My Dog Ate My Homework

by Bruce Lansky

Here is the reissue of Bruce Lansky's Poetry Party , now with a completely new title and cover. This book has more smiles, chuckles, giggles, and guffaws than any other book of poetry previously written by a single author (except If Pigs Could Fly ). It is a great collection of poetry on subjects kids find hilarious.

Genres: Poetry, Childrens, Picture Books

96 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

I was born on June 1, 1941. My first home was an apartment in Manhattan's Upper West Side, a neighborhood that overlooked the George Washington Bridge. Soon after kindergarten, my family moved to Scarsdale, which seemed to be “in the country.” In high school, I broke my ankle when I went out for the lacrosse team, so I wrote a sports column for the school newspaper. I don't think I showed any particular talent for writing then.

I went to St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland. I actually learned to read Greek (I didn't understand it, though). I transferred from St. John's to New York University, so I could study political science and economics. I graduated with a major in philosophy and a minor in English. My first job was a market researcher for a beer company in New Jersey. Over the next five years, I switched jobs several times: advertising copywriter, advertising account executive, and marketing manager at a candy company.

I married Vicki and we had a baby, Douglas. I wanted him to have a home surrounded by grass and trees and ball fields, so I accepted a job in Minnesota, and Doug got a baby sister, Dana. What rescued me from poverty was that my wife and some other mothers wrote a cookbook. We published it ourselves, and it was a huge hit. That's how I figured out that I wanted to be a publisher when I grew up. We built Meadowbrook Press, and I became an author of baby name books and humor books for adults.

Ten years ago, I wanted to put together a children's book of all the poems they loved best. To find these poems, I tested poems in elementary schools. As I was testing poems on children, I decided to write a few to see what the response would be. At first it wasn't that good, but as my writing improved, I added my poems to new books. To get them just right, I'd rewrite them over and over. I've now edited six poetry anthologies and filled three books with my own poems. Because I spent a lot of time reading and testing poems in classrooms, schools started inviting me to perform. I've now performed at hundreds of schools. My goal to put on the most entertaining, most educational, and most motivating assembly a school has ever had. My web site, http://www.gigglepoetry.com, helps kids discover the fun of reading and writing poetry.

Language arts are a very important part of what you learn in school. You can read great books that take you to far-away lands. You can write your own stories and make yourself the hero of exciting adventures. Even if it seems hard sometimes, don't give up. Keep practicing your reading and writing skills, and soon it will become easier. There are so many wonderful worlds to explore in books and poetry. Get your very own passport by learning to read and write the very best that you can.

Reviews

[Christopher Syers · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the realm of children's poetry, few authors capture the whimsical essence of youth as profoundly as Bruce Lansky. His latest collection, "My Dog Ate My Homework," is a testament to his unparalleled ability to blend simplicity with profundity. Each poem is a delicate dance of words, weaving together fantastical imagery with underlying themes that resonate deeply with readers of all ages.

Lansky's mastery lies in his ability to connect with the child within us all, using playful language and imaginative scenarios to explore complex emotions and ideas. From the humorous to the poignant, his verses invite readers to embark on a journey of self-discovery and reflection. The accompanying illustrations, equally enchanting, serve to enhance the narrative, making each page a visual and intellectual delight.

"My Dog Ate My Homework" is not merely a collection of poems; it is an exploration of the human experience through the innocent and curious eyes of a child. Lansky’s work continues to inspire and enchant, reminding us of the beauty and wonder that lies in the world around us. This book is a must-read for anyone seeking to reconnect with the magic of poetry and the boundless possibilities of the imagination.

[N_Allie l · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot say enough good things about this poetry book! I have been using the poems in this book since my first year of teaching and the kids continue to love these timeless poems.

Author Bruce Lansky has a way with words that will keep your students engaged and wanting to hear more! Here is a sample of what's inside this book.

My Dog Is Too Friendly
My dog is very friendly,
but he sometimes gets excited-
especially wen we've been apart
and then are reunited.

He puts his paws up on my waist,
the barks and gives a push.
I tumble over backwards
and I land right on my tush.

My dog feels very sorry
and he licks me without fail.
He licks my ears and cheeks and nose,
then wags his little tail.

I hate it when he licks me,
but I do not have much hope.
His breath smells like a garbage dump.
He should be using Scope.

With every sing-songy poems, you'll students will be laughing aloud! I use these poems with my second raders in a variety of ways. I love to put these poems on the document camera so my students and I can read the poem together. After reading the poem aloud a few times and having a brief classroom discussion, I pair the students off and they go on a "poetry hunt". I have created worksheets that go along with my favorite poems in this book. The students then get their own copy of the poem (which they keep in their poetry folders) and fill out the worksheet with their partner.
I highly recommend this book!

[Awilma Acosta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply the best!!!
I love the poem called "my teacher sees through me"!
It rweminds me of my teacher in 6th grade. He had connections with my mother to hwelp me get better in math. I was so funny. M mother would always tell him what I was doing and I would always get in trouble in school. One day, my friend asked me if he was my dad. I told him he was not. She suddently smiled and gave me a book called "my dog ate my homework", by bruce lansky. Shje immediately showed me the poem and became my friend. I was very weard how the book said the same things as my teacher. I was "the teacher's pet" right after that day. Just like the other poem. I was so akward. I love this poem. I give it 1000 stars@!!!!=]=D

[Ana DeLoreto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Students will instantly be engaged in poetry after reading some of Lansky's poems. Readers will develop many connections between their own lives and the characters in the poems. Not only will they be encouraged to read more poems, but they will also be left smiling and laughing after each poem read aloud. It would be a perfect introduction of poetry for students.

[Madison Persinger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bruce Lansky, the "King of Giggle Poetry" never disappoints. His work always puts me in a better mood and never fails to make me smile. He is a hilarious writer for both kids and adults. I think that his work can be utilized in many ways in and outside of the classroom.

[Amanda Hughes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love these poems! Great book to introduce to children on the beginning of the school year. I love the humor and could use this to introduce poetry to students.

[Kayla MacMillan · Rating 4 out of 5]

My eight year old son loved this poetry book, and he finished it in one day .

[Henna Patel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary: My Dog Ate My Homework is wonderful collection of poems by Bruce Lansky. The poems describe different situations that a child might go through. Some poems describe how to do funny things such as delay your bedtime. Some poems describes imaginative scenes of what teachers might do when they are out of school. The poems express a wide variety of topics between family, teachers, homework and how-to do things.

Response: I loved this book. Reading all the poems I didn't know what to expect next. The situations described in each poem were different from all of the other poems. Some poems were extremely funny I couldn't help laughing out loud. The author really seemed to create a connection with children through these poems. The poems have a connection to a child's everyday life with a mix of imagination. I really enjoyed this book because it was just an amazingly fun book to read. I know that everyone would love this. I would definitely like to share this book with my students.I believe in making learning fun for everyone. If you enjoy what you are doing you will never forget it. I would like to use as much fun materials as I can in everything that I teach. I feel this way because of my experience through grade school. I remember every fun part of my school days. I'm sure my students will always remember what I teach if I have their attention. Therefore this book is definitely going to be a part of my lesson plans in the future.

Classroom Connections: This book is very entertaining for children as it exposes them to good poetry. I would create a language arts lesson plan after students have been familiarized with what poems are. I would read the book to my students as a group. I would ask them questions to keep their attention. I would want to make sure students are engaged in the poems. Students will be asked to guess what they think might happen next to help them imagine. Through this book students will learn how to create poems of their own. This book is great to use because the silly poems will engage students and make them feel excited to create a funny poems of their own. Poems don't always have to rhyme in every sentence as shown in this book. I feel students have more freedom to write without being so pressured because they have to rhyme words in every sentence. If students have less anxiety and stress they are able to do better which is important for them so they can freely express themselves through writing.

Text Complexity: According scholastic.com/ book wizard the grade level equivalent is 4.1 and interest level is grades 3-5 which is perfect for me because those are the grade levels I would prefer to teach. After researching both given websites recommended, I found that the lexile measure is not available. There is also no suggested rating for guided reading. I believe this book would be appropriate for any grade levels first grade and above. This book can be enjoyed by many grade level students. Although the lesson plans constructed would vary for each grade level.

[Nadia Gonzalez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary: My Dog Ate My Homework: A Collection of Funny Poems by Bruce Lansky is a book that tells the everyday situations a child may get into. Based on the cover one may think this book is solely about a dog eating homework but it covers many situations from how to delay your bedtime to confessions from an unlikely character . Lansky focuses on actual situations in a child life and puts a hilarious spin on it. This books includes silly poems about school, family, friends, doctors. The illustrations allow the reader to visualize the poems and connect to the comical elements of the poems.

Response: I found myself drawn to this particular book because of the title My Dog Ate My Homework. The title instantaneously took me back to my elementary years and reminded me of the times I used that excuse that my dog ate my homework. At first look I thought the poems were going to focus on the title of the book, but after reading the the first few poems my thoughts changed. After reading the first few poems I had to continue reading. I found that Lansky used many situations that many children can relate to. Lansky takes situations that we may find awkward and turns them into a funny situation. I agree with the many reviews I have read that said the poems brought many smiles and laugh out loud giggles.

Classroom Connection: My Dog Ate My Homework is a great book that can help introduce poems to children. A lesson plan can be created that will make children excited to write and read poems. The English/language lesson will incorporate the book to teach the many components of a poem such as story, rhythm, rhyme, mood, emotion, and content. The lesson will by explaining the components of poems. The book will then be introduced and some poems will be read to the class. As the poems are read out loud to the class The class will be engaged by asking what they feel the moods or emotions are. The class will also be engaged by asking how they might relate to the poem. After a few or so poems have been read the class will be asked to write a poem of their own. Students will gain a better knowledge about the elements of poems which will help with other forms of writing.

Text Complexity : Scholastic.com/book wizard stated that the grade level equivalency is 4.1 and the interest level is grade 3-5. After researching the given websites I found that Lexile measure is not available. There was no suggested rating for guided reading. I believe that this books is appropriate for read aloud K+ and for independent reading by the end of third grade.

[Relyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bruce Lansky is a funny poet. That is always a good way to catch reluctant poetry readers.

Lesson Connections
Each February we have a big poetry unit in my classroom. One of the things we do is a Poetry Scavenger Hunt. We have at least 50 poetry books on display in the room and I begin the unit by book talking each book briefly. This takes me at least a week because I read a poem from each book. Then, the kids choose what appeals to them. They can read anything they want in any fashion they wish. The only rule is to read and enjoy poetry. Eventually, I begin each session with a mini-lesson on rhythm, rhyme, alliteration, etc. Then, the students begin choosing poems with examples of each poetry topic we have covered. At the end of each session students can share a poem that they love and have rehearsed reading aloud. This is just a short review of all we do, but it is a powerful, powerful time in our classroom.

[Jenny Yeager · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading this poetry book because each poem was so funny and I could immediately tell that children would enjoy these poems. The poem I want to specifically review is "School Rules." This poem does an excellent job of describing common rules in a classroom. Also, this poem will attract any students attention because of the humor that is used. I could see myself reading this poem to students in my future classroom because it conveys important school rules in a lighthearted way. This poem would lead into an excellent discussion about other school rules that my students think are important. As a class, my students could come up with other lines to add to the poem.

[Guiying · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like this book because I like to reads poetry. Also the poem in this book is funny. Some of the poem it talk about the the that is not real and it won't happen. I felt relax when I read this book because the poem is funny it made me laugh all the time. I wish that there's a book almost same to this book because I really like to read funny poem.

[Shaunak]

These excusses for class homework not being done is really hilarious, and sometimes they might actually work with the teacher ( If he/she is a little dumb in the brain ). But still the fact remains, Bruce Lansky still has the hilarious touch that most people say that he has lost. Yes a few of jokes or so might be lame but still what do you expect from and author from like the 80's or 90's.

[Jock Zollinger]

This poetry book uses many different poetry. Some of the topics of the poems were parents, brothers and sisters, pets, and school. If you like poetry then you will like this book. I would rate this 3 stars because i like poetry, but it was really short.

[Jonah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was funny at times but the stanzas were really short. I like most poetry by Bruce Lansky.
I highly suggest trying some of Bruce Lansky's poetry books. This book had different categories of different poems. Also if you don't like poetry then try poetry books because their short.

[Sierra & Shannon Vetetoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

not everything has 2 match

[Jeffrey Ellsworth]

All the poems are a lot of fun. It is not an overwhelming collection of poems and each poem is very short. The poems are all very cute and humorous directed towards children.

[Tommyliboy · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book

[Tierra Garr · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Bruce Lansky's poems! They keep my children entertained, and they always lead to conversations about how they can relate.