Editing & Revising — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. Read: "The rainforest is home to many animals. Monkeys swing from vines. I had a banana for breakfast. Parrots call from the treetops." Which sentence should be removed?
A) "The rainforest is home to many animals."
B) "Monkeys swing from vines."
C) "I had a banana for breakfast."
D) "Parrots call from the treetops."
The correct answer is C) "I had a banana for breakfast.". Read: "The rainforest is home to many animals. Monkeys swing from vines. I had a banana for breakfast. Parrots call from the treetops." Which sentence should be removed — the answer is "I had a banana for breakfast.".
2. A student writes: "The experiment was done by the students and the results was recorded." Which correction fixes ALL errors?
A) "The experiment was done by the students and the results was recorded."
B) "The students conducted the experiment and recorded the results."
C) "The experiment was done by the students, and the results was recorded."
D) "The experiment was did by the students and the results were recorded."
The correct answer is B) "The students conducted the experiment and recorded the results.". A student writes: "The experiment was done by the students and the results was recorded." Which correction fixes ALL errors — the answer is "The students conducted the experiment and recorded the results.".
3. Read: "First, gather your materials. Finally, present your findings. Next, follow the steps. Then, record your data." What is the BEST revision?
A) Delete the sentence about presenting findings.
B) Reorder to: First, gather materials; Next, follow the steps; Then, record data; Finally, present findings.
C) Change "First" to "To begin with."
D) Add more transition words between each sentence.
The correct answer is B) Reorder to: First, gather materials; Next, follow the steps; Then, record data; Finally, present findings.. Read: "First, gather your materials. Finally, present your findings. Next, follow the steps. Then, record your data." What is the BEST revision — the answer is Reorder to: First, gather materials; Next, follow the steps; Then, record data; Finally, present findings..
4. A student writes: "Recycling helps the earth. Recycling saves energy. Recycling reduces waste. Recycling is important." What revision strategy would MOST improve this paragraph?
A) Add exclamation points after each sentence.
B) Change "recycling" to "it" in every sentence.
C) Combine sentences and vary the structure to eliminate repetition.
D) Delete the last sentence because it restates the idea.
The correct answer is C) Combine sentences and vary the structure to eliminate repetition.. A student writes: "Recycling helps the earth. Recycling saves energy. Recycling reduces waste. Recycling is important." What revision strategy would MOST improve this paragraph — the answer is Combine sentences and vary the structure to eliminate repetition..
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. Changing a passive sentence like "The ball was thrown by Jake" to "Jake threw the ball" uses active voice.
Active voice puts the doer of the action first ("Jake threw"), making the sentence shorter, clearer, and more direct than passive voice ("was thrown by Jake").
2. A paragraph that jumps between unrelated ideas lacks logical flow.
Logical flow means each idea connects smoothly to the next, so jumping between unrelated topics confuses readers and breaks the paragraph's coherence.
3. Using the same sentence opener repeatedly is a problem with sentence variety.
Repeating the same sentence opener (like starting every sentence with "The") makes writing dull, so varying how sentences begin keeps readers engaged.
4. An editing change corrects mechanical errors, while a revision change improves ideas and clarity.
Mechanical errors include spelling, punctuation, and grammar mistakes that are fixed during editing, while revision focuses on bigger-picture improvements to content and organization.
5. When revising, writers should check that each paragraph supports the thesis statement.
The thesis statement is the main argument of the entire piece, so every paragraph should directly support it or the writing loses focus and purpose.