People like to think that each essay is unique. With every new prompt, we must start from zero with a blank page and new ideas. Not so, my friend.

In reality, your standard 5-paragraph essay is more like an algebra equation than a short story. You basically just need to memorize PEMDAS, and the rest is just fill-in-the-blank.

I created this slideshow as a helpful visual for my students, and it’s better when explained, but I figured I’d post it here, too! Read it and write.