CATEGORY

4

3

2

1

Setting

Many vivid, descriptive words are used to tell when and where the tribe lived.

Some vivid, descriptive words are used to tell the audience when and where the tribe lived.

The reader can figure out when and where the tribe lived, but the author didn't supply much detail.

The reader has trouble figuring out when and where the tribe lived.

Focus on Assigned Topic

The entire story is related to the assigned topic and allows the reader to understand much more about the topic.

Most of the story is related to the assigned topic. The story wanders off at one point, but the reader can still learn something about the topic.

Some of the story is related to the assigned topic, but a reader does not learn much about the topic.

No attempt has been made to relate the story to the assigned topic.

Neatness

The final draft of the story is readable, clean, neat and attractive. It is free of erasures and crossed-out words. It looks like the author took great pride in it.

The final draft of the story is readable, neat and attractive. It may have one or two erasures, but they are not distracting. It looks like the author took some pride in it.

The final draft of the story is readable and some of the pages are attractive. It looks like parts of it might have been done in a hurry.

The final draft is not neat or attractive. It looks like the student just wanted to get it done and didn't care what it looked like.

Spelling and Punctuation

There are no spelling or punctuation errors in the final draft. Character and place names that the author invented are spelled consistently throughout.

There is one spelling or punctuation error in the final draft.

There are 2-3 spelling and punctuation errors in the final draft.

The final draft has more than 3 spelling and punctuation errors.

Creativity

The story contains many creative details and/or descriptions that contribute to the reader's enjoyment. The author has really used his imagination.

The story contains a few creative details and/or descriptions that contribute to the reader's enjoyment. The author has used his imagination.

The story contains a few creative details and/or descriptions, but they distract from the story. The author has tried to use his imagination.

There is little evidence of creativity in the story. The author does not seem to have used much imagination.