Proofreading Strategies and Formatting

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

1. FINAL DRAFT is due on Monday at the start of class (10:15 for my AM class, and 12:45 for my PM class)
2. You must PRINT a copy to turn in to Lori- this must be done before the start of class, and MUST be printed double-sided.
3. You must SHARE or EMAIL a copy to Lori and to your Senior Project Advisor.  
4. Reminder:  Late penalties do NOT go away if you rewrite, so make sure that your paper is in on time!
5. THIS IS DUE EVEN IF YOU ARE NOT HERE!  If you are absent, you must submit digital copies by the start of class on Monday, and a hard copy immediately upon your return.
   

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Resources for Today:

1. Punctuating Titles
2. MLA Formatting Checklist

Formatting Clarification:

• Insert page numbers at the bottom of each page, be sure the title page DOES not have a page # on it and that the Introduction page is page #1.
• DO NOT worry about putting your name as a header at the top of the page- Ashley and I decided to cut this piece.

Proofreading Strategies:

1. Leave a full day for this step.  Really.  Sunday should be ONLY proofreading, not substantive revision.
2. Leave a little time (at LEAST an hour or two) between finishing your revision and starting to proofread.
3. Proofread on a printed copy.  There's a bunch of research that shows you are far more effective at proofreading when you are reading off the page.  Strange but true.
4. Run spellcheck.  No, seriously.  Don't forget this step.
5. Have at least two other people proofread it for you.  Professional writers have editors- you should too.
6. Read it out loud (seriously, don't do it in your head, actually say the words) to yourself.
7. Have someone else read it out loud to you while you follow along on a digital version.
8. If you know you're bad at a particular thing (say, semi-colon usage or contractions), read through your paper ONLY looking for that one thing
9. Read it backwards from right to left and top to bottom.

HOMEWORK:
Finish this beautiful piece of writing!  I'm so proud of the hard work you've put in, and am looking forward to reading your polished pieces.  Make sure that your hard copies are printed before class, and that you've shared it with me and your Senior Project advisor.  Let's do this!