This checklist will help you complete your assignment accurately. It may also help you get ready for an appointment with a consultant from the Spanish Writing Center. Note that if you are not writing a traditional essay, but maybe something more creative such as a short story, for example, the following aspects may not all apply in the same way.

1. Read the instructions for the assignment very closely. Do you understand them? If you do not, make sure that you ask your instructor for clarification. If you do not, you may not be writing the correct assignment.
2. Do you know what the instructor's expectations are for this assignment? Do you know how it will be graded?
3. What are your specific concerns with the assignment?
4. Start brainstorming, taking notes/words down, making an outline, etc.
5. You need to follow the guidelines for the assignment, including everything asked for in the instructions. Some aspects may be the following:
6. Is the essay typed?
7. Does it have the adequate number of words, more or less?
8. Did you use/type all the Spanish accents and special characters?
9. Did you use a good title, if any?
10. What is the (general) theme?
11. Do you state your thesis clearly? Note that the theme is different from the thesis. For example, a theme could be "sports" but your main thesis could be that "college sports bring a lot of revenue to universities."
12. Do you use a good introduction where the theme and thesis are introduced?
13. Does the introduction introduce the ideas to be discussed?
14. Do you follow a logical development of ideas and offer enough support (quotes, numbers, etc)?
15. Do you reference all your quotes appropriately, MLA or APA style, and include them in the final bibliography?
16. Is the vocabulary level sophisticated enough?
17. Is there too much use of English? If you need to use an English word for which there is no Spanish equivalent, please explain it in Spanish for your reader.
18. Do you use good transitions and connectors?
19. Are the verbal tenses chronologically consistent?
20. Do you have a logical conclusion that summarizes the ideas well?
21. Is there a professional bibliography at the end (either MLA or APA) if needed?
22. Remember that the Spanish Writing Center is there to help you at any stage of the writing process (but it will not correct your grammar errors) and also that there are some useful documents posted on this website (www.gvsu.edu/mll/swc).