When checking my work for SPaG which should I check first or does it not matter?

It depends slightly on the question. For literature, where 4 marks are available, check you have an apostrophe after the writer's name whenever you've referenced them. For instance, Priestley's intention. Then check for common spellings you've missed in the past.

All of these are really important to check but depending on the exam board and question, you may not be awarded any marks for this. However, this is not to say that it is not important to check.

For example, AQA English Language Papers do not mark your SPaG for Questions 1-4, but you are awarded up to 16 marks on Question 5s. The weighting for these three are very similar, so you don't get a larger amount of marks for spelling over punctuation, for example. If you did want to order checking different elements of SPaG, I would first look at punctuation and grammar, as errors could cause your writing to be a little unclear.

When I check SPaG I carry out spelling first. You can then decide whether the word you have chosen is correct for the piece you are writing. The grammar check will help you consider the correct word order and use of tense.

SPAG is very important for any GCSE question. It's really important to leave time to check your work.

In the AQA English Language Papers, examiners will not mark your SPaG for Questions 1-4, but you are awarded up to 16 marks on Question 5s. The weighting for these three are very similar.

I would advise that you first look at punctuation and grammar, as errors could cause your writing to be a little unclear.

First you should read it out loud to yourself - does it make sense? Does it flow like normal writing should? Is it easy to read?

If not, make changes. That is your first clue about your grammar. If the sentence doesn't make sense, make it make sense.

From there, re-read the text and look closely for spelling and punctuation mistakes. They are easy to make and easier to miss, so really look closely.

Once that is all done, it may be worth asking a friend or relative to read through again to pick up anything.

Hope that helps!

Generally, it shouldn't matter if you have time to make sure you check for all. However, if you are sunning out of time, I recommend to always check in this order: Grammar, Punctuation, Spelling. This is because the way in which you've structured the syntax of your sentences (in other words your grammar) does not only effect whether you get those extra 4 SPAG marks, but the general clarity of your entire answer, which feeds into AO2. This is the same idea for punctuation too! In other words, the better your grammar, the more thoughtful and clear your answer comes across to the examiner and thus the more AO2 marks awarded. If you run out of time to check you spellings, it's only maximum 4 marks you can miss out on.

It doesn’t necessarily matter which one you should check first as all of the elements are important.

In my opinion, it does not matter which you check first unless you are running out of time. If so, I would advise you to check your Grammar first and Spelling last.

You should always aim to check for SPaG in the order that it is within the word. This helps to ensure that you remember to check for it every time.

Hi there! I wouldn't say there is a strict or right order but my advice would be to check for Spellings first because they can sometimes be the hardest to spot. Once those are all ironed out, check for Punctuation and then Grammar because those go more hand in hand with the sentence structure and how the sentence flows! hope this helped!

There is specific order in which you have to check your SPaG but I have always found that guiding my students to check their spelling first helps them massively!