Student Name
Period 8-
SHORT STORY
Distinguished 4
RUBRIC
Engaging the Engages the audience with an
Audience interesting introduction that
makes the audience connect with
the story and the writer
Elements of a Establishes a situation, plot, point
Short Story of view, setting, conflict, and
resolution using careful detail and
emotion
Organization Balances and unifies all narrative
elements required in an essay;
chronology of events very clear
Style and The ideas are clearly and
Fluency effectively developed; writing is
fluent and polished with effective
verbs, adjectives, and transitions;
thesis clear
Grammar, Demonstrates mastery of the
Editing, Revising, rules of the English Language
and Proofreading including punctuation, spelling,
and grammar.
 Effective dialogue
incorporated into essay
Special Sentence
correctly
Structures
 Three different brushstrokes 
correctly written, highlighted,
and labeled
 3rd person narrative clearly
maintained
McKimmey, Anderson, and Torres
2011 STAAR Writing Project
Grade
Scale
Proficient 3 Developing 2 Needs Improvement 1
28=98
27=97
Adequately engages the audience Makes an attempt to engage the Does not try to engage the 26=95
audience but is not successful audience or establish the context 25=93
of the story 24=92
23=90
22=88
Provides an adequately developed Barely develops the plot; conflict The plot is difficult to follow or
plot, but needs more depth with and resolution are sketchy; more understand and requires further
21=86
conflict, resolution, detail, and detail needed; emotion minimal development; lacks conflict and 20=84
emotion resolution; minimal 19=82
detail/emotion 18=81
17=80
Shows a clear attempt at Shows minimal effort to balance There is little or no organization 16=78
balancing and unifying the story; and unify the story; chronology present; chronology of events
15=77
chronology of events evident of events confusing not present
14=75
13=74
Most ideas are clearly expressed; Some ideas may not be clearly Many ideas are difficult to 12=73
writing is generally fluent, with expressed; fluency and transitions understand; fluency and 11=72
some use of effective verbs, may be lacking; infrequent use of transitions are lacking; few
adjectives, and transitions; thesis effective, verbs, adjectives, and effective verbs, adjectives, and 10=68
adequate transitions; thesis unclear transitions; no thesis 9=65
8=62
7=60
Makes good attempt to Efforts to revise/edit are made but Shows little to no evidence of
revise/edit with only a few errors with many errors in punctuation, proofreading, with many
in punctuation, spelling, grammar spelling, grammar remaining punctuation, spelling,
grammatical errors
 Dialogue incorporated, but  Minimally effective dialogue  Ineffective/no dialogue
not totally effective and/or and/or not punctuated
punctuated correctly correctly
 No brushstrokes evident
Two different brushstrokes  One different brushstrokes
 Narrator not evident
correctly written, highlighted, correctly written, highlighted,
and labeled and labeled
 3rd person narrative  3rd person narrative weak
maintained adequately
Student Name
Period 8-
Meets all of the requirements: Meets all except one or two Meets at least half of the Meets less than half of the
requirements: requirements: requirements:
Format
 One page
 typed, Times New Roman,  One page  One page  One page
size 12  typed, Times New Roman,  typed, Times New Roman,  typed, Times New Roman,
size 12 size 12 size 12
 double spaced
 double spaced  double spaced  double spaced
 MLA heading
 MLA heading  MLA heading  MLA heading
 correctly punctuated and
capitalized title  correctly punctuated and  correctly punctuated and  correctly punctuated and
capitalized title capitalized title capitalized title
 pages numbered (MLA
format)  pages numbered (MLA  pages numbered (MLA  pages numbered (MLA
format) format) format)

McKimmey, Anderson, and Torres

2011 STAAR Writing Project