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The Productive Teacher
I help teachers and parents build knowledgeable, skilled readers based on research findings within the Science of Reading.
Explore the Parts of Literacy
Decoding Words
phonological awareness, phonics, syllables, orthographic mapping,
Vocabulary
morphology (Greek and Latin roots, prefixes, suffixes), word meanings and relationships, connotation, academic vocabulary
Grammar
parts of speech, sentence structure, syntax, punctuation, usage
Writing
sentence construction, paragraphs, organization, composition, written expression
Background Knowledge
science, history, geography, culture
Reading Comprehension
main ideas, inference, summarizing, text structure, figurative language
Explore Topics
Elementary Science
Middle School Science
Elementary Social Studies
U.S. History
World History
Elementary Culture
About Me
Hi, I’m Cate, a teacher, literacy researcher, writer, and mom of four. I have taught elementary and middle school since 2012 and am currently a Ph.D. student in Literacy, Language, and Culture at Texas Woman’s University.
As the mother of two children with dyslexia, I am passionate about making learning to read accessible to as many children as possible by empowering teachers and parents with knowledge and practical resources grounded in literacy research.
You can reach me anytime at Cate@TheProductiveTeacher.org!
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The Productive Teacher
Explore my Teachers Pay Teachers store, where more than 8,600 teacher reviews have earned The Productive Teacher a 4.9 out of 5 rating. With 700+ resources and more than 3,000 followers, you'll find practical, engaging materials designed to help students build knowledge and strengthen their reading, writing, vocabulary, grammar, and more.
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A History of Chemistry: Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece began as disconnected groups of people living in small communities. As the communities grew, they formed city-states. Each city-state had its own market, government, and army. As the populations grew, the city-states became more connected. The Golden Age of Ancient Greece lasted from about 500 BCE to 300 BCE. During this time, the Greeks focused on art, poetry, and philosophy. The Ancient Greek philosophers were fascinated by matter. They wanted to understand t
2 min read
A History of Chemistry: Alchemy
Modern chemistry has its roots in alchemy. In Europe, alchemy was closely related to Christianity. By the fourth century, Rome had become Christian. Around this time, some Christian mystics believed they could make a substance that would turn base metals into gold. This magical substance was called the philosopher’s stone. The stone killed base metals and resurrected them into gold just like Jesus was killed and resurrected. The philosopher’s stone was seen as a medicine for
2 min read
A History of Chemistry
Ever wondered how we got from trying to turn lead into gold to understanding the tiny particles that make up everything around us? That's what we'll explore in this blog series on the history of chemistry! We'll start with the early days of alchemy, where people were fascinated by magic and the idea of transforming substances. Then, we'll move through important discoveries and the amazing people who made them, like figuring out what elements are and how they combine to form e
2 min read
Newton's Three Laws of Motion for Middle School Science
How are Issac Newton, the three laws of motion, and a pandemic related? This pandemic didn't happen in 2020. It was all the way back in 1665. Between 1665 and 1666, the Great Plague of London killed around 100,000 people. The plague was spread by bacteria on the fleas that lived on the rats of London. There was no known cure, so the city shut down as much as possible to protect people. Isaac Newton's college, Cambridge University, closed, so he went home to the country to wai
5 min read
Middle School Science Resources Homepage
Are you teaching middle school science? Are you taking middle school science? Either way, the resources below will help you understand all of the parts of the middle school science curriculum. I mostly share reading passages because reading is a great way to learn about new topics. I also link videos I find helpful for understanding topics. Occasionally, I include interactive activities. Click the arrows to expand each topic to see the available resources. Matter States of Ma
2 min read
How We See Energy from the Sun on Earth
The Sun in Space Our planet, Earth, rotates around the Sun along with seven other planets. The Sun is so huge that its gravity pulls all of the planets around it. Asteroids, moons, and comets also orbit around the Sun. The Sun is so big that 1,000,000 Earths could fit inside it! The Sun is very important to the Earth and the people, animals, and plants that live on it. The Sun provides light and heat, two important forms of energy. Energy is what gives things the ability to d
3 min read
Mechanical Energy for Middle School Science
Energy is the ability to do work. In science, work means using a force to move an object. So, bouncing a ball is a type of work because the ball moves, but pushing on a wall is not work because the wall doesn’t move. Mechanical energy allows an object, or person, do to work. Unlike other types of energy, mechanical energy is made up of both potential and kinetic energy. Mechanical energy is the sum of an object's total potential and kinetic energy. The Law of Conservation of
3 min read
Nuclear Energy for Middle School Science
Energy is all around us. Energy can be classified as potential or kinetic. Potential energy is stored energy. Kinetic energy is moving energy. There are many types of potential and kinetic energies. Nuclear energy is a type of potential energy because it is the energy stored inside the nucleus of an atom. Atoms are the building blocks that make up everything around us. They are too small to see, so scientists use models to explain how atoms look and act. All atoms are made up
3 min read
Chemical Energy for Middle School Science
Energy is all around us. Energy can be classified as potential or kinetic. Potential energy is stored energy. Kinetic energy is moving energy. There are many types of potential and kinetic energies. Chemical energy is a type of potential energy because it is the energy stored in atoms and molecules. Atoms are the basic units of matter. An atom is made up of a nucleus surrounded by electrons. Hydrogen is the simplest atom in the universe. It has one positively charged proton i
3 min read
Thermal Energy for Middle School Science
Energy is all around us. Energy can be classified as potential or kinetic. Potential energy is stored energy. Kinetic energy is moving energy. There are many types of potential and kinetic energies. Thermal energy is a type of kinetic energy because it is the energy of vibrating or moving molecules. The molecules that make up all the matter in the universe are continually moving. Even the molecules that make up a block of solid ice are vibrating. The hotter matter is, the mor
4 min read
Sound Energy for Middle School Science
Energy is all around us. Energy can be classified as potential or kinetic. Potential energy is stored energy. Kinetic energy is moving energy. There are many types of potential and kinetic energies. Mechanical energy is both kinetic and potential energy because it is the energy of motion and position. For example, a bike traveling up and down a hill sometimes has kinetic energy and sometimes has potential energy. Sound energy is a type of mechanical energy because it is the e
2 min read
Electrical Energy for Middle School Science
Energy is all around us. Energy can be classified as potential or kinetic. Potential energy is stored energy. Kinetic energy is moving energy. There are many types of potential and kinetic energies. Electrical energy is a type of kinetic energy because it is the energy of moving electrons. Electrical energy comes from the flow of electrons. The faster the electrons move, the more electrical energy they have. Lightning, batteries and power lines are all examples of electrical
4 min read
Light Energy for Middle School Science
Energy is all around us. Energy can be classified as potential or kinetic. Potential energy is stored energy. Kinetic energy is moving energy. There are many types of potential and kinetic energies. Light is a type of kinetic energy because light energy is always moving. Light energy is a small part of a broader category called electromagnetic energy. Electromagnetic energy is a combination of electrical and magnetic waves. Electromagnetic energy includes the entire electroma
3 min read
All About Energy for Middle School Science
Did you wander to this page from the Matter Page? If you didn't, you will definitely want to check it out. Matter and energy are tightly linked. Energy is a big topic, and its definition (the ability to do work) is too vague to be helpful in my opinion. I find it easier to understand energy through examples and details. You can get an overview of energy by looking at the presentation below. As always, if you would like to purchase a copy of the presentation, you can do so at
1 min read
Energy and Matter
Energy and matter are closely related. One of Einstein's greatest discoveries was that matter is really, really, really slow energy. That is what his famous equation means. That doesn't mean energy and matter act the same way. They are very different. Matter takes up space, and energy does not. Energy can act on matter and change it. For example, energy is what moves waves in the ocean, causes the water in the tea kettle to boil, and warms the rocks on a hot day on Earth. If
1 min read
Changes in Matter
Matter can change. Matter can have physical changes and chemical changes. Physical changes may change what it looks like, but the atoms and molecules stay the same. During a chemical change, the atoms or molecules change form. Water freezing is an example of a physical change because the individual molecules of water do not change. Since the individual molecules or atoms do not change during a physical change, physical changes are easily reversible. Water that freezes and bec
2 min read
The Composition of Matter
The composition of matter is the stuff that makes up matter. At its most basic, matter is made up of atoms. Atoms are tiny. They are so tiny that you have about 100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 atoms in your fingertip! One strand of your hair is about a million atoms wide. Atoms Atoms are mostly empty space. There is a small nucleus at the center of the atom. The nucleus is composed of protons and neutrons. Surrounding the nucleus are electrons. Our models show electrons are d
4 min read
All About Matter for Middle School Science
Let's start at the beginning when it comes to matter. What is it? This is a question scientists and philosophers have grappled with for millennia. Seriously, the Ancient Greeks and Indian scholars spent tons of time thinking about the "stuff" around them. Our current definition of matter is pretty vague. Matter is anything that has mass and takes up space. Here is the tough part of the definition. If you look up mass, it is a measurement of the amount of matter in an object.
2 min read
Middle School Earth History Homepage
Earth history is a fascinating topic! It is also a massive topic! This homepage holds all of the links to my Earth history reading passages and picture books. If you are a teacher, looking for more, I have all of my passages and activities available at Teachers Pay Teachers. They come with so many extras to get your students thinking about the content! These charts are included in all of the passages on Teachers Pay Teachers, but you can read all of the associated reading pas
1 min read
A Brief Overview of the Holocene Epoch for Middle School Science Classes
Earth history is a fascinating topic! It is also a massive topic! The reading passage below will teach you all about the Holocene epoch. If you want to learn more (and why wouldn't you?!), you can check out my Earth History page. I also have all of my passages available at Teachers Pay Teachers. They come with so many extras to get your students thinking about the content! I also recommend scrolling to the bottom of the page to check out my digital picture book on the Holocen
3 min read
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