Holiday & School Celebration

Today is D.E.A.R. Day!

Date
April 12
Calendar Activity Type
Holiday & School Celebration

Event Description

April 12 is known as D.E.A.R Day! D.E.A.R. stands for "Drop Everything and Read," a national month-long celebration of reading designed to remind folks of all ages to make reading a priority activity in their lives. It is also Beverly Cleary’s birthday! D.E.A.R. programs have been held nationwide on April 12th in honor of Beverly Cleary’s birthday, since she first wrote about D.E.A.R. in Ramona Quimby, Age 8.

Classroom Activity

Today is the birthday of author Beverly Cleary, who brought to life the characters of Ramona and older sister Beezus. On this day, D.E.A.R Day, families are encouraged to take at least 30 minutes to put aside all distractions and enjoy books together. Get together with other readers, find someone to read to, or even just read alone. Here are some additional ideas:

Family Read Aloud

With this tip, learn a few simple read-aloud strategies that can sharpen a child's emerging reading skills and help you have fun together with a good book.

Journaling

This lesson encourages children to explore authentic reasons for writing by writing messages to their family in a family message journal.

Retell Stories

Tell me about it in your own words! If students can paraphrase the information they have read, then you—and they—can be confident that they understand it.

Drop Everything!

Don’t think that means that the celebration is only allowed during this month, though. It’s encouraged all year long!

Websites

This website has reading lists, activity ideas, digital assets, and other resources on D.E.A.R.

Reading Rockets shares resources about Beverly Cleary and D.E.A.R.

Drop Everything and Read suggestions from the International Literacy Association

Related Resources