iRubric: Writing a Short Story rubric

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Writing a Short Story

Students will write a short story that demonstrates their understanding of the elements of plot and the characteristics of a short story.

Rubric Code: YX9956X

By mrstrong2011

Ready to use

Public Rubric

Subject: English

Type: Writing

Grade Levels: 6-8, 9-12

Short Story
	Exceptional Expectations exceeded. 4 pts	Good Expectations met. 3 pts	Fair Expectations almost met. 2 pts	Poor Expectations not met. 1 pts
Characterization	Exceptional The main characters are named and clearly described. Most readers could describe the characters accurately.	Good The main characters are named and described. Most readers would have some idea of what the characters looked like.	Fair The main characters are named. The reader knows very little about the characters.	Poor It is hard to tell who the main characters are.
Setting	Exceptional Many vivid, descriptive words are used to tell when and where the story took place.	Good Some vivid, descriptive words are used to tell the audience when and where the story took place.	Fair The reader can figure out when and where the story took place, but the author didn't supply much detail.	Poor The reader has trouble figuring out when and where the story took place.
Engaging Beginning	Exceptional Beginning of story has a very creative "grabber". The reader is pulled into the story.	Good Beginning of story has some type of "grabber". The reader is pulled into the story.	Fair Catchy beginning was attempted but did not grab the reader’s attention.	Poor No attempt was made to catch the reader's attention in the beginning of the story. Story begins abruptly orawkwardly.
Inciting Incident/Rising Actions	Exceptional It is very easy for the reader to understand the problem the main characters face and why it is a problem.	Good It is fairly easy for the reader to understand the problem the main characters face and why it is a problem.	Fair It is fairly easy for the reader to understand the problem the main characters face, but it is not clear why it is a problem.	Poor It is not clear what problem the main characters face.
Climax	Exceptional Climax is clearly the turning point in the story that leads to the falling action.	Good Climax is closely tied to the falling action.	Fair Climax fails to lead to the falling action.	Poor The climax is not a significant turning point in the story.
Falling Action	Exceptional The solution to the character's problem is easy to understand, and is logical. There are no loose ends.	Good The solution to the character's problem is easy to understand, and is somewhat logical.	Fair The solution to the character's problem is a little hard to understand.	Poor No solution is attempted or it is impossible to understand.
Resolution/Theme	Exceptional The writer ends the piece with a sense of solid closure that inspires reader reflection. There are no loose ends The theme of the story is very clear.	Good The writer ends the piece with a solid sense of closure. There are no loose ends. The theme of the story is clear.	Fair The solution to the character's problem is a little hard to understand. The story doesn’t quite feel completed yet. More detail and description are needed to fully bring the story and theme to a close.	Poor No solution is attempted or it is impossible to understand. OR the writer ends the piece with an inappropriate cliffhanger. No theme is present.
Organization	Exceptional The story is very well-organized. One idea or scene follows another in a logical sequence with clear transitions.	Good The story is pretty well organized. One idea or scene may seem out of place. Clear transitions are used.	Fair The story is a little hard to follow. The transitions are sometimes not clear.	Poor Ideas and scenes seem to be randomly arranged.
Creativity	Exceptional The story contains many creative details and/or descriptions that contribute to the reader's enjoyment. The author has really used his/her imagination.	Good The story contains a few creative details and/or descriptions that contribute to the reader's enjoyment. The author has used his/her imagination.	Fair The story contains a few creative details and/or descriptions, but they distract from the story. The author has tried to use his/her imagination.	Poor There is little evidence of creativity in the story. The author does not seem to have used much imagination.
Requirements	Exceptional All of the written requirements (typed, double spaced, font, margins) were met. Title page has the title, author's name, grade, illustration.	Good Almost all (about 90%) the written requirements were met. Title page has the title, author's name, grade, illustration.	Fair Most (about 75%) of the written requirements were met, but several were not. Title page has the 3 of the 4 required elements.	Poor Many requirements were not met. Title page has fewer than 3 of the required elements.
Dialogue	Exceptional There is an appropriate amount of dialogue to bring the characters to life and it is always clear.	Good There is too much dialogue in this story, but it is always clear which character is speaking.	Fair There is not quite enough dialogue in this story, but it is always clear which character is speaking	Poor It is not clear which character is speaking.
Proofreading	Exceptional Student demonstrates significant evidence of proofreading. Story contains fewer than 2 errors per page in spelling, punctuation, grammar, and/or paragraph structure.	Good Student demonstrates significant evidence of proofreading. Story contains 3-5 errors per page in spelling, punctuation, grammar, and/or paragraph structure.	Fair Student demonstrates some evidence of proofreading. Story contains 5-10 errors per page in spelling, punctuation, grammar, and/or paragraph structure.	Poor Student demonstrates little evidence of proofreading. Story contains more than 10 errors per page in spelling, punctuation, grammar, and/or paragraph structure.

Subjects:

English

Types:

Writing

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