Decades of research into which instructional strategies are successful in K-12 history and social studies conclude that having students write is extremely important. Effective writing assignments--whether a 3- to 5-paragraph essay, a longer term-paper-style assignment, or even a fictional short story based on a historical period or event--require students to gather and evaluate information, determine how to design the paper, identify and describe any conflicting points of view, and present an understandable account of the historical event or issue. Local history provides an excellent platform on which to base student writing projects. Students are frequently more interested in people and events related to their hometown or state than something that happened across the country or around the world. This article offers several websites from the Ball State University TAH (Teaching American History) presentation as well as others that will meet the needs of "Social Education's" national and international readership.