The Ultimate Set of Procedural Writing Checklists

Editing is one of the most important steps of the writing process; however, it is the step that our students are most likely to jump over as quickly as possible!

In order to help your students fine-tune their self-editing skills, Teach Starter has created this set of six differentiated editing checklists for procedural writing. Students can use the checklists to ensure that their procedural texts include the correct structural elements and language features. They can also use these tools to check for general writing conventions such as spelling, grammar and punctuation.

Some of the statements found on these procedural writing checklists include:

• I introduced my topic with a “How to” statement.
• I listed the materials needed.
• I listed the steps in order.
• I provided clear instructions.
• I used transition words at the start of each step.
• I provided diagrams or pictures with labels.
• I provided a conclusion sentence.
• I used present-tense action verbs and adverbs.
• I checked my spelling, grammar and punctuation.
• I checked that my writing makes sense.

The features included on each checklist vary slightly, allowing you to choose the checklist that best suits your class or the abilities of individual students.

The Benefits of Using Writing Checklists in Your Classroom

Writing checklists can help your students take their writing to new heights! Here are three major benefits of using writing checklists in your classroom:

1. Structured Guidance –  One of the greatest benefits of writing checklists is that they provide a structured framework for students to use when editing their work. Providing specific criteria students can use when evaluating their work helps them focus their attention on these areas during the editing process.
2. Manageability – Many students find the thought of editing an entire piece of writing overwhelming. Writing checklists minimize this sense of overwhelm by breaking the editing process down into manageable steps.
3. Accountability – Providing your students with a writing checklist means no more excuses when it comes to editing! With a structured list of checkpoints to work through, there is no reason why students should not be accountable for checking all aspects of their work thoroughly.

Download This Pack of Procedural Writing Checklists

This set of procedural writing checklists can be downloaded as either a black-and-white PDF or editable Google Slides file. If you download the Google file, please note that you will be asked to make a copy to your personal drive.

This resource was created by Lindsey Phillips, a teacher in Michigan and a Teach Starter collaborator.

More Curriculum-Aligned Procedural Writing Resources

Teach Starter prides itself on our extensive range of teacher-created, curriculum-aligned resources. Check out some of our great procedural writing resources to cut down on your planning time!

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How to Make a Pizza Interactive Activity

Use this “How to Make a Pizza” procedural writing interactive activity to model the purpose, structural elements and language features of procedure texts.

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How to Brush Your Teeth Flipbook

Use this “How to Brush Your Teeth” procedural writing activity to help familiarize your students with the structural elements of procedure texts.

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Procedural Writing Posters

Display this set of 5 procedural writing anchor charts in your classroom during your procedural writing unit.