Most assignments in history and other humanities classes are based to some extent on reading. At times you will be asked to respond to one or two readings, such as essays or historical documents.

At other times, you may be asked to write a research paper that draws on a wide variety of sources. For such assignments, you need to conduct research, being careful to evaluate sources and manage the information you gather.

Most history instructors and some humanities instructors require you to document your sources with footnotes or endnotes based on The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2010).

When writing a history paper that draws on written sources, you face several challenges: