My Dog is as Smelly as Dirty Socks by Hanoch Piven

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Piven, H. (2007). My dog is as smelly as dirty socks and other funny family portraits. Random House.

A girl is given an assignment to draw a picture of her family, but she is not quite satisfied with it.  She uses similes to better illustrate them and found objects to create a more complete picture. 

Kirkus Reviews

Library/Classroom Use:  This book, and a sister title by the same author, My Best Friend is as Sharp as a Pencil, can be the exemplar for a collaborative unit between art and ELA. Students can use found objects to create self-portraits, family or friend portraits based on the similes that they write.  The books is also an example of the creative process as the narrator continues to add and edit her work.  The library could also provide this activity in a maker space as an extension.  Additional cross-curricular ideas can be found here.

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