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Middle School Writing Rubrics
In my book Blended Learning in Grades 4-12 , I shared the following middle school writing rubrics with my readers. Unfortunately, the short links I provided in my book have timed out, so I wanted to share these on my blog so any middle school teachers interested in using them have access! Feel free to make a copy and adjust as needed.
bit.ly/6-8ArgumentativeWritingRubric
bit.ly/6-8InformativeWritingRubric
bit.ly/6-8NarrativeWritingRubric
I will be posting the high school writing rubrics as soon as I can get them reformatted in a shareable version. If you have rubrics you use, love, and are willing to share, I’d love to crowdsource rubrics here!
43 Responses
Thank you for this wonderful resource! I love getting the emails from your site.
What are your thoughts on putting the high score description in the 2nd column next to the criteria? Students’ eyes are naturally drawn to the columns in order of left to right, so putting the high scoring description makes it the first thing they look at. It sets the tone for them, as if to say, “Do this! This is the best!”
Thank you again for providing this rubric. The descriptions and criteria are very well-written.
You are absolutely welcome to edit and rework them! My co-teacher prefers rubrics that start with 4 on the left side for those exact reasons. Mentally, it works better for me this way. That said, they are easy to copy and change!
Thanks so much!
[…] Middle School Writing Rubrics | […]
Thank you so much for sharing such a valuable resource!
Hello, are the high school rubrics available on the website, or in the book?
They are in the book, Carly. They are also so similar to the middle school rubrics that I did not want to publish a separate post for them.
Dear Ms Tucker
I was browsing and came across you rubrics for students writing. I read them and immediately fall in love with the simplicity of their structure. Thanks for making these resource available, easing research time.
I deem it a pleasure to be able to use them for my assessment.
You’re welcome, Emileta!
I’m glad these will save you time!
These are awesome rubrics! Thank you so much for sharing! They are a great resource.
Any ideas for a poetry rubric. I hate “grading” poetry. I truly believe students should have absolute freedom, but Texas TEKS say otherwise…..so…..
I so appreciate the clarity and ease of understanding these rubrics provide!!
I tend to agree with you. However, if you are expected to assess poetry, I’d start with the language in the TEKs and work backward. What do the TEKs want you to assess when it comes to poetry? Figurative language, sensory details, thematic progression? I’d isolate each “skill” or element of poetry they want you to assess then use those as your criteria and describe what that skill or element looks like in each stage–beginner, developing, proficient, mastery.
Thank you so much for sharing your rubrics with teachers! Extremely helpful and greatly appreciated.
You’re so welcome, Vanessa!
Take care. Catlin
Thank you for sharing your rubrics.
Thank you so much for sharing the rubrics. I use them in class for students’ projects.
Thank you so much for this lovely set up! It has helped a lot of new teachers!
Words can not describe how grateful I am.
Thank you so much! I am always having trouble teaching language art since I feel much comfortable with numbers..
You’re welcome, Helen! Happy to help 😊
Thank you for this very helpful resources, appreciated it!
You’re welcome, Shiela!
Thank you so much for this resource! This is the best rubric I’ve seen for middle school writing!
Thank you, Anna!
Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful resource!!! You are amazing!!!
You’re welcome, Michelle! So glad these are useful. 😊
Thank you so much for providing these! I’m “Yearbook Teacher” and these are wonderful since I have no clue how to grade written work (I normally teach a CTE course but with virtual/hybrid staff is spread thin.
Nick Pascual
You’re welcome, Nicolas! I’m so glad these are useful 😊
It appears 28 possible points can be earned……the sum of points earned would be at what grade level…..for example, if a student earned all 4’s on the Argumentative Writing Rubric what grade level would his writing rank…….or are their ranges for the sum of points……I would prefer to have a grade level…..
Hi MaryIsabel,
I assess on a 4 point mastery scale, so the final score calculates an average then that number 1, 2, 3, 4 is inserted into the grade book (if you have a mastery-based grade book option). Otherwise, you will need to convert your number on a scale.
Thank you. You are so kind. God bless you.
You’re welcome, Jennifer!
I am unable to open the rubrics. Are they still available for teacher to access?
Hi Jennifer,
The short links are below each image of the rubric, and they force you to make a copy. You’ll need to be logged into your Gmail account so your copies save in your Google Drive.
These are excellent! Thank you for sharing Dr. Tucker!
You’re welcome, Laura!
Life saver! Thank you for sharing!
You’re welcome, Carolyn!
Thank you so much for sharing these rubrics! I can’t say anything that hasn’t already been mentioned in the posts above. Love the idea of creating a “rubric bank” available to all who may need it.
You are very welcome, Carolina! I’m thrilled they are useful.
Good Evening , Ms. Tucker
Have you published a persuasive writing rubric?
Hi Yolanda,
I do not have persuasive rubrics. I focused on argumentative writing instead.
THIS IS A LIFESAVER!! THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH!!!!
You’re very welcome, Tammy! 😊
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Essay Rubric

About this printout
This rubric delineates specific expectations about an essay assignment to students and provides a means of assessing completed student essays.
Teaching with this printout
More ideas to try.
Grading rubrics can be of great benefit to both you and your students. For you, a rubric saves time and decreases subjectivity. Specific criteria are explicitly stated, facilitating the grading process and increasing your objectivity. For students, the use of grading rubrics helps them to meet or exceed expectations, to view the grading process as being “fair,” and to set goals for future learning. In order to help your students meet or exceed expectations of the assignment, be sure to discuss the rubric with your students when you assign an essay. It is helpful to show them examples of written pieces that meet and do not meet the expectations. As an added benefit, because the criteria are explicitly stated, the use of the rubric decreases the likelihood that students will argue about the grade they receive. The explicitness of the expectations helps students know exactly why they lost points on the assignment and aids them in setting goals for future improvement.
- Routinely have students score peers’ essays using the rubric as the assessment tool. This increases their level of awareness of the traits that distinguish successful essays from those that fail to meet the criteria. Have peer editors use the Reviewer’s Comments section to add any praise, constructive criticism, or questions.
- Alter some expectations or add additional traits on the rubric as needed. Students’ needs may necessitate making more rigorous criteria for advanced learners or less stringent guidelines for younger or special needs students. Furthermore, the content area for which the essay is written may require some alterations to the rubric. In social studies, for example, an essay about geographical landforms and their effect on the culture of a region might necessitate additional criteria about the use of specific terminology.
- After you and your students have used the rubric, have them work in groups to make suggested alterations to the rubric to more precisely match their needs or the parameters of a particular writing assignment.
- Print this resource
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40 comments.
Thank you so much sir! Its my first time as an online English teacher for primary level and I come across your site while groping for ideas on how and what to teach…Your site is really of great help and it is much appreciated. I learned a lot and this could help me improve on my teaching resources. Thank you so very much!!! More power and God bless!
This website is super helpful! Great resources for practicing.
Thank you for taking time to share all the resources. They are very helpful in many ways to students and to educators. I have visited it many times during my web search for various topics and I will continue visiting. Job well done to say the least!
I have used this site numerous times and find the worksheets and power points so perfectly crafted. You drive the points home, with clarity and ease of understanding.
jerusha gooden
Essay long about slavery and sugar plantion everything to do please help me need you about you need l want to ok
Thank you so much. It a great blessing to see them and have.them in my phone. Great blessings
I totally appreciate all your resources; saves me a lot of time. Thanks
Dear Sir, I am so happy to have found this site! It is quite comprehensive. I stumbled across it looking for help in tutoring English to elementary students and I find myself completing your worksheets just to stay sharp! Thank you for all your hard work. It is most appreciated.
Thank you for visiting and taking the time to comment!
BRAVO! I found your site when I was looking for parts of speech resources and am absolutely blown away. THANK YOU for this gift in ELA resources that are spot on and ready to use. I think this is the first site I have found that I can actually use the resource confidently without having to recreate the wheel on my own. I’ve been exploring for over an hour and am seriously ‘geeked out’ by everything. Bless you!
Thank you for the kind words. I’m glad you like the site. Please come back again!
Dominic Potter
Thank you so much,well appreciated.
Pru Claassen
Good day I require rubrics for Grade 8 and 9 English First Additional Language please… Essays as well as transactional writing.
What a gift — helping teachers teach. Praying that your generosity of spirit in sharing what you have created is multiplied hundred fold.
Your website is very generous with information.
Thank you! Ms Simmons
I was in search of such site for our teacher Dr Imran khan wants us to write a research paper in Linguistics
I want a resource about cause and effect essay and about compare and contrast essay but this site is actually awesome and I had a lot to do with this amazing site
Simple and accurate, thank you. Very useful to teach students.
Just want to say thank you. This website is truly a gem!!! So many fantastic resources all in one place – and all for free. I cannot thank you enough for your dedication. You have helped me many nights this past year as I have scrambled through my first year of teaching. All of your materials are straightforward, ready-for-use, and engaging for students. What more could I ask for??
That’s exactly what I was going for. Thank you for the kind words and for visiting my site. Best wishes!
Thank you very much for sharing these with us. It is very very helpful!
Thank you so much for these resources.They are so helpful..Can you please include one sample essay if possible. Thanks, Lavanya.
very interesting resource!
Thank you so much for the wonderful work that you are producing.
You are most welcome. Thank you for visiting.
Edward Elmer
I am a teacher with the Sacramento County Office of Education in Sacramento California. I just want to say how thankful I am for discovering your site. You have my utmost admiration for your material. Are you developing more in the future?
Thanks again, Edward Elmer
Thank you kindly.
I am working on more materially. This site is my life’s work. I will continue to update it and improve it as my time allows.
Thank you for the kind words.
Your web page is AWESOME! Thank you for sharing all these wonderful activities!!
You are most welcome. Thank you for visiting!
it is really good
gino coronado
i learned a lot upon browsing some of the sample of rubrics hope you can put as many sample you can have
I’m happy to hear it. I have more that I will add soon.
mr. morton, love you…not because you shared these great ws, but to see how amazingly your thinking and teaching is crystal clear.lucky your students must be and making big in life with LA skills accquired from a superb mentor like you. its just not only fun to teach but also to solve your sheets. thats the best part of it! 😉
I am honored by your comments.
I hope to return your kindness by continuing to add more content in the years to come.
Best wishes.
Very useful information loved teaching my students theme using your resources!! Thank you!!
Thank u so much for the resources, checking essay are quiet easy than before, this is such a great help for us teachers.
Wow!! What an incredible resource. Thank you very much.
thanks… helpful for my composition class!
ladymacbeth
Thanks for everything Mr. Morton. I am a high school teacher of both enthusiastic readers/writers, and very nonenthusiastic readers/writers. How nice to find your resources. I’m sure I will be able to entice even the most reluctant to do some writing with the help of your prompts. Thanks for sharing!
I’m happy to hear it. I’d love to add more writing resources soon.
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Middle School Writing Rubrics – Dr. Catlin Tucker Middle School Writing Rubrics Catlin Tucker | August 22, 2018 | 43 In my book Blended Learning in Grades 4-12, I shared the following middle school writing rubrics with my readers.
Essay Rubric Directions: Your essay will be graded based on this rubric. Consequently, use this rubric as a guide when writing your essay and check it again before you submit your essay. Traits 4 3 2 1 Focus & Details There is one clear, well-focused topic. Main ideas are clear and are well supported by detailed and accurate information.
This rubric delineates specific expectations about an essay assignment to students and provides a means of assessing completed student essays. Teaching with this printout More ideas to try Teaching with this printout Grading rubrics can be of great benefit to both you and your students. For you, a rubric saves time and decreases subjectivity.
Middle School Narrative Essay Rubric Exceeding Expectations 4 Meeting Expectations 3 Approaching Expectations 2 Beginning 1 Purpose • The writing creatively engages the reader through the telling of a story about a problem, situation, or observation. • The story has a narrator and well-developed characters. • All questions posed, or
Five-Paragraph Essay Writing Rubric Criteria 4 3 2 1 Points Introductory Paragraph Thesis statement/topic idea sentence is clear, correctly placed, and restated in ...
A rubric in student language written for middle school students to self-assess their persuasive writing. Learning Goals Use this rubric to self-assess your persuasive writing as you work on it. "Persuasive Writing Rubric—Middle School" 2017 by Clarity Innovations under "Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial" Version History Cite this work
Rubric Reflection Please answer this question after you have received your graded essay back. Do you think the grade you received on your essay was too high, too low, or just right? In a well-written paragraph explain why, using specific examples from the rubric and your essay to prove your opinion about your grade.
Narrative Essay Rubric – This rubric will help you grade narrative essays. It is particularly focused on having a lead or attention catching technique as well as the inclusion of a turning point or climax. Customize the RTF file to meet your specific goals and needs. Narrative Essay Rubric RTF Narrative Essay Rubric PDF