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Headline Clear, concise, engaging Headline lets reader know Headline is vague and not Headline is not connected
headline that lets the what the article will be well connected to the to the article or is difficult
reader know what the about, but may be wordy article. to understand.
article will be about. or may not capture the
readers attention.

Opening and closing Clear, engaging opening Opening and concluding Missing an opening or Missing an opening and
sentence and conclusion that sentence connect to the concluding sentence. concluding sentence.
catches the readers article, but may be
attention and connects to unclear or may not
the article. capture the readers
attention.
Content: main ideas Main ideas of who, what, Most details have been Some details have been Most details are missing
where, when (possibly communicated, but one communicated, but or have been poorly
why and how) have been or two details are vague. several details have been communicated so that the
clearly communicated. left out. Information is reader cannot
unclear and affects the understand.
readers understanding.
Language: Vocabulary, Clear, concise, engaging Vocabulary is generally The choice of vocabulary The choice of vocabulary
conciseness, and vocabulary which the strong, but may be too may be unclear or the hampers the readers
formality reader can easily read. wordy or the language wrong words used for the understanding. The article
The style and tone is too sophisticated for the intended meaning. A few is not written in the style
appropriate for a intended audience. The unnecessary details are or tone of a newspaper.
newspaper article. style and tone is included. The article is not
appropriate for a written in the style or
newspaper article. tone of a newspaper.
Mechanics Very few spelling, Several spelling, Many spelling, grammar, Many spelling, grammar,
grammar, and grammar, or punctuation or punctuation mistakes or punctuation mistakes
 punctuation errors that errors that minimally that make it difficult for that prevent the reader
do not affect affect the readers the reader to understand. from understanding the
understanding. understanding. text.
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