What do you think?
Rate this book
The Secret Science Project That Almost Ate the School
The tale of a science project gone terribly, hilariously wrong. For ages 4 and up.
Students, heed this little
When it's science project time,
Do not make goop,
or glop,
or grime,
And never mess with
mutant slime .
Students, heed this little
When it's science project time,
Do not make goop,
or glop,
or grime,
And never mess with
mutant slime .
32 pages, Hardcover
First published August 29, 2006
3 people are currently reading
162 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 97 reviews
December 29, 2014
I have read many books by Judy Sierra and out of all the books I had read by Judy Sierra so far, “The Gruesome Guide to World Monsters” was one of my favorites from her (even though it also had a lot to do with Henrik Drescher’s creative drawings)! So, I picked up this unusual book from Judy Sierra along with illustrations by Stephen Gammell called “The Secret Science Project That Almost Ate the School” and man, did I really enjoy this strange and creative book!
The book starts off with a little girl who wanted to make the perfect project for the science fair, but could not come up with a good project that would beat out her classmates’ science projects. So later that night, the girl stayed up late to look for a great science project on the internet and she stumbles upon a project called “Professor Swami’s Super Slime.” The girl ends up buying the slime and once she takes the slime out of the box, the slime suddenly started to grow large and it started to eat many people, which included her little sister, her father, her third grade teacher and her classmates!
Can the girl stop the slime from eating everything else before it is too late?
Read this book to find out!
Wow! I must admit that this book was pretty impressive for the average “school project goes wrong” storyline! Judy Sierra’s writing is extremely creative as the story is told in a rhyming prose and the rhymes managed to make the story stand out on its own as it is both hilarious and creative at the same time! I loved the fact that the girl buys a science project that manages to go wrong in a few minutes since I usually love stories where an experiment goes wrong and starts devouring the town in the process! Stephen Gammell’s artwork is as usual fun to look at as the students look very amusing with their creative outfits (since I remembered when I was in elementary school, the other kids used to mix and match their clothing to be creative)! I also loved the image of the slime monster as it truly does look threatening, with its black and white glob like appearance and the fact that it changes its color throughout each page really brings out the creepiness of the monster.
Parents should know that the images of the slime monster might be too scary for smaller children, especially since the slime monster looks so threatening and frightening as it eats the kids and the adults. For anyone who has read “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark,” you pretty know how Stephen Gammell’s illustrations can be pretty scary at times and this book is no exception when it comes to the slime monster. Parents might want to look over this book first before showing it to their children to see if they can handle the scenes with the slime monster.
Overall, “The Secret Science Project that Almost Ate the School” is a fantastic book for children who love reading books that deal with monsters that are unique in appearance and tone. I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since the images of the slime monster might scare smaller children.
Review is also on: Rabbit Ears Book Blog
September 16, 2008
The science fair is coming and one 3rd grader is without a project. Her friends all have fabulous works in the making, but Miss Fidget is quite perturbed that she doesn't have an idea. She looks on the internet and finds "Professor Swami's Super Slime" and her project is on its way...its way to gobbling up everything in sight, until it finds the one thing, the only thing, that will tame it!
Whirly, swirly, brightly imaginative illustrations accompany this story in rhyme. Kids will giggle and have fun with the her dilemma.
Whirly, swirly, brightly imaginative illustrations accompany this story in rhyme. Kids will giggle and have fun with the her dilemma.
May 25, 2013
Grrr, seriously. I hate when the rhyming is off. Stories don't *need* to rhyme to be great. You can write an epic story with awesome illustrations, and it will be amazing! If you try to rhyme and stutter it (even just once), you've killed the story. To be honest, the illustration style turned me off, too. Basically, this could have been an awesome story about goop with dragon DNA, but it lost me early.
October 12, 2018
IL: LG - BL: 3.4 - AR Pts: 0.5
Definitely a story in rhyme. It was much more fun to read it that way. I read it during a slime making program and the kids liked it.
Definitely a story in rhyme. It was much more fun to read it that way. I read it during a slime making program and the kids liked it.
October 21, 2015
This book made me laugh so hard and reminded me of the Goosebumps stories that I read as a kid. There was one about a blob that ate people. It would be fun to read that afterwards. I loved this book because it had a lot of humor in it. How many times have we all known a project was due and we never started on it until the last minute. The book starts out with everyone showing off their projects. The main character is a girl whose name was never revealed. During the entire book, it was written in first person. The illustrations really helped to capture the scenes. The art room is messy and the artists use a lot of colors of the rainbow and show paint splatters places. As we find out, the girl goes home and searches the internet for answers. How crazy, it relates to the real world because most kids are so technology reliant that they are unable to come up with things on their own. Anyways, the girl decides to order some slime on the internet. A few days later she gets the box and there is a warning label and instructions. Of course, she is so excited that she doesn't wait. She opens the box and then the fun starts happening. The author Judy Sierra used a lot of rhyming words and the words have a sense of flow and almost chant like appeal.
The reactions and feeling of the characters are accurately portrayed and the slime even has feelings. At one point in the story the slime explodes because she feeds it the ingredient of sugar. They make you really experience the sounds of what slime would make if this happened (words: Ka-flazz, Ka-flamm, ka-floo!)
This book also reminded me of cloudy with a chance of meatball where flint has to go into the tornado of food and spray a secret ingredient to make it stop raining food. Of course, both end with the main characters saving the day.
I would use this book for early elementary to upper elementary grades so k-4. I would read it before doing a science project and really stress the importance of working on things in increments so that you don't have to stress at the end. I would also tie in team work, how to safely search the internet if this is your mode of finding information. I might also tie in respect and making sure we value others opinions.
The reactions and feeling of the characters are accurately portrayed and the slime even has feelings. At one point in the story the slime explodes because she feeds it the ingredient of sugar. They make you really experience the sounds of what slime would make if this happened (words: Ka-flazz, Ka-flamm, ka-floo!)
This book also reminded me of cloudy with a chance of meatball where flint has to go into the tornado of food and spray a secret ingredient to make it stop raining food. Of course, both end with the main characters saving the day.
I would use this book for early elementary to upper elementary grades so k-4. I would read it before doing a science project and really stress the importance of working on things in increments so that you don't have to stress at the end. I would also tie in team work, how to safely search the internet if this is your mode of finding information. I might also tie in respect and making sure we value others opinions.
December 31, 2009
This hilarious, cautionary tale about a science project run amok opens with a 3rd grade girl who is morose about her inability to think of an interesting science fair idea that will measure up to her classmates’ ambitious plans (“The ants on Mary’s ant farm were growing corn and peas/And Kevin Fink was on the brink of curing a disease.”). Like many 21st century students, she turns to the Internet for a quick solution, but ends up getting much more than she bargained for. When Professor Swami’s Super Slime (“a science project guaranteed to win first prize”) arrives on her doorstep, the excited girl fails to read the warnings on the box and impulsively opens the lid. The mutant slime escapes, grows larger and larger, and manages to ingest a pet cat, a sister, a father, a teacher and numerous students in short order! Not to worry though – our young heroine finally remembers the directions. She gets the slime under control with a sugar fix and it finally disintegrates. The project doesn't win first prize, but happily everyone it ate emerges unscathed. The short, rhyming text in this book makes it ideal for a read-aloud and the whimsical, pastel-colored illustrations are engaging and fun. Children in grades 2-5 will delight in the images of the bubbling, colorful, out-of-control slime which evoke a tangible sense of goo and glop as they spatter across the pages. Even the words on the pages become increasingly disorganized as the slime expands and events spiral out of control. A wonderfully fun story which also teaches important lessons about reading directions and evaluating online sources carefully!
October 21, 2010
I'd bet my students would love this story because of it's rhythmic tune and colorful pictures and of course, the fact that the teacher is eaten by a huge green slime monster! I could hear them giggling about how silly the story is right now!
The story begins with an upset third grade girl complaining because she can't think of a unique science fair project that will win her first prize at school. So, that night she looks on the internet and orders one that guarantees her a first place prize. To her surprise, the science fair project erupted from the box and took on a life of its own. It began eating things, people, animals, and eventually the third grade student's science teacher. There is one way to tame the beast and she suddenly remembers how to do it. Read on to discover what happens to the devoured people, the big green slime, and the winner of the third grade science fair!
Like I mentioned earlier, first grade students would love this story as a read aloud. In fact, I think it could be appropriate for grades K-3. Kindergarteners could imagine the slime monster and third grade students could relate to the science fair. What a fun way to introduce a school science fair or what creative writing looks like? I also feel that this story is a great example of a trade book with strong vocabulary. Perhaps, using this book to teach about how to enhance "blah" vocabulary would be fun. There are such words as catapulted, splattered, and precisely all on one page! It's a fun read for an elementary class!
The story begins with an upset third grade girl complaining because she can't think of a unique science fair project that will win her first prize at school. So, that night she looks on the internet and orders one that guarantees her a first place prize. To her surprise, the science fair project erupted from the box and took on a life of its own. It began eating things, people, animals, and eventually the third grade student's science teacher. There is one way to tame the beast and she suddenly remembers how to do it. Read on to discover what happens to the devoured people, the big green slime, and the winner of the third grade science fair!
Like I mentioned earlier, first grade students would love this story as a read aloud. In fact, I think it could be appropriate for grades K-3. Kindergarteners could imagine the slime monster and third grade students could relate to the science fair. What a fun way to introduce a school science fair or what creative writing looks like? I also feel that this story is a great example of a trade book with strong vocabulary. Perhaps, using this book to teach about how to enhance "blah" vocabulary would be fun. There are such words as catapulted, splattered, and precisely all on one page! It's a fun read for an elementary class!
April 6, 2012
This book falls under the category under of fantasy science fiction and is for the age group of P. The author did not win any awards for this book. This book is about a young girl who doesn't know what to do for her science project so she decides to order a project online. Little does she know that this project will cause her a lot of problems. This book is not like most books, in that the text of this book went along with the story. For example if the girl was yelling the words in the book will be bold and large, like you as the reader was yelling along with the narrator. The pictures definitely added a touch to the story that made it more believable and even fed to the my imagination. The topic plot was nicely put together and easy to understand. There was also some rhyming going on which helped the story bring out the humor. I think the theme to think story was the importance of reading instructions, because if not things can get out of hand. If a class is going to start on a science project or even get into a science topic, I think this would be a good book to read to them.
June 8, 2007
My son has received a wonderful selection of books from his grandmother Judy. Her latest find is The Secret Science Project That Almost Ate the School by Judy Sierra and illustrated by Stephen Gammell. Through verse, Judy Sierra tells the classic story of hubris and nemesis, this time in the third grade.
The main character, afraid of losing in the science fair decides to cheat. In the quest for an easy win, she unleashes a green hungry blob who soon has devoured her cat, father, and class. Can she stop her monster before it is too late?
Gammell's illustrations bring to life to Sierra's humorous verse. The paintings are watercolors and the colors bleed together just as the monster oozes from scene to scene. It's the perfect blending of talents.
The main character, afraid of losing in the science fair decides to cheat. In the quest for an easy win, she unleashes a green hungry blob who soon has devoured her cat, father, and class. Can she stop her monster before it is too late?
Gammell's illustrations bring to life to Sierra's humorous verse. The paintings are watercolors and the colors bleed together just as the monster oozes from scene to scene. It's the perfect blending of talents.
August 28, 2013
In this hilarious and slime-filled homage to school science fairs, a girl orders a slime kit for her science fair project only to find that it has a taste for her cat, her sister, even an adult or two. The author uses rhyming text to heighten the interest and appeal of the story. Just about every elementary or middle grade school kid has imagined what might happen if the slime they concocted got out of control, and they will certainly laugh at the story and the appealing watercolor, colored pencil, and pastel illustrations. This one is a classic, and deservedly so.
February 2, 2009
A girl's secret science project is a blob of super slime that continues to grow and eat friends, family, and almost the entire school until the girl remembers to read the instructions. Very funny! This is written in rhyming text and simply begs to be read aloud. Stephen Gammell's illustrations match the story perfectly.
December 5, 2016
Procrastination is something many of us struggle with. In this story this little girl doesn't know what her science experiment should be, so naturally she orders one online. Little did she know this would turn into a huge problem. This story is written in a fun way that is easy to follow and teaches a great life lesson to any age.
April 25, 2022
It's time for the school science fair, and everyone has their projects ready except for one young girl. In order to keep up with the amazing projects around the classroom, she decides to order Professor Swami's Super Slime! On Friday morning, a box appears, dripping and oozing with lime green slime. When the girl opens the box and gives the slime a poke, it begins to grow and follows her all the way to school. The slime grows larger and larger eating everyone around. Will she be able to stop the slime before it devours the entire school?
This story is full of life and humor. The rhyming text suits the silly, playful tone of the book and lends itself well to younger audiences. The illustrator did a fantastic job of choosing these bright, almost neon, tones to detail the slime monster as it comes alive. This story was so much fun to read, and I think it would be a great book to read to a class before beginning their science fair projects. With a slime monster growing exponentially from page to page, there is no doubt that children will be fully entertained with this one!
This story is full of life and humor. The rhyming text suits the silly, playful tone of the book and lends itself well to younger audiences. The illustrator did a fantastic job of choosing these bright, almost neon, tones to detail the slime monster as it comes alive. This story was so much fun to read, and I think it would be a great book to read to a class before beginning their science fair projects. With a slime monster growing exponentially from page to page, there is no doubt that children will be fully entertained with this one!
November 23, 2022
It's time for the science fair, and the protagonist has no clue what to do for her science project, and is feeling the anxiety it all. She finds a project online guaranteed to be a winner, a Super Slime science project. Through rhyming verse, the science project takes on a life of its own and becomes bigger than life itself...a huge monstrosity of goop! It grows and grows swallowing up people from dads to teachers, until the kids start filling it with sugar, lots and lots of sugar. Ultimately, the project fails to win first prize, and there is a mess of a cleanup that must happen. Cute little story for young elementary students to curb the anxieties of the great science fair giant, and to help steer them to making sure they pick a project to work on without waiting until the last minute!
October 16, 2019
When the narrator of this book can't think of a good science fair project, she goes online and orders Professor Swami's Super Slime. Although it arrives in time for the fair, the narrator doesn't follow the feeding instructions and the slime escapes its enclosure and starts devouring everything in its path. By the time she remembers what to do, the slime has already consumed her cat, her sister, her teacher, and most of her classmates. Will she be able to save them? Funny and gross (a good combination)!
August 9, 2018
What fun it is to read a book with precise word choice of remarkable and appropriately diverse descriptive language about a science fair project gone awry! Third grade teachers will certainly encourage budding scientists with this very funny picture book. The illustrations by Stephen Gammell are perfectly in tune with the flow of the story and the students who choose this book will likely try their hand at illustrations of slime in all its glory.
June 27, 2017
My family enjoyed this book from the local library so much, we read it twice in a row. And it was one of those books I didn't mind reading again. It was fun for everyone. Even my son was focused on it more than he is for most other books we read. Perhaps it helped a bit that I used different voices, motions, and sound effects.
April 25, 2018
DRA Level: ~34
Lexile: 625
Applicable Traits: sentence fluency, word choice, and presentation
This books reading levels were hard to hard so I had to guess from the age group scholastic gave me of 1-2 grade and 3-5 grade. This book is super fun to read to kids that would be perfect to get them excited about an upcoming science project.
Lexile: 625
Applicable Traits: sentence fluency, word choice, and presentation
This books reading levels were hard to hard so I had to guess from the age group scholastic gave me of 1-2 grade and 3-5 grade. This book is super fun to read to kids that would be perfect to get them excited about an upcoming science project.
November 29, 2018
I really like this book because the illustrations are amazing and are very unique. This book was also very funny and had amazing rhymes. I think this book is a great way to introduce different science topics or art projects throughout the year and it is just a really fun read. This book is modern fantasy and is in the 1st-4th grade range
February 23, 2021
Oh my! This was just too, too fun! The script is rather rhythmic and rhyming while telling a funny story of how a science project got out of control. Perfect for parents and grandparents to read to their little ones, but actually, the whole family will have a hoot! And the illustrations are perfect! I highly recommend the book.
August 5, 2020
I really enjoyed the pictures and cute rhymes in this book about a science fair project gone rogue. My daughter said that she thought the story wasn’t that exciting, and I agree that it was somewhat predictable.
June 17, 2017
Wonderful colors and creative writing. It is definitely one for 2nd and up based on some of the words and content mentioned. Great book!
June 17, 2017
Mutant slime just has a sugar craving! Fun, rollicking story about mutant slime ingesting lots of people until its sweet tooth is catered to.
May 9, 2018
This would be a good book for a elementary school read aloud. I like the rhyming and the cute story.
June 4, 2019
Cute, creative, lyrical, amazing illustrations!
September 26, 2019
This would be a great book to read at a school-aged slime making program.
October 16, 2019
Great rhyme! Gorgeous art! Love it!
November 18, 2019
The Secret Science Project That Almost Ate The School by Judy Sierra: This is a great rhyming book about and unique things begin to happen. This would be fun in introducing what a science fair is.
November 20, 2019
Published in 2008.
This book is icky and goofy. It’s a race to see whether or not the slime can be stopped!! I would love to read this book to my students as a read aloud.
This book is icky and goofy. It’s a race to see whether or not the slime can be stopped!! I would love to read this book to my students as a read aloud.
February 10, 2020
My 4 year old kids thought it was very funny..
Displaying 1 - 30 of 97 reviews