Description and History
D.E.A.R. stands for "Drop Everything and Read," a national celebration of reading designed to remind families to make reading a priority activity in their lives. This day is celebrated every year on April 12th for author Beverly Cleary’s birthday. D.E.A.R. time was a reading practice featured in the Ramona books.
Sponsor(s)
D.E.A.R. is sponsored by the National Education Association (NEA); Parent Teacher Association (PTA); Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC); Reading Rockets; The General Federation of Women’s Clubs (GFWC); the American Press Institute; First Book; HarperCollins Children’s Books; Read Kiddo Read; Walden Media and Ramona Quimby
Professional Learning Resources
While a D.E.A.R. experience can be planned with a heart of celebration and joy, it is also important for educators to critically look at independent reading practices in their schools. Frequent and unsupported D.E.A.R. time can be problematic for many readers. This post from High Five Literacy summarizes the issues.
The short text No More Independent Reading Without Support by Debbie Miller and Barbara Moss is an excellent read about reading conferences and supporting readers during ‘silent’ reading time.
Reading conferencing or conferring is an important part of any independent reading time. A Teacher’s Guide to Reading Conferences by Jennifer Serravallo is a practical guide for classroom implementation. Want something shorter? Read this blog post by Serravallo at MiddleWeb, Effective 5-7 Minute Reading Conferences or watch a demonstration of compliment conferences.
Resurrecting Drop Everything And Read from Knowledge Quest explores a beloved tradition in with new twists. Hannah Byrd Little shares current research about the literacy and mental health benefits of reading as well as practices she has implemented in her school to encourage reading culture.
Learner Engagement Resources
Reading Rockets embraces a Ramona Quimby theme with this list of resources including journaling, character analysis, writing prompts, and more.
NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English) gives a few ideas of how to celebrate D.E.A.R.