Read the question carefully and underline all tasks (analyze, evaluate, compare/contrast). If the question is two parted, you must answer both parts of the question. For example: What were the causes and consequences of the Protestant Reformation. You must include answers that address both the causes AND the consequences, although they do not have to be answered equally, meaning you may give more causes than consequences.
Next, spend the first 15 minutes reading each document carefully thinking about how the document answers the question. You may only misinterpret one document without penalty. You must use all or all but one document when writing your essay. There are no "trick" documents. All may be used in multiple contexts. A document written by Martin Luther may represent both spirituality and political motives.
While reading the documents, begin to think of categories for your documents. You must have at least three different categories consisting of two documents. Using the above example, if one document was written by Martin Luther about the political aspects of the Reformation, look for a second document about politics. Together, they will form a category.
One of the most important aspects of reading the documents is analyzing the author's point of view. Why is this person writing this document at this particular time? What do we know about the author that would influence their writing? Who was the document written for? Why? Is it reliable? Factors such as gender, occupation, social class, race, nationality, or political identity are a good place to start! For example: Juan Luis Vives was a Spanish humanist; humanists oppose inequalities and injustices, such as poverty. Vives wrote this book as an appeal to people to end poverty and donate money to charity. You must include a minimum of three points of view in your essay!
Now comes the writing! The DBQ comes with an historical background. You do NOT have to restate it. Do not waste your time with a fancy introduction. Limit your introduction to three or four sentences, including your thesis. You must include a clear thesis statement, alluding to all of your categories and explicitly answering all parts of the question! Each of your next three paragraphs should include one distinct category with a minimum of two documents in each paragraph. Finish your essay with a simple closing paragraph restating your thesis.