This document provides guidance on writing a Document Based Question (DBQ) essay. A DBQ essay requires students to analyze primary source documents in order to answer a question and develop a thesis. The document advises students to understand the context of each document, such as the time period and author's perspective. It also provides instructions on how to write an introduction with a clear thesis statement directly answering the prompt question, and to include topic sentences and paragraphs using documents as evidence to support the thesis.