Same Writing › Sentences and editing › Revising and editing: ARMS and CUPS
What are ARMS and CUPS?
Revising and editing are two different steps. Revising (ARMS) improves the ideas: Add details, Remove what doesn't belong, Move sentences, Substitute better words. Editing (CUPS) fixes the rules: Capitals, Usage (grammar), Punctuation, Spelling.
- ARMS: make it better. Revise first.
- CUPS: make it correct. Edit last.
- Editing a paragraph you'll rewrite wastes time.
Why schools teach it
Kids often think “fix my writing” means spelling
Kids strengthen writing by revising and editing (W.4.5) and use correct capitals, punctuation and spelling (L.4.2). Without names for the two steps, most kids only fix spelling and miss the bigger changes.
ARMS comes first because it can change whole sentences. CUPS comes last, as the final polish.
At the kitchen table
What to say, and what to skip
Say this
Let's do ARMS first. What could you add?
ReviseIs there a sentence that doesn't belong?
RemoveIs there a boring word you could swap?
SubstituteNow CUPS: check each letter, one at a time.
Edit
Skip this
- Fixing every mistake for your child.Point to the line and say which CUPS letter. Let them find it.
- Only checking spelling.Revising the ideas usually helps the grade more.
- Doing all of CUPS at once.One pass per letter catches more.
See it in action
Revising and editing one sentence
Draft: “we went to the zoo it was good.”
ARMS: add and substitute
we went to the city zoo on saturday it was amazing because we saw a baby giraffeCUPS: capitals and punctuation
We went to the city zoo on Saturday. It was amazing because we saw a baby giraffe.Read it aloud
Does it sound right? Does it make sense? ✓
Many classes use colored pencils: one color for ARMS changes, another for CUPS.
Free practice sheet
Make an ARMS and CUPS sheet
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Parents: tell your child's teacher about this guide
Parents also ask
What's the difference between revising and editing?
Revising changes the ideas and words. Editing fixes the rules: capitals, grammar, punctuation and spelling.
What does Usage mean?
Grammar: the right word forms, like “they were” not “they was.”
Which comes first?
ARMS. There's no point fixing the spelling in a sentence you'll remove.
How is CUPS different from COPS?
COPS has O for Organization (or Overall look) instead of U for Usage. Classes use one or the other.