Write a list of basic ideas you have that may help you to focus your research. Decide whether your essay will give an overview of the Freedom Riders movement or if you want to narrow your focus to a particular event involving Freedom Rides or a specific person that was involved. Separate your paper into enough blocks for three- to four-sentence summaries for each of your body subsections, introduction and conclusion.
Research the Freedom Rides and Freedom Riders at your local library. Check out books that will further your research, and make copies of any documents you may want to include as inserts or appendices to your essay. Identify the theme of your paper by picking a specific point of merit you want to analyze.
Write a draft for the body of your text. Subdivide your essay to highlight the specific areas of the Freedom Riders movement you want to focus on. For an overall essay, you want to analyze the history and cultural impact of the Freedom Rides for those involved and the impact it had on the government and society as a whole.
Identify the key problem or issue involved in the Freedom Rides movement that you want to address. Brainstorm points for your essay sections including those on the Civil Rights Era as a whole and the importance of Freedom Rides in the progression of the civil rights movement.
For example, you might want to discuss the key people involved in Freedom Rides and their notable contributions or interactions during the civil rights movement. Or you might discuss the role of the government or the impact the Freedom Rides had on the government during that time. Reference newspaper articles or accounts from that time that detail Freedom Rides or protests for and against them.
Review your writing to ensure that you have detailed the events surrounding the Freedom Rides and the key role they played in the civil rights movement. Each section that summarizes events of the time should be supported with evidence and facts highlighting the positive and negative aspects of the Freedom Rides.