--- title: "Grading Rubrics for Teachers: AP and Classroom Rubrics" description: "Grading rubrics explained row by row: AP History, AP Lang, AP Lit, AP Seminar, AP Gov, ACT, IB, STAAR and classroom essay rubrics, with sources and examples." canonical: https://formswrite.com/rubrics last-updated: 2026-10-18 --- Rubric library # Grading Rubrics for Teachers Here are the AP, state test and classroom essay rubrics explained row by row, with examples we wrote and links to the official scoring guidelines from College Board, ACT, the IB and the Texas Education Agency. Every rubric opens in the Formswrite essay grader with one click, so you can grade a class set against it. [Grade with a rubric](/accounts/signup?source=rubrics-hub&returnUrl=%2Fdashboard%2Fgrader%2Fnew)[Make your own rubric](/tools/rubric-generator) ## AP essay rubrics - ### DBQ rubric (AP History) 7 points: thesis, contextualization, evidence from and beyond the documents, sourcing and complexity. APUSH, AP World and AP Euro tabs. [Open the rubric about DBQ rubric (AP History)](/rubrics/dbq-rubric) - ### LEQ rubric (AP History) 6 points: thesis, contextualization, evidence and analysis and reasoning, with the May 2027 change to one required LEQ. [Open the rubric about LEQ rubric (AP History)](/rubrics/leq-rubric) - ### AP Lang rubric The 6-point rubric for the synthesis, rhetorical analysis and argument essays: thesis, evidence and commentary, sophistication. [Open the rubric about AP Lang rubric](/rubrics/ap-lang-rubric) - ### AP Lit rubric Poetry analysis, prose fiction analysis and literary argument on the same 6 points, and what changes between them. [Open the rubric about AP Lit rubric](/rubrics/ap-lit-rubric) - ### SAQ rubric (AP History) 3 points, one per part, with the 2026 format and the three required SAQs from May 2027. APUSH, AP World and AP Euro. [Open the rubric about SAQ rubric (AP History)](/rubrics/saq-rubric) - ### AP Lang synthesis rubric The synthesis essay in depth: a defensible position, at least three sources, commentary and sophistication. [Open the rubric about AP Lang synthesis rubric](/rubrics/ap-lang-synthesis-rubric) - ### Rhetorical analysis rubric What Row B asks about rhetorical choices at 3 and 4 points, and how sophistication works in analysis. [Open the rubric about Rhetorical analysis rubric](/rubrics/ap-lang-rhetorical-analysis-rubric) - ### AP Lang argument rubric The argument essay with no sources: specific evidence from reading, study and experience, explained. [Open the rubric about AP Lang argument rubric](/rubrics/ap-lang-argument-rubric) - ### AP Seminar IWA rubric The 48-point Individual Written Argument rubric for Performance Task 2, row by row. [Open the rubric about AP Seminar IWA rubric](/rubrics/ap-seminar-iwa-rubric) - ### AP Gov argument essay rubric 6 points: claim, evidence from foundational documents, reasoning and a response to an alternate perspective. [Open the rubric about AP Gov argument essay rubric](/rubrics/ap-gov-argument-essay-rubric) ## ACT, STAAR and IB rubrics - ### ACT writing rubric Four domains scored 1 to 6 by two readers, and how the 2 to 12 writing score is worked out. [Open the rubric about ACT writing rubric](/rubrics/act-writing-rubric) - ### STAAR writing rubric The Texas extended constructed response: development and organization (3) plus conventions (2). [Open the rubric about STAAR writing rubric](/rubrics/staar-writing-rubric) - ### IB Extended Essay rubric The EE criteria for the model first assessed in May 2027 and the earlier one, with the official IB links. [Open the rubric about IB Extended Essay rubric](/rubrics/ib-extended-essay-rubric) - ### NY Regents ELA rubric The 6-point Part 2 argument essay rubric, four criteria weighed together, and the Part 3 text-analysis response. [Open the rubric about NY Regents ELA rubric](/rubrics/ny-regents-ela-rubric) - ### Smarter Balanced writing rubric Organization, elaboration and conventions (4, 4, 2) for argumentative, informative and narrative performance tasks. [Open the rubric about Smarter Balanced writing rubric](/rubrics/smarter-balanced-writing-rubric) - ### WIDA writing rubric The interpretive rubric for multilingual learners: discourse, sentence and word dimensions at levels 1 to 6. [Open the rubric about WIDA writing rubric](/rubrics/wida-writing-rubric) - ### IB Psychology SAQ and ERQ rubric The SAQ and ERQ markbands examined through November 2026, and what changes in the course first assessed in May 2027. [Open the rubric about IB Psychology SAQ and ERQ rubric](/rubrics/ib-psychology-saq-erq-rubric) ## Classroom essay rubrics - ### Essay rubric Narrative, informative, expository and five-paragraph essay rubrics, plus the 10-point essay rubric teachers use in the Philippines. [Open the rubric about Essay rubric](/rubrics/essay-rubric) - ### Argumentative essay rubric Claim, evidence, reasoning, counterclaim, organization and conventions on four levels, with a grade conversion. [Open the rubric about Argumentative essay rubric](/rubrics/argumentative-essay-rubric) - ### One point rubric The single point rubric: one standard per criterion, comments on either side, and how to turn it into a grade. [Open the rubric about One point rubric](/rubrics/one-point-rubric) - ### CER rubric (science) Claim, evidence and reasoning scored 0 to 2 each, for written scientific explanations. [Open the rubric about CER rubric (science)](/rubrics/cer-rubric) - ### Holistic vs analytic rubric One overall score or a score per criterion: the same essay scored both ways, and how to choose. [Open the rubric about Holistic vs analytic rubric](/blog/holistic-vs-analytic-rubric) ## Exam rubrics at a glance Points and rows, from the current official scoring guidelines. | Essay | Points | Rows | | --- | --- | --- | | AP History DBQ | 7 | Thesis 1, Contextualization 1, Evidence 3, Analysis and reasoning 2 | | AP History LEQ | 6 | Thesis 1, Contextualization 1, Evidence 2, Analysis and reasoning 2 | | AP History SAQ | 3 | One point for each task (a, b, c) | | AP Lang (all 3 essays) | 6 | Thesis 1, Evidence and commentary 4, Sophistication 1 | | AP Lit (all 3 essays) | 6 | Thesis 1, Evidence and commentary 4, Sophistication 1 | | AP Gov argument essay | 6 | Claim 1, Evidence 3, Reasoning 1, Alternate perspective 1 | | AP Seminar IWA | 48 | Seven rows: context (2), perspective, argument, evidence, citation, style | | ACT Writing | 2-12 | Four domains, each 1 to 6 from two readers; score is their rounded average | | STAAR essay (ECR) | 5 | Development and organization 3, Conventions 2 (two scorers, up to 10) | | NY Regents ELA argument essay | 6 | One holistic score weighing content and analysis, evidence, coherence and conventions | | Smarter Balanced full write | 10 | Organization and purpose 4, Evidence or development and elaboration 4, Conventions 2 | | CER (science) | 6 | Claim 2, Evidence 2, Reasoning 2 | ## What makes a good grading rubric A rubric earns its keep when two teachers, or a teacher and an AI grader, would give the same essay the same score. That takes criteria that do not overlap, levels that are clearly different from each other, and descriptors that say what the reader will find (“cites two specific, relevant pieces of evidence”) rather than how good it is (“strong evidence”). The AP rubrics are a useful model: each row is scored on its own, and each point names exactly what earns it. ## Rubric examples and templates Beyond the exam rubrics, the classroom pages above include ready rubrics for [argumentative essays](/rubrics/argumentative-essay-rubric), [narrative, informative and expository essays](/rubrics/essay-rubric) and the [one point rubric](/rubrics/one-point-rubric), and the guides below cover research papers and presentations. To build one for your own assignment, the [rubric generator](/tools/rubric-generator) drafts the criteria and levels, and the [rubric grader](/rubric-grader) grades a class set against any rubric you bring. Once the grades are in, the free [essay feedback generator](/tools/essay-feedback-generator) and [report card comment generator](/tools/report-card-comment-generator) help with the comments. ## Classroom rubric guides - [Research essay rubric](/blog/research-essay-rubric-template) - for grading research papers - [Presentation rubric](/blog/presentation-rubric-oral-presentation) - for oral presentations - [Essay feedback comments](/blog/essay-feedback-comments) - examples for every rubric criterion - [Rubric templates for Word and Google Docs](/blog/rubric-template-word-google-docs) - free and editable - [AP Lang essay scoring guide](/blog/ap-lang-essay-rubric-scoring-guide) - a longer walk through the three essays ## Rubric FAQ What is a grading rubric? A grading rubric is a scoring guide that lists the criteria a piece of work is judged on and describes what each level of performance looks like, usually with points. It makes grades consistent between students and graders and tells students in advance what quality means. What are the main types of rubrics? Analytic rubrics score each criterion separately; holistic rubrics give one overall score from level descriptions; single point rubrics describe only the proficient level and leave room for comments above and below it. AP essay rubrics are analytic: each row is scored on its own. Are these the official rubrics? They are our explanations of them. Each exam page names the criteria as the exam owner does (College Board, ACT, the IB, the Texas Education Agency, NYSED, Smarter Balanced or WIDA), explains them in our own words with examples we wrote, and links to the official scoring guidelines, which are the authority if anything differs. The classroom rubrics are Formswrite templates. Can I grade essays with these rubrics? Yes. Rubric pages have a "Grade with this rubric" link that opens the Formswrite essay grader with that rubric already loaded (for IB Psychology you paste your own markbands). Handwritten essays can be photographed with a phone. You can grade 30 essays a month for free and approve every grade before students see it. How often are the rubric pages checked? We review them against the current official scoring guidelines whenever new ones are published, and each page shows its last review date. The AP History rubric criteria stay the same for May 2027, when the exam format changes. Our IB Extended Essay library rubric is marked as still being verified against the official IB guide. ## Sources and review Last reviewed October 18, 2026 by the Formswrite team. Exam rubric facts on these pages are paraphrased from the official documents below. - [AP U.S. History 2026 Scoring Guidelines (PDF) (opens in a new tab)](https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/ap26-sg-us-history.pdf) - [AP History exam updates for 2027 (AP Central) (opens in a new tab)](https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/courses/ap-history-exam-updates) - [AP English Language 2026 Scoring Guidelines (PDF) (opens in a new tab)](https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/ap26-sg-english-language.pdf) - [AP English Literature 2026 Scoring Guidelines (PDF) (opens in a new tab)](https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/ap26-sg-english-literature.pdf) - [AP Seminar 2026 Performance Task 2 Scoring Guidelines (PDF) (opens in a new tab)](https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/ap26-sg-seminar-pt2.pdf) - [AP U.S. Government and Politics 2025 Question 4 Scoring Guidelines and Samples (PDF) (opens in a new tab)](https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/ap25-apc-us-go-po-q4-set-1.pdf) - [ACT Writing Test Scoring Rubric (ACT, PDF) (opens in a new tab)](https://www.act.org/content/dam/act/unsecured/documents/Writing-Test-Scoring-Rubric.pdf) - [2026 STAAR English II Constructed-Response Scoring Guide (TEA, PDF) (opens in a new tab)](https://tea.texas.gov/data-reports/staar/released-test-questions/2026-staar-english-ii-scoring-guide.pdf) - [Extended essay (International Baccalaureate) (opens in a new tab)](https://www.ibo.org/programmes/diploma-programme/curriculum/dp-core/extended-essay/) ## Grade a class set with any of these rubrics Open a rubric, add the essays, review and approve. 30 essays a month are free. [Grade with a rubric](/accounts/signup?source=rubrics-hub-cta&returnUrl=%2Fdashboard%2Fgrader%2Fnew)[See the essay grader](/ai-essay-grader)