Grade Correlation: 5=100 , 4=90, 3=85, 2=75, 1=65

Reading Response Letters: Grading Rubric

1 2 3 4 5

Format
Does not follow personal
letter format with date,
greeting, body, & closing
Follows personal letter
format with date,
greeting, body, & closing
Follows personal letter
format with date,
greeting, body, & closing
Follows personal letter
format with date,
greeting, body, & closing
Follows personal letter
format with date,
greeting, body, & closing

Length
Not a full 1 page
handwritten.
Not a full 1 page
handwritten.
May or may not be a full 1
page handwritten.
Full page very neatly
written
Full page very neatly
written

Book Title
Book title not present Book title may or may
not be present (if
present, may not be
underlined)
Book title present (may
or may not be
underlined)
Book title present
(underlined)
Book title present
(underlined)
Author
Reference
No reference made to
the author
May or may not have
author reference
May or may not have
author reference
Reference made to the
author in some way
Reference made to the
author in some way

Content
Does not address any
topics from topics/ideas
list.
May or may not address
1 or more topics from
topics/ideas list,
however, details are
sparse &/or confusing.
Addresses at least 2
topics from topics/ideas
list, however, details are
lacking.
At least 3 topics from
topics/ideas list present,
but not necessarily
expanded upon.
At least 3 topics from
topics/ideas list present
and fully explained in
DETAIL using complex
sentences

Conventions
Spelling, grammar, &
usage errors detract from
meaning or make writing
hard to understand
Spelling, grammar, &
usage errors detract from
meaning or make writing
hard to understand
Spelling, grammar, &
usage errors present
Mostly correct spelling,
grammar, & usage
throughout
Correct spelling,
grammar, & usage
throughout

Voice
Writers voice not evident Writers voice may or
may not be evident
Writers voice may or
may not be evident
Writers voice evident Writers voice shines
through in letters
entirety

Question
A question to the reader
may or may not be
present.
A question to the reader
may or may not be
present.
A question to the reader
may or may not be
present.
A question to the reader
may or may not be
present.
A question to the reader
is present.

Overall
Impression
I was hoping for more.
This letter didnt show
me about you as a reader
or what you were
thinking. Things need to
improve in order to be
successful.
Youre developing!
You had a letter, but it
was missing most of
what I was looking for.
Lets think about how we
can make changes for
next week.
Good letter! You had
most of the
requirements, but writing
about your thinking
could have been
improved. Make sure to
elaborate next time.
Great letter! I really got
a sense that, as a reader,
you deepened your
thinking, but it was
missing that little
something extra to make
it exceptional.
Wow, that was an
exceptional letter! So
well written & detailed. I
can really tell what you
were thinking about your
book and I learned a
little about you as a
reader too!