Annual Margaret Thompson Historical Essay Contest
3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Graders
Rubric for Scoring
Margaret Thompson Essay Contest
Contest entries should have the student’s full name, address, phone number, school name, grade, and teacher’s name on the top left side of the first page. Essays should be about 300 words or less. If any essay has not followed these guidelines, the essay will NOT be read or judged for the contest.
There will be a total of 30 points possible for an essay. These points will be allotted according to the following criteria:
1. Topic is clearly identified and supports essay prompt 5 points
2. Ideas 10 points
- Establishes a clear focus
- Uses descriptive language
- Provides relevant information
- Communicates creative ideas
3. Expression 10 points
- Uses grammar conventions (mechanics) effectively
- Uses interesting vocabulary
- Uses a variety of sentences
4. Organization 5 points
- Demonstrates a sequential flow of ideas based on the prompt
