This essay aims to provide beginning and experienced history teachers as well as history teaching methods professors with a helpful strategy designed to improve students' knowledge of historical content and competence in historical thinking. It introduces a systematic approach to the use of primary sources which emphasizes the "doing" of history, or better yet, the "doing of teaching history." It is consistent with the best practices in pedagogy. The authors base the approach on their teaching experiences at the high school and university levels (in content courses and teaching methods courses), a review of literature regarding historical thinking, and their experiences with undergraduate entry-level teachers, graduate students in history, and experienced classroom history teachers. (Contains 4 figures and 18 notes.)