Cate O'Donnell

Science instruction gives students the opportunity to learn about the world around them, but it also provides a powerful opportunity to strengthen reading and writing skills. That’s why I’m excited to introduce a new 3rd–5th Grade Science Reading & Writing Series designed to combine science content, reading comprehension, vocabulary, note-taking, and writing practice in one cohesive resource. The first resource in the series is now available: Plant Structures. Why Combine Science and...

One of the best ways to strengthen reading comprehension is to build background knowledge. Students cannot fully understand what they read about a place, event, or culture if they don't already know something about it. This is one reason I love combining social studies, reading, and writing. Instead of treating writing as a separate subject, students can use writing to think about and process the information they are learning. For this resource, students explore six famous places in Asia: The...

One of the first things young writers need to learn is the difference between a sentence and a fragment. A sentence has a subject and a predicate and expresses a complete thought. While this definition may feel too abstract for young writers to apply immediately, students can learn the difference through repeated modeling and practice. This modeling and practice is especially powerful when you integrate it with content review. For these examples, I am using the science topic of physical and...