Deborah Eaton

I liked this book overall, but I felt that there were some flaws in the language. This book is informational. First, I like this book because it gives you step by step directions of how to make a mud pie. For example, on page 2 it says, "First, find some good dirt." Next, on page 3 it says, "Fill some pans with water. Dump the water on the dirt." This pattern continues throughout the book. Another thing that I like about the book is that the pictures match the words very well. The show more description given in words is clearly presented in the pictures. For example, on page 4 it says, "Mix the water and the dirt. Now it is mud." The picture shows a boy mixing the dirt and water and you can tell after he mixes it that it has more of a liquid substance, like the consistency of mud. I like the idea of sharing in the book as well. On page 11 it says, "Pat it. Make a flat pie. Let your little brother help." It is important that children's books have small meanings throughout them, and the concept of sharing was evident when the boy let his brother help make the mud pie. Lastly, I liked the author's portrayal of diversity on the last page of the book. The author has several ethnicities and races shown. There are two Caucasian children (one boy and one girl), two African American children (one boy and one girl), and one Asian child (girl). The diversity is another important concept in the story. I like how it was present in the story. It makes the story stronger since it can relate to different types of children. The only thing I did not like about the book was that some of the adjectives may not be appropriate to the age level of this book. I would say that this book is around a first or second grade level due to it's pictures and short sentences, but some of the adjectives such as crunchy (p.6), wiggly (p.7), and gooey (p.10) may be slightly above the first or second grade level of reading.

The big idea or message of the story was giving students step by step instructions on how to make a mud pie. There are underlying messages such as sharing and diversity, as well as creativity also presented in the story. show less

This is a great introduction to informational books for younger children. I think the illustrations do a great job explaining the text. For example, on the page where it says to fill some pans with water and dump the water on the dirt, there is a picture of a boy dumping a pan of water onto dirt. Younger children who are struggling to sound out the text can use this picture to help them. I also like the writing itself. It is simple and short, which is perfect for the age group that it show more targets. Words like water and dirt are repeated on every page, which helps the reader begin to identify these words. The purpose of this book is to introduce children to a "how to" style of writing and to teach them how to follow directions in a sequence. show less

"How to Make a Mud Pie" is an easy-to-read picture book for developing readers. Although I thought the book was funny, I did not really understand the main idea of it. Because the children in the story made the mud pies and gave it to their parents after, who looked happy to receive the mud pies, I was not sure whether or not it was encouraging kids to make mud pies or if it is just a story that is fun to read. However, the story flowed well as the older brother gave step by step show more instructions on how to make a mud pie. The illustrations went along with the instructions with use of bright colors. Overall, "How to Make a Mud Pie" is an easy read and could be useful for readers who are learning to read, however there is not much substance to it for readers to comprehend or think about. It's purely just for enjoyment. show less

"How to Make a Mud Pie" is a silly, fun sequential text perfect for students in grades K-2. I thought the images in this book helped provide clues for the text if the reader is struggling with some words. I would use this book as an example of step-by-step instructions for how to make something. This was a great model for students and they can easily follow the sequence and create their own sequential story on how to make or do something.