• They will continue editing in five minute increments until they have edited all papers in
their group, including their own.

Modifications:
• Color code the cards so that each “Expert” is a different color.
• Use only the expert cards that have been explicitly taught to students. Add cards to the
editing process as the content is taught.

Created by Hali Metelak, Sutter Middle School, 2004.