Grammar, Mechanics, & Layout
Not as Important ♦ Important ♦ Extremely Important
- Are you a strict grammarian and expect to see proper grammar and mechanics?
- Let your students know!
- Are you an Oxford comma fan or foe?
- Do you want to see the various uses of semicolons?
- Do you expect American spelling/usage of words and punctuation?
- Do you plan to offer refreshers on various grammatical and mechanical elements? If yes, such refreshers could be part of scaffolded assignments.
- Consider the Writing Studio resources or include a reference book or online resource to help students with punctuation, sentence structure, and grammar.
- Do you want a specific font style and size? Specific margins? Page numbers? Headings?Double or single line spacing?
- This is a good way to remind students that paragraphs need to be indented; the paper needs a font that is readable and lends tone to the content. For example, Times New Roman has a more professional, academic look to it than Comic Sans does; however, Comic Sans might work well if the assignment is humorous or entertaining.
