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The Salty Muffin Mistake

Level 5 Review 3rd Phase 5
The Salty Muffin Mistake
The Salty Muffin Mistake, page 1
1Kate the squirrel was in her kitchen. She planned to bake sweet apple muffins for Jay's birthday party. Jay the blue jay was her good friend, and she wanted to make the best treat for him. The party was at sunset, and she was running out of time. She needed to work quickly.
The Salty Muffin Mistake, page 2
2She ran around the room to gather the things she needed. Kate grabbed a baking card to read. The card told her how to make the muffins. But she was in a rush and made a bad mistake. In her rush, she dumped salt in the bowl, not sugar.
The Salty Muffin Mistake, page 3
3She mixed it up with a spoon. Then, she put the muffins in the hot oven. Soon, they were baked and ready to eat. Kate took one out and set it on a napkin. It was a little hot, but she took a small bite.
The Salty Muffin Mistake, page 4
4"Ouch! So salty!" she yelled, jumping back. "This is very bad!" she said. "The party is today!" She felt hopeless. She could not give Jay a salty muffin! It would spoil his birthday. Just then, there was a loud knock at the door.
The Salty Muffin Mistake, page 5
5Kate went to open it. It was her friend Jane. Jane had a big backpack on her back. "Why are you sad?" Jane asked, looking at Kate. Kate gave her friend the salty muffin. Jane took a tiny bite. She made a funny face and spit it into the trash.
The Salty Muffin Mistake, page 6
6"We must redo them," said Jane. "We can fix this if we take action right now." Jane took a bag of sugar out of her backpack. She looked at the baking card. "You put in salt," she told Kate. "We need sweet sugar for a good apple muffin."
The Salty Muffin Mistake, page 7
7Jane got out a bigger bowl. Kate was so happy to have help. They set the oven to preheat again. Jane put in the sugar and the chopped apple bits. Kate mixed it all up with her paws. They worked quickly together to fix the mistake.
The Salty Muffin Mistake, page 8
8By sunset, the new muffins were perfect. They made the tallest pile of sweet treats ever. Kate and Jane packed them up and went to the party. "Happy birthday, Jay!" they shouted. It was a wonderful day, and no one had to eat a salty muffin!
Circle or highlight all the longer words (two or more syllables) in the story above. How many did you find?

Comprehension Questions

After reading, ask these questions to check understanding:

  1. What kind of muffins did Kate plan to bake?
  2. What did Kate put in the bowl instead of sugar?
  3. Where did Kate and Jane take the new muffins?
Keep practicing
Practice Level 5 Review with 4 more free worksheets

The words from this story, on printable practice sheets:

Word sortPhrasing cardsRapid naming chartWord search
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Download Mini-Book
Full-color picture book • Print, cut & staple • No signup required
Read-aloud version (one page per sheet, for projecting)
The Salty Muffin Mistake illustrated mini-book cover
Cover + 8 illustrated pages

Reader Details

Phonics Skill Level 5 Review
Grade Level 3rd
Phase Phase 5
Worksheets Level 5 Review Worksheets

Target Words

sunset napkin tiger little running bigger quickly helpful unlock mistake action backpack

Sight Words

the a and to was is it she he they said have with you are of for her there one into what when out about

More Level 5 Review Readers

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About This Decodable Reader

“The Salty Muffin Mistake” is a free printable decodable reader designed for 3rd students practicing level 5 review phonics patterns. This mini-book uses phonetically controlled vocabulary so beginning readers can successfully sound out nearly every word in the story, building confidence and reinforcing the specific phonics skills they're learning.

The free PDF is a full-color illustrated mini-book: a cover, eight picture pages with one or two lines of story text each, and a back page listing the level 5 review words, high-frequency words, and discussion questions. Print the five sheets, cut each one in half along the dashed line, and staple — your child has a real little book to hold. A read-aloud version with one large page per sheet is also included for projecting to the whole class.

This reader is part of our collection of 193 free decodable readers organized by phonics skill and aligned with the Science of Reading. For additional practice with level 5 review patterns, try our level 5 review phonics worksheets which include word sorts, phrasing practice cards, and rapid naming charts.