Writing rubrics
Every state writing test scores essays on a published rubric, and most teachers grade classroom writing on the same one. This library holds all 86 of them, from 10 state tests, Common Core, AP and IB: every criterion, every point value, a printable PDF, and a link to the official document. Pick your state below, or scroll for the full list.
Free to read and free to print, no account and no email. All 86 PDFs are US Letter, black and white, with a blank scoring sheet at the end. Each rubric is also built into the essay grader, so you can score an essay against one without retyping it.
Which rubric does your state use?
- TennesseeTCAP / TNReady, grades 4 to 12, 9 rubrics
- TexasSTAAR, grades 3 to 10, 8 rubrics
- New JerseyNJSLA-A and NJGPA-A, grades 3 to 12, 14 rubrics
- New YorkRegents ELA and Grades 3-8 ELA, grades 3 to 12, 5 rubrics
- Smarter Balanced statesincluding California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, South Dakota and Washington, grades 3 to 11, 5 rubrics
- FloridaB.E.S.T., grades 4 to 10, 4 rubrics
- OhioOST, grades 3 to 12, 4 rubrics
- MassachusettsMCAS ELA, grades 3 to 10, 4 rubrics
- IllinoisIAR, grades 3 to 5, 4 rubrics
- GeorgiaGeorgia Milestones, grade 7, 3 rubrics
- Common Core and general rubricsCommon Core, 6+1 Trait and Six Traits, not tied to any state test, 9 rubrics
- APEnglish Language, English Literature, History DBQ and LEQ, Seminar and Research, grades 9 to 12, 7 rubrics
- IBMYP Language and Literature, Extended Essay and TOK, grades 6 to 12, 5 rubrics
Not listed? Colorado, Maryland and Pennsylvania are in the full list below with one or two rubrics each. States on the Smarter Balanced test use the Smarter Balanced rubrics.
Tennessee writing rubrics
9 rubrics · all Tennessee rubrics on one page
- TNReady Grades 4-5 Informational/Explanatory RubricGrades 4-516 points4 criteria
- TNReady Grades 4-5 Narrative RubricGrades 4-516 points4 criteria
- TNReady Grades 4-5 Opinion RubricGrades 4-516 points4 criteria
- TNReady Grades 6-8 Argument RubricGrades 6-816 points4 criteria
- TNReady Grades 6-8 Informational/Explanatory RubricGrades 6-816 points4 criteria
- TNReady Grades 6-8 Narrative RubricGrades 6-816 points4 criteria
- TNReady Grades 9-12 Argument RubricGrades 9-1216 points4 criteria
- TNReady Grades 9-12 Informational/Explanatory RubricGrades 9-1216 points4 criteria
- TNReady Grades 9-12 Narrative RubricGrades 9-1216 points4 criteria
STAAR writing rubrics
8 rubrics · all Texas rubrics on one page
- STAAR Grades 3-5 Extended Constructed Response (ECR) — Argument/Opinion Writing RubricGrades 3-55 points2 criteria
- STAAR Grades 3-5 Extended Constructed Response (ECR) — Informational Writing RubricGrades 3-55 points2 criteria
- STAAR Short Constructed Response (SCR) — Reading Domain, Generic Item-Specific Scoring FrameworkGrades 3 through English II2 points1 criterion
- STAAR Short Constructed Response (SCR) — Writing Domain, Generic Item-Specific Scoring Framework (Sentence Revision/Combining)Grades 3 through English II1 point1 criterion
- STAAR Grades 6-8 Extended Constructed Response (ECR) — Argumentative/Opinion Writing RubricGrades 6-85 points2 criteria
- STAAR Grades 6-8 Extended Constructed Response (ECR) — Informational Writing RubricGrades 6-85 points2 criteria
- STAAR English I/II Extended Constructed Response (ECR) — Argumentative/Opinion Writing RubricEnglish I-II5 points2 criteria
- STAAR English I/II Extended Constructed Response (ECR) — Informational Writing RubricEnglish I-II5 points2 criteria
NJSLA writing rubrics
14 rubrics · all New Jersey rubrics on one page
- NJSLA-A Grade 3 Informative and Explanatory RubricGrades 312 points3 criteria
- NJSLA-A Grade 3 Narrative RubricGrades 312 points3 criteria
- NJSLA-A Grades 3–5 Conventions RubricGrades 3-54 points1 criterion
- NJSLA-A Grades 4–5 Informative and Explanatory RubricGrades 4-512 points3 criteria
- NJSLA-A Grades 4–5 Narrative RubricGrades 4-512 points3 criteria
- NJSLA-A Grades 4–5 Opinion RubricGrades 4-512 points3 criteria
- NJSLA-A Grades 6–8 Argumentative RubricGrades 6-815 points3 criteria
- NJSLA-A Grades 6–8 Conventions RubricGrades 6-85 points1 criterion
- NJSLA-A Grades 6–8 Informative and Explanatory RubricGrades 6-815 points3 criteria
- NJSLA-A Grades 6–8 Narrative RubricGrades 6-815 points3 criteria
- NJSLA-A Grade 9 and NJGPA-A Argumentative RubricGrades 9-1215 points3 criteria
- NJSLA-A Grade 9 and NJGPA-A Conventions RubricGrades 9-125 points1 criterion
- NJSLA-A Grade 9 and NJGPA-A Informative and Explanatory RubricGrades 9-1215 points3 criteria
- NJSLA-A Grade 9 Narrative RubricGrades 915 points3 criteria
New York State writing rubrics
5 rubrics · all New York rubrics on one page
- New York State Grades 3-8 ELA 2-Credit Constructed-Response RubricGrades 3-82 points1 criterion
- New York State Grades 4-5 Writing Evaluation Rubric (4-Credit Constructed-Response / Writing from Sources)Grades 4-54 points4 criteria
- New York State Grades 6-8 Writing Evaluation Rubric (4-Credit Constructed-Response / Writing from Sources)Grades 6-84 points4 criteria
- NYS Regents Examination in English Language Arts — Part 2 Rubric: Writing from Sources (Argument Essay)Grades 9-126 points4 criteria
- NYS Regents Examination in English Language Arts — Part 3 Rubric: Text-Analysis (Exposition)Grades 9-124 points4 criteria
Smarter Balanced writing rubrics
5 rubrics · all Smarter Balanced states rubrics on one page
- Smarter Balanced Informational Performance Task Writing Rubric (Grades 3-5)Grades 3-510 points3 criteria
- Smarter Balanced Narrative Performance Task Writing Rubric (Grades 3-8)Grades 3-810 points3 criteria
- Smarter Balanced Opinion Performance Task Writing Rubric (Grades 3-5)Grades 3-510 points3 criteria
- Smarter Balanced Argumentative Performance Task Writing Rubric (Grades 6-11)Grades 6-1110 points3 criteria
- Smarter Balanced Explanatory Performance Task Writing Rubric (Grades 6-11)Grades 6-1110 points3 criteria
Florida B.E.S.T. writing rubrics
4 rubrics · all Florida rubrics on one page
- B.E.S.T. Writing Rubric — Argumentation, Grades 4-6Grades 4-612 points3 criteria
- B.E.S.T. Writing Rubric — Expository, Grades 4-6Grades 4-612 points3 criteria
- B.E.S.T. Writing Rubric — Argumentation, Grades 7-10Grades 7-1012 points3 criteria
- B.E.S.T. Writing Rubric — Expository, Grades 7-10Grades 7-1012 points3 criteria
Ohio writing rubrics
4 rubrics · all Ohio rubrics on one page
- Ohio's State Test Holistic Informative/Explanatory Writing Rubric, Grades 3-5Grades 3-510 points3 criteria
- Ohio's State Test Holistic Opinion Writing Rubric Grades 3-5Grades 3-510 points3 criteria
- Ohio's State Tests Holistic Argumentation Writing Rubric Grades 6-HSGrades 6-1210 points3 criteria
- Ohio's State Tests Holistic Informative/Explanatory Writing Rubric, Grades 6-HSGrades 6-1210 points3 criteria
MCAS writing rubrics
4 rubrics · all Massachusetts rubrics on one page
- MCAS ELA Grades 3–5 Extended Response (ER) Rubric for Written Expression and ConventionsGrades 3-55 points2 criteria
- MCAS ELA Grade 6–8 English Language Arts Essay RubricGrades 6-88 points2 criteria
- MCAS ELA Grades 6–8 Extended Response (ER) Rubric for Written Expression and ConventionsGrades 6-85 points2 criteria
- MCAS ELA Grade 10 English Language Arts Essay RubricGrades 108 points2 criteria
Illinois IAR writing rubrics
4 rubrics · all Illinois rubrics on one page
- Grade 3 Scoring Rubric for Prose Constructed Response Items: Narrative Writing Task (NWT)Grades 36 points2 criteria
- Grade 3 Scoring Rubric for Prose Constructed Response Items: Research Simulation Task (RST) and Literary Analysis Task (LAT)Grades 36 points2 criteria
- Grades 4-5 Scoring Rubric for Prose Constructed Response Items: Narrative Task (NT)Grades 4-56 points2 criteria
- Grades 4-5 Scoring Rubric for Prose Constructed Response Items: Research Simulation Task (RST) and Literary Analysis Task (LAT)Grades 4-57 points2 criteria
Georgia Milestones writing rubrics
3 rubrics · all Georgia rubrics on one page
- Georgia Milestones Grade 7 ELA EOG Writing Rubrics: Four-Point Holistic Rubric, Genre: NarrativeGrades 74 points1 criterion
- Georgia Milestones Grade 7 ELA EOG Writing Rubrics: Two-Trait Rubric, Genre: ArgumentativeGrades 77 points2 criteria
- Georgia Milestones Grade 7 ELA EOG Writing Rubrics: Two-Trait Rubric, Genre: Informational/ExplanatoryGrades 77 points2 criteria
Other state writing rubrics
5 rubrics
- CMAS Grades 6-8 Prose Constructed Response Rubric — Research Simulation / Literary AnalysisGrades 6-87 points2 criteriaCO
- CMAS Grades 6-8 Prose Constructed Response Rubric — Narrative TaskGrades 6-87 points2 criteriaCO
- MCAP ELA Informative/Explanatory Rubric, Grades 6-8 and 106-8, 107 points2 criteriaMD
- MCAP ELA Narrative Writing Rubric, Grades 6-8 and 106-8, 107 points2 criteriaMD
- PSSA Text-Dependent Analysis Scoring Guidelines (Grades 4-8)Grades 4-84 points1 criterionPA
Common Core and general writing rubrics
9 rubrics
- Common Core State Standards Writing Rubric — ArgumentGrades 11-1225 points5 criteria
- Common Core State Standards Writing Rubric — Informative/ExplanatoryGrades 11-1230 points6 criteria
- Common Core State Standards Writing Rubric — NarrativeGrades 11-1225 points5 criteria
- 6+1 Trait Writing Model / Scoring ContinuumGrades 3-1230 points6 criteria
- Common Core State Standards Writing Rubric — Argument (Grades 11–12)Grades 11-1225 points5 criteria
- Common Core State Standards Writing Rubric — Informative (Grades 11–12)Grades 11-1230 points6 criteria
- Common Core State Standards Writing Rubric — Narrative (Grades 11–12)Grades 11-1225 points5 criteria
- Rubric for a Narrative Writing Piecegeneral30 points5 criteria
- Six Traits Writing Rubric (adapted from Vicki Spandel's Creating Writers, 6-point scale)all36 points6 criteria
AP rubrics
7 rubrics
- AP English Language and Composition FRQ Rubric (Synthesis / Rhetorical Analysis / Argument)Grades 9-126 points3 criteria
- AP English Literature and Composition FRQ Rubric (Poetry Analysis / Prose Fiction Analysis / Literary Argument)Grades 9-126 points3 criteria
- AP History Document-Based Question (DBQ) Rubric (US History / World History / European History)Grades 9-127 points4 criteria
- AP History Long Essay Question (LEQ) Rubric (US History / World History / European History)Grades 9-126 points4 criteria
- AP Seminar Individual Written Argument (IWA) Rubric — Performance Task 2Grades 9-1248 points7 criteria
- 2025 AP® Research Academic Paper Scoring GuidelinesGrades 9-125 points1 criterion
- 2025 AP® Seminar Performance Task 1: Individual Research Report (IRR) Scoring GuidelinesGrades 9-1230 points6 criteria
IB rubrics
5 rubrics
- IB Diploma Programme Extended Essay Assessment CriteriaDP34 points5 criteria
- IB MYP Language and Literature Assessment Criteria — Year 5MYP Year 532 points4 criteria
- IB MYP Language and Literature Assessment Criteria — Year 1MYP Year 132 points4 criteria
- IB MYP Language and Literature Assessment Criteria — Year 3MYP Year 332 points4 criteria
- TOK essay assessment instrument (Theory of knowledge guide, first assessment 2022)Grades 9-1210 points1 criterion
Common questions
What is a writing rubric?
A scoring guide that names the criteria an essay is judged on, usually organization, evidence, language and conventions, and describes what each score level looks like. State tests publish theirs so teachers can grade classroom writing the same way the test will.
Which writing rubric should I use?
The one your state test uses, if you teach a tested grade: it is what your students will be scored on. Pick your state above. Otherwise the Common Core rubrics on this page are the most widely used general ones.
Are these rubrics free to download?
Yes. Every rubric here is free to read and free to print, with no account and no email. All 86 PDFs are US Letter, black and white, with a blank scoring sheet at the end.
Can NudgeLearn grade essays against these rubrics?
Yes. All 86 are built into the NudgeLearn essay grader. Upload an essay, typed or handwritten, and it comes back with a score on every criterion and the reasoning written out. The teacher stays the grader: review it and change any score before it goes back to the student. A free account covers 20 essays.