A correction list is a short record of errors from your own writing, each with the rule that fixes it and a date to test yourself again. It works because it is personal. It belongs to spelling, punctuation and proofreading and builds on the slip-or-gap test in the previous lesson.
What goes in each entry?
Five columns are enough.
| Wrong form | Right form | Type | Rule in your words | Retest date |
|---|
- Wrong form: copy it exactly, in the sentence, not as a single word.
- Right form: write the whole corrected sentence.
- Type: ending, punctuation, spelling or capital. Mark slip or gap.
- Rule in your words: one short line you could explain to a friend.
- Retest date: a day three to seven days later.
How do you build and use the list?
- After each piece of writing, circle every error your teacher, a friend or you yourself found.
- Enter only the ones that are gaps, plus any slip you made three or more times.
- Group entries by type. If three entries share one rule, merge them into a single rule.
- On the retest date, write a new sentence using the target form, without looking. Check it against the list.
- Three correct retests in fresh sentences means the item moves to “finished”.
Worked example
A student wrote a short email about a school trip and found these errors.
We was very excited about the trip. The teacher told us to bring a umbrella. It was realy hot, so we drank a lot of water, we were still tired.
The student sorts the errors and keeps the ones worth a list.
| Wrong form | Right form | Type | Rule in my words | Retest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| We was very excited | We were very excited | Ending, slip | Plural “we” takes “were” | Day 3 |
| a umbrella | an umbrella | Gap | Use “an” before a vowel sound | Day 4 |
| realy hot | really hot | Spelling, gap | Keep the l of “real” and add -ly | Day 5 |
| …we drank a lot of water, we were still tired | …we drank a lot of water, but we were still tired | Punctuation, slip | Two complete ideas need “but”, a full stop or a semicolon | Day 3 |
On day 3, the student writes fresh sentences: “They were ready early.” and “I drank tea, but I felt sleepy.” Both are correct. Two entries move towards finished.
On day 4, the student writes: “She brought an apple and a umbrella.” That has the old error. The entry stays live, and the student writes the rule on a sticky note: “an + vowel sound”.
The mistake to watch for
A common slip is to fill the list with corrections only, and never test.
Mistaken routine: “I write down every correction and read the list on Sunday.”
Reading a list feels productive, but it tests recognition, not writing. The fix is to write new sentences without looking at the right form. Only those show whether the gap has closed.
Check yourself
1. A student writes “I like swiming” and corrects it to “swimming”. Write a full list entry.
Show answer
Wrong form: I like swiming. Right form: I like swimming. Type: spelling, gap. Rule: swim has one short vowel and one final consonant, so double the m before -ing. Retest: in 3 to 5 days, with a new sentence such as “She stopped running.”
2. An entry has been right in three fresh sentences on three different days. What do you do?
Show answer
Move it to the finished section. Review finished entries once a month in case the error returns.
3. Why is copying errors from a friend’s work a weak list?
Show answer
Because the list should hold errors your habits produce. A friend’s errors may not be yours, so you spend review time on words you already write correctly.
Where this leads next
Put the whole module to work in the spelling, punctuation and proofreading practice set. Keep your entries in the mistake log and retest queue, and use the writing revision compare view to compare two drafts of your own writing.
A teacher can turn a long list into three or four rules quickly, because they see the pattern across your drafts. That is one thing online one-to-one English as a Second Language tuition offers.