2. Step 1: Finding a Topic
• Select something that is interesting and fits your assignment
requirements
• You may need to do research to start to narrow down what
you want to focus on
• Take your final idea of what to write about and submit it as a
paragraph summary of what you want to do
3. Step 1: Finding a Topic
• What you are not doing is writing a purely historical paper,
this would be cutting and pasting other people’s research
• What you are doing is making an arguable point about that
topic you chose.
• Example: Weak Historical Topic = Abraham Lincoln
• Example: Strong argumentative Topic = Abraham Lincoln
only freed slaves to disrupt the South and help win the
war.
• Just look at pages 83 and 84 in text book to see the
difference in an actual paper
• Page 93 has tips on thesis generation
4. Step 2: Finding Good Resources
• Several questions can be asked to validate a source:
1. Is the material relevant to your topic?
2. Is the source well respected?
3. Is the material accurate?
4. Is the information current?
5. Is the material from a primary or secondary source?
5. Step 2: Finding Good Resources
What is a primary source?
• Texts and documents from the time period of your topic or
written by your subject
What is a secondary source?
• History and criticism about your subject published within
the last 30 years
6. Step 3: Evaluating and Organizing
Resources
Create a Working Bibliography
• An evolving list of sources you have found, sources you
have read, and sources you will need
Your Working Bibliography will become your Works Cited page
7. Step 3: Evaluating and Organizing
Resources
Categorize your sources for credibility
• Opinion based sources are mostly unacceptable:
1. Blogs, personal web pages, op-ed pieces, and
unverifiable sources
• Peer Reviewed sources are very acceptable:
1. Encyclopedia, general reference books, University pages
2. Academic journals
• Periodicals are acceptable:
1. Newspapers, Magazines
• Histories, surveys, and biographies are acceptable
8. Step 4: Avoid Plagiarism
• Always give credit to any idea that is not your own. Even if you
rephrase someone else's idea in your words, they still need
credit for the idea
• Read pages 88-90 in your text to clarify this
9. Step 5: Read and Highlight Research
• Once you have compiled research for your working thesis and
created your research questions, now you have to sit and
highlight or make note cards as you read through the research.
• This is needed before beginning to write any draft because you
can not know how to support your arguments if you have not
first found evidence for those arguments
10. Step 6: Rough Draft
• First make an outline look at page 93 in your text for an
example
• Use your outline as you write, often people forget about it
• Don’t just copy the argument of a source into your paper,
make it your own
• Put your argument together logically
• Don’t include all your research and notes, just because you
have it doesn’t mean it is worth using. The hardest part of a
research paper is knowing what NOT to use
• Make your analysis of each quote longer than the quote you
use for evidence.
• Never use a quote as an argument by itself, always use your
own analysis to tie it to thesis
11. Step 7: Rough Draft Revision
• Don’t be afraid to change your thesis or modify any part of
your paper that isn’t working
• Check for grammar and spelling
• Make sure all information you used from sources have in-text
citations as well as appear on your works cited page
• For more tips look at page 104 of your textbook
