DEAR: Finding Time to Read

Drop Everything and Read Time in the Primary Classroom

Feb 7, 2007

Do you DEAR in your classroom? Drop everything and read is a great way to keep kids reading...

Drop Everything and Read is a not-so-new movement in elementary school that promotes reading and reading for fun. Do you DEAR in your primary classroom?

Here’s how it works. At any given time during the day, the teacher will say “Drop Everything and Read” and the students do just that. They drop whatever they are working on, pick up their favorite book, curl up in the book corner and just read for a given amount of time. Teachers, parents, classroom aides, even the principal do it too – whoever is in the classroom when DEAR is called needs to Drop Everything and Read.

Advantages

What are the advantages of doing DEAR in your classroom each day? Allowing children time to “just read” has many benefits and has been studied in many classrooms around the country.

Some of the advantages are:

DEAR gives children the opportunity to read books of their own choice. So much of what we do in school involved books and reading material selected by the teacher. DEAR time lets children pick whatever reading material they want to just enjoy.
DEAR allows children to see that reading for fun and pleasure is a valuable experience. If the teacher sets aside time for it, and if everyone in the classroom does it – it must be a valuable way to spend some time.
DEAR can help develop better writing skills. The more children read, the more they are exposed to the written word – and that will lead to better reading and writing skills.

Getting started

Starting a DEAR program in your classroom (also called SSR – Sustained Silent Reading) is simple. Explain how it works, provide great books and cozy places to read, and just say “DEAR time” and let everyone begin. You as the teacher must also read – don’t be tempted to use DEAR time for correcting papers of that last minute lesson plan!

Be Like Ramona

You might want to set the stage for your DEAR program by reading parts of Beverly Cleary’s Ramona Quimby, Age 8 to your class. When Beverly Cleary received letters from her readers talking about their DEAR experiences, she incorporated that experience into her story and gave Ramona the SSR experience, too.

DEAR Day

You can even have your students take part in National DEAR day on April 12. Visit the National DEAR Day site for details.

DEAR at Home

Once your students are in the DEAR habit, encourage them to have DEAR time at home, too. Enlist parents help and cooperation and soon everyone will be reading and enjoying a DEAR celebration.