How to Peer Review Essay 2

Goals

Give your assigned classmates useful feedback on how well their essays demonstrate close reading.
Help each other strengthen analysis, organization, and clarity before the final draft.
Practice looking at writing through a reader’s eyes. This improves your own revision skills also.

What to Do

Read each assigned classmate’s draft carefully.
Focus on the sections where they analyze specific passages or images from DOD.
Use the Close Reading Handout as a guide.
Ask yourself:
- Do they summarize the passage clearly before analyzing it?
- Do they notice key details (word choice, images, tone, structure)?
- Do they explain how those details create meaning?
- Do they connect their analysis to larger themes in the book?
Write your feedback in 2 parts:

A. Strengths (at least 3 sentences):
Point out what works well.

B. Suggestions for revision (at least 3 sentences)
Offer concrete, kind feedback.

4. Reply to your partner by leaving your comments directly in Canvas (in the peer review box).

Sentence Starters for Feedback

“One detail I noticed and appreciated was…”
“You explain ___ well, but I think you could go further by…”
“This part made me think about the theme of ___.”
“Have you considered adding…”

Peer Review Checklist:

Use this checklist as you review your partner’s draft. Check each box as you complete it, and then write your feedback in the Strengths/Suggestions format.

Close Reading Focus

Does the writer clearly introduce the passage or image before analyzing it?
Do they highlight specific words, phrases, or visual details (not just general summary)?
Do they explain how those details create meaning or effect?
Do they connect the analysis to a larger theme or idea in DOD?

Essay Development

Does the essay include enough specific examples from the book (quotes, images)?
Does each paragraph focus on one main idea or claim?
Are the writer’s ideas explained fully (not just listed or mentioned)?

Organization & Clarity

Does the essay flow logically from one idea to the next?
Is it clear where the thesis or main claim is?
Are topic sentences and transitions easy to follow?

Style & Conventions

Is the writing mostly clear and readable?
Do grammar or wording issues get in the way of meaning?
Are quotes cited in MLA style (in-text + Works Cited)?

Final Step

After checking all the sections, write:

3–4 sentences on strengths (What’s working well?)
3–4 sentences on suggestions (What could be added, clarified, or deepened?)

Sample comment:

Strengths:

I like the passage you chose about the coal companies “obliterating the land.” Your analysis of the word obliterate is strong because it shows how violent the process is. I also appreciated the way you connected that detail to the bigger theme of communities being destroyed, not just the environment. That connection made your argument feel powerful and clear.

Suggestions:

One area you could expand on is the phrase “strip it of its people.” You mention it, but you could go further in explaining how that phrase makes the people sound almost like a resource being mined. You might also want to tie this back to Sacco’s artwork in the same chapter—does the image reinforce the same violence you see in the words? Finally, make sure your thesis is easy to spot in the introduction; right now it’s implied but not clearly stated.

IMPORTANT:

Peer review is not editing for grammar. It’s about helping your classmate think more deeply about their ideas, analysis, and organization.

Be specific, constructive, and respectful. Point out what works well, then offer clear suggestions for how the writer can make the essay stronger.