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Proof Reading
Literacy Gem 6INSET Day
Friday 30th January 2015
“Writing and editing is art; proofreading is science.”
Proofreading our own work can be challenging, its true. we already no the story, we already have a picture in our minds of what to expect and, as a result, we tend too skim over words and groups of words. Plus, we know our own voices and, even if their are errors in our writing, we don’t “here” them or sea them because were in a hurry, and our minds fill in the blanks as skim over things. We mite be daydreaming — even if we’re reading out loud.
“Writing and editing is art; proofreading is science.”
Proofreading our own work can be challenging, its true. we already no the story, we already have a picture in our minds of what to expect and, as a result, we tend too skim over words and groups of words. Plus, we know our own voices and, even if their are errors in our writing, we don’t “here” them or sea them because were in a hurry, and our minds fill in the blanks as skim over things. We mite be daydreaming — even if we’re reading out loud.
it’sknow
to
there “hear”see we’re
we might
W
“Writing and editing is art; proofreading is science.”
However, errors interrupt the meaning of the text and, worse, undermine the credibility of the author. We are all human and we all make mistakes. The professional recognises this and takes steps to ensure these are picked up.
Top Tips for Effective Proofreading
1. Allow time and concentration – the end is in sight but this final stage should never be rushed.
2. Print it out – we read differently from paper than from a screen. For most people, the errors will be easier to spot.
3. If you can, read aloud. If you can’t, read ‘aloud in your head.’ This means hear your voice as you read. The ear often picks up errors the eye may have missed.
4. Watch out for homophones (same sound but different meaning)
• Accept/except• Stationary/stationery• Practise/practice• Affect/effect• Too/to
If in doubt, check.
Top Tips for Effective Proofreading
5. Watch out for contractions and apostrophes
(joining words)
your and you’reits and it’stheir and they’re
NB: Apostrophes are never used to form plurals.
Top Tips for Effective Proofreading
6. Check the punctuation
• Read aloud to hear easily where sentences end and eliminate comma splices.• Add (or remove) commas• Ensure questions have question marks and
exclamations have exclamation marks• Check capitals.
Top Tips for Effective Proofreading
7. Read it backwards
Reading a text through is useful to check meaning and fluency, but much less efficient when checking for typos or SPG errors.
Read the text backwards. This forces you to consider the spelling of individual words and prevents you from sub-consciously auto-correcting.(Especially good if you are worried about your own accuracy generally.)
Use a dictionary – or type into your mobile to double-check.
Top Tips for Effective Proofreading
8. Swap with a colleague – it’s quicker!
As teachers, we know better than most that spotting errors in others’ work is significantly easier than in our own.
Top Tips for Effective Proofreading
