STORYWRAPS

D.E.A.R. Friend, I put D.E.A.R. in all capital letters on purpose to get your attention. This Web site is about National Drop Everything and Read Day. D.E.A.R. stands for Drop Everything and Read—get it? I got it ever since I was eight and we started having D.E.A.R. time at my school. D.E.A.R. is a lot of fun and because I know so much about it, librarians [Association for Library Service to Children], teachers [National Education Association], parents [Parent Teacher Association], journalists [Newspaper Association of America Foundation], some people who make books [HarperCollins Children’s Books], and some people who give books [First Book] have asked me—Ramona Geraldine Quimby—to be in charge of telling everyone about National Drop Everything and Read Day on April 12th. April 12th will be a busy day for me since that is also Beverly Cleary’s birthday, but I always can find time to read. I am going to tell everyone in my family to Drop Everything and Read on April 12th. We can do it right at home or to make the day more special, maybe go to the library or a bookstore. I hope that you, D.E.A.R. friend, will be reading too. Everybody can do it! All you need is a book, your family and 30 minutes together. Sincerely, Ramona Q. Beverly Cleary never gets outdated. All her books are the top notch and have been read by thousands of kids. If you are not acquainted with this author you will be delighted with her books. I used to run D.E.A.R. in my school. Everyone would stop what they were doing for 20 minutes a day and read what they wanted. Even our custodian stopped and joined in the reading fun. You can fit D.E.A.R. time into your family's busy schedule. Everyone gets a book, everyone parks themselves, everyone reads. Do it for 15 minutes a day, make it a special, fun time and when it's over get on with what you were doing before. It is a win-win reading experience. Have a blessed weekend and read on.