This year, Godwin, along with other Henrico schools, is participating in Drop Everything and Read, otherwise known as D.E.A.R. The program encourages students and teachers to put aside other schoolwork and activities and focus on a good book.

But is it working for the students?

“I think it is helping. Students tend to relax in that time period which helps them to concentrate better later in class, and there’s a lot of research saying that when students are allowed to read whatever they like, they improve their vocabulary and do better in school,” said Godwin Librarian Brooke Davis.

“It’s the most amazing program ever and we should have it every single day,” said Freshman Annette Williams, agreeing with Davis.

The D.E.A.R. program is designed for students to recognize the fun in reading. As high school students with hectic schedules, some students find it difficult to find time to read for their own enjoyment. With the D.E.A.R. program, the county hopes to solve this problem.

“I think that the D.E.A.R. program puts reading back in the focus of the students since some of them have forgotten how much fun and pleasure they can get from reading,” said Davis.

Originally, the D.E.A.R. program was set to take place on Fridays during lunch studies, but due to numerous complaints from students, administration decided to try something new. Now D.E.A.R. takes place during homeroom, which occurs after third period.

Also, D.E.A.R. program has a logging system on Schoology for students to write down what they read and how many pages they read during the allotted time.  Godwin gets county-wide credit for the hours it logs.

Currently, there is a competition going on between Henrico schools. As students log their reading hours, Godwin receives a certain number of points.

“I think it’d be kind of nice in the long run for students to keep record of their reading,” said Davis.

Along with the logging system, there is a book exchange for the students of Godwin. In addition to the 10,000 books that the library provides, there are communities who have donated books to be given to students when it’s time to read.

With the start of D.E.A.R. program, there is hope of increased reading among the student body.

“I hope that more students that more students will be encouraged to read outside of school because it is a really fun thing to do,” said Davis.