Colby Sharp
⭐️driven by gratitude⭐️Husband 👫 Dad 👦👧👧👦👦 Teacher 👔 Reader 📚 Runner 🏃 Writer ✏️ Nerd 🤓 VOTE! #NerdyBookClub | views expressed are mine
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Articles by Colby Sharp
The Sharp-Schu 2027 Mock Caldecott List
For more than a decade my friend John Schu and I have released our Mock Caldecott list at the beginning of November. I am so excited to share the list with you today. You can find the complete list on Mr. Schu’s website by clicking on the image below. John has recently joined Substack, so be sure to subscribe to his newsletter here. At the end of each month, I make a video where I share some of the read alouds we did in our fifth grade classroom.
there is nothing like a Wimpy Kid release
This past week a new book came out in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. The entire release, day one of my students asked me at least 20 times if we had received any copies yet. He went on tell me that he has memorized every page of every Diary of a Wimpy Kid book, and that is why he should be the first kid to read the new one. At the end of the day, my students and I were gathered on the carpet for our end of the day picture book read aloud. We hear a knock at the door.
finding our next favorite author
My students entered fifth grade obsessed with Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Dog Man, and The Babysitters Club graphic novels. Can you blame them? Those books are awesome! As we inch closer to being a quarter of the way through the school year, it has been fun watching them fall in love with creators that are new to them. On the second day of the school year I r…
Rhode Montijo – SKULLY’S BEST DÍA EVER
October 19, 2026 by Colby Sharp Leave a Comment COLBY: I have been a BIG fan of Rhode’s work for a while now, so when we agreed to an interview for The Yarn, I got very excited. I hope you enjoy listening to our conversation about his new book Skully’s Best Día Ever.
helping kids find their new favorite book
One of my fifth graders fell in love with Aron Steinke’s Mr. Wolf’s Class series at the beginning of the school year. He flew through the entire series, becoming a bigger and bigger fan with each book. When he finished the series he asked me if I had any recommendations for him to read next. I quickly put together a book stack filled with books that I though he might love, and gave 10-15 minute book talks of each title.
missing last year’s students
Does anyone else find themselves missing your students from last year a whole heck of a lot at the beginning of a new school year? I am loving my new kiddos, but I am also really missing my readers from last year. When the new Sashimi book came out a couple of weeks ago, I couldn’t help but think about how the first book took over my classroom last year, and how excited those kiddos would be to read book two.
the only book I read in middle school
After consuming all sorts of book in elementary school through my own reading and classroom read alouds, I REALLY struggled with all of the assigned books in middle school. I had every intention of reading them, but it never worked out. I start the book, and then quickly abandon it. I rarely missed school, and I figured out how to just pay attention enough to the classroom discussions, to get the B in class that my parents hoped for. The one book that I did read was Lois Lowry’s The Giver.
Lois Lowry Visits The Yarn
COLBY: It is not every day that you get to interview someone as legendary at Lois Lowry. During the American Library Association’s Annual Conference in June, I got a chance to sit down and chat with her about her new book Building 903. I hope you enjoy our conversation.
the things they remember
My wife teaches a high school class called Introduction to K-12 Education. A large part of the class is her students spending time helping out in classrooms. This semester I have two former students that are taking the class that will be volunteering in my classroom. One of the students had in class had her first placement last Thursday. It was so much fun having her back in my classroom, and it was awesome to see her jump right in and help out a group of students with their writing.
the books we’re reading to start the year
One of my favorite things about the start of a new school year is getting to know my new students, and one of the my favorite ways to get to know them is through the books and book creators that they love. It is interesting to see the kids that pick up a book when they have an extra few minutes, and the kids that avoid reading at all costs. I love hearing about their favorite read alouds from previous years, and they love to learn about through nonfiction books.
Our First Ten Picture Book Read Alouds
There is something extra magical about the beginning of the year read alouds. Getting to know a new group of kids through beautiful books brings me so much joy. I love everything about it. Even watching where they choose to sit on the carpet is fascinating. You can learn so much about kids by just paying attention. One of my favorite videos to make each year is the one where I talk about the first ten picture books I read aloud to my students to start the year.
The first week of the school year
I totally forgot how much fun it is to meet new students and their families. The first week of the school year was more fun and more exhausting than I remembered. Our first two days of the week were filled with a whole lot of meetings. I’m not really all that into meetings but it was great to reconnect with my school friends. sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Rex Ogle on His New Book Absent
COLBY: During the American Library Association Annual Conference in June, I got a chance to hear Rex Ogle talk about his new book Absent. It was captivating. As soon as I got home, I scheduled an interview with him for The Yarn. I hope you enjoy our conversation, and I hope you check out his new book Absent.
I’m never ready, but I’m always excited
Going back to school is always exciting for me, but I don’t think that I am ever ready. The transition from summer mode to school mode is a huge shock to the system that I don’t think I’ll ever get used to. On Saturday afternoon, I finally was able to get some work done in my classroom. It was a cool rainy day, and it actually felt kind of nice to be putzing around at school. Setting up my classroom this year took me less time than it has taken me in the past.
I cannot wait to read these books to my new students
I am about a week away from my first day of school! I’ve been to school a few times to “work on my room”. It hasn’t gone very well. Pretty much all of the time I have been at school, I’ve just hung out and talked to my colleagues. Not very efficient, but it has been really fun checking in on friends. Yesterday, before I left to coach a youth football practice, I spent some time looking over my picture books. It is a lot of fun to each year to get a new group of kiddos to share great books with.
Selecting our first read aloud of the school year
I love reading aloud to my students, so selecting the first read aloud of the school year brings me a whole lot of joy. This year’s selection is one that I have read aloud to my students in the past, but I have never read it to kick off the school year. I hope you enjoy this video where I share my thoughts around the selection.
My 100 favorite books of 2026 (so far)
Holy smokes! My list AWESOME 2026 BOOKS now has 100 books on it. How fun is that? I thought it would be fun to share a paragraph on ten of my favs! Navigating Night by Julie Leung and Felisha Wong is one of those books that really knocks your socks off. As soon as you finish it, you go back to the beginning and read it again. I think this books is destined to win a whole bunch of awards. sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication.
there will be long stretches that suck...and that is fine
Last month in Chicago I got a chance to sit down with Newbery Honor winning author Chanel Miller to talk about her new book The Moon Without Stars. I recorded the conversation for The Yarn podcast. When Travis Jonker and I started The Yarn we had a strict policy of only conducting interviews in person. That rule only lasted a couple of years, and it has been pretty much abandoned since the pandemic.
Chanel Miller-The Moons Without Stars-unraveled
COLBY: I had the BEST time interviewing Chanel Miller about her latest book The Moon Without Stars. Most of my interviews the last six years have been conducted virtually since COVID, so it was really nice to be able to sit across a table from Chanel for our conversation. I felt like it provided a great energy for the conversation.
dog days of summer
I’m sure the “dogs of summer” has a different meaning for educators than it does for others. For most of my teaching career it means hanging out with my kids, driving them places, spending time with my wife, and reading lots and lots of books. Over the weekend, I ran into some old friends that I hadn’t seen in a while. One of the friends works in a shop that I used to work at during the summer.
i want to be a part of something great
I just finished watching the final series of the television show The Bear. Throughout the five seasons I have often felt like I didn’t really like the show, but at the same time I loved every second of it. The Bear is a show about a group of people trying to be a part of something bigger than themselves. The characters are unique, weird, and rough around the edges. You wouldn’t think that this collection of people could build something special. Something that mattered.
On My Way to ALA!
For the first time since before the pandemic I am heading to a national conference. I’ve been to a whole bunch of local and state conferences, but this is the first time I have been back to one of the mega national events. For the next few days I’ll be in Chicago attending the American Library Association’s Annual Conference.
I've been reading...a lot
The first two weeks of summer break have been filled with a beach vacation and a whole lot of reading. Our first week of break was spent at the Atlantic Ocean. It was so nice hanging out with the fam on the beach, reading lots of pages, and walking to dinner each night. sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Their 5 Favorite Picture Book Read Alouds
I read my fifth graders close to 200 books during our time together. After a few rounds of voting, they settled on these five books as their favorites. I was not expecting to see Bill Thomson’s Chalk make the list, but it really captured this year’s students’ hearts and imaginations. We read Don’t Trust Fish early in the school year. It is cool to see a book read within the first ten days of the school year end up as a favorite.
N. West Moss Visits The Yarn to Talk Birdy
COLBY: For the latest episode of The Yarn I got a chance to chat with debut middle grade author N. West Moss about her book Birdy. Her joy and excitement about entering the world of middle grade warmed my soul.
Selecting Their Favorite Picture Book Read Alouds of the School Year
We end every day in our fifth grade classroom with a picture book read aloud. Every. Single. Day. sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Over the course of the school year we have had a lot of fun gathering on the rug at the end of each day with a book. It feels like the perfect way to put a bow on each school day.
where did the year go?
At times, this has felt like the longest school year of my teaching career. Having to move our entire school to a new building, while merging with two other schools, in the middle of the school year, was wild. But somehow we did it. sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. It hasn’t been the smoothest of rides.
am i a monster? šæ š¤
At the end of the day on Thursday I couldnāt decide which picture book I wanted to read my fifth graders. Earlier in the week, I checked out a couple of Peter Brown picture books from our school library: Children Make Terrible Pets and My Teacher is a Monster. I decided to let the kids choose. At the end of the day, I called them to the carpet for our traditional end of day picture book read aloud. I then told them that they would help me decide which Peter Brown book to read them.
the moment we all teach reading for
I have this kid in my class that schools would call a great reader, but he hasn’t ever really seen himself as a reader. Until he read an Alan Gratz book. sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Then he read another Alan Gratz book. And another. The last few weeks he has been reading Alan’s book Ground Zero: A Novel of 9/11. The book is told through the lens of two kids.
is Sashimi the next great graphic novel series?
We were lucky enough to get an advanced copy of Dan Santat’s new graphic novel A Fishboy Named Sashimi. The amount of excitement over this book is off the chart. The kids quickly passed it around the room, and a handful of them have already read it multiple times. This book is a sure fire hit. No doubt about it. One of the most excited things about Sashimi’s recent release, is that kids are not going to have to wait long for book 2. Sashimi and the Field Trip of Doom drops September 15.
a very special package
When we came back from spring break last week, I found a package sitting by my school mailbox. I was shocked to open it and find 28 signed copies of Jasmine Warga’s The Unlikely Tale of Chase & Finnegan inside. Chase & Finnegan was our most recent whole class read aloud, and my students fell hard for this magical read aloud. They were captivated from cover to cover. I think it might be the next great read aloud. Right up there with books like The One and Only Ivan, The Wild Robot, and Wonder.
adding books to my classroom library
Heading back to school after a very relaxing spring break isn’t the easiest thing to do. We have seven long weeks before Memorial Day that include a pretty intense stretch of state testing. HERE WE GO! Thankfully, I get to add a bunch of awesome books to my classroom library when we go back. Throughout the year, my students have been sharing titles that we need to add to our collection. Sometimes I purchase the books immediately, and sometimes they get added to my Bookelicous Fill My Shelf Wishlist.
the next great read aloud?
Last week, we finished our read aloud of Jasmine Warga’s The Unlikely Tale of Chase & Finnegan. When I read the book a couple of months ago, I was curious about its read aloud potential. I had no idea it would be such a home run.
i've been reading...a lot
My reading life at the beginning of 2026 was rough. Moving schools at the end of January was pretty exhausting, so I found myself passing out most night before I finished more than a couple of pages. A switch flipped a few weeks ago, and I have been reading a ton. More than once, I have found myself reading more than 100 pages before falling asleep. Part of it is the fact that I am starting to settle into our new school, and part of it is the books I have been reading.
another magical read aloud moment
Reading aloud a book for the first time to children for the first time is a fascinating experience. When I read Jasmine Warga’s The Unlikely Tale of Chase & Finnegan, I knew that I had to read it aloud to my fifth graders. I am so glad that I made that choice. We are about 2/3 done, and the kids are LOVING it. (small spoilers coming) sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
when Mr. John Schu visits your school
Last week author John Schu spent a day at my school. It was our first author visit in our new building, and it was a day that a lot of us will never forget. sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. There are a lot of wonderful things about a John Schu author visit, but the thing that I find most beautiful is how well he is able to make a kid feel seen.
stacking bricks
I often talk to my own children about stacking bricks when it comes to their journeys as athletes. It isn’t about doing anything flashy, it is just putting in the work day after day after day. This part of the school year reminds me a lot of that metaphor. We are in a stretch of school where we have a lot of five day weeks in a row. Snow days are probably over for us until December, and spring break feels like a long way away. sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication.
The First Ten Read Alouds at Our New School
We are two weeks into our new school, and things are starting to feel almost normal. We even survived a Valentine’s Day (not always an easy task in a fifth grade classroom). Read aloud has been the thing that felt normal the fastest. From our first picture book to our first few chapters of Holes, the read aloud in our new school has felt great. Reading aloud to these kids is my favorite part of our day. They are so curious, thoughtful, and passionate about story.
Our first read aloud at our new school
Before we moved into our new school we visited it a couple of times with our students. Our first visit was for about two hours. We kicked off our visit exploring our classroom. It was a lot of fun to watch them notice things about our new space. They loved seeing our classroom library whole again, and they REALLY loved the view we have from our GIANT windows. sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication.
the last day at Parma Elementary
I’ve been thinking about the last day at Parma Elementary since our community approved a bond to build a new school back in 2022. Going from three elementary schools to one was hard to process, but our district leadership has pulled it off. Here’s a picture of me my first day at Parma Elementary (kindergarten 1986). sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
the end of an era!
Twelve and a half years ago, I left Minges Brook Elementary to take a job at the elementary I went to school at when I was a kid. The elementary that is in my parents back yard. The elementary that my children have walked to “Grandma’s House” each day after school for just about every school day since the fall of 2013. It is wild to look back at what I wrote about the move back home to Parma. sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication.
Kelly Yang on Storykind
COLBY: When I heard that Kelly Yang and Kate DiCamillo were coming out with a new podcast, I got very excited. Then I reached out to Kelly to learn more about the new show. She agreed to hop on a call to chat about her new adventure with Kate. I hope you enjoy our conversation. This morning while I was shoveling snow, I listened to their first episode. It was so good. You can listen to episode one of Storykind below.
a day in the life of the read aloud
In a world of Tik Toks, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts, I feel that the read aloud is more important than ever. As attention spans continue to shrink, helping children navigate the written word is quite an adventure. I know that it is getting more and more difficult to read aloud in schools because of things like book bans and scripted curriculums. We must find ways to read aloud to children. For some kids, it just might be the only way they ever read and finish books.
a quick peek at my new classroom
Going back to school this year was much different than my first 18 years as a teacher heading back to class after winter break. Instead of a full week with students, we had spent three days at our new elementary school, before the kids came back on Thursday. sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Are you reading for it?
I am so excited about a new year of books written for young readers! Each year we are blessed with beautiful new books by some of our favorite creators, and we are introduced to new book creators that we will be reading for many years to come. To kick off each new year of book Travis Jonker and I record a conversation where we discuss what to expect in the year to come. You can listen to our conversation on The Yarn podcast, or you watch the video recording below.
feeling lost heading back from break
Winter break is pretty awesome. I always loved it as a student, but I think I like it even more as an adult/teacher/parent. This two week break in the middle of a long and wild school year always leaves me refreshed and ready for what is ahead. It is long enough where I feel rested, but not too long that my classroom is a hot mess when I get back. This year things are very different… sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication.
Reviewing a year of children's literature
At the end of each year, my friend Travis Jonker and hop on a call to review our year of reading books for kids, for The Yarn podcast. It is one of my favorite conversation of the year. Travis always mentions books I haven’t heard of, so I quickly login into my library account and place holds on those titles. You can listen to the episode on your podcast app listening of choice. I’ll also embed the audio feed and a video feed below.
focusing on what I'm best at
This school year has been pretty darn stressful. We have 23 school days left in our building before we merge with two other elementary schools at the start of February. I never thought I would be in a situation as stressful as teaching during a global pandemic. I was wrong. Trying to run a classroom with this impending move hovering above us is pretty wild. The idea of being at one school on a Friday, and then a new school on a Monday is hard to process. It makes me want to cry.
Planning for my next 28 picture book read alouds
We have 28 school days left before we go from three 400 student elementary buildings to one 1,200 student elementary. I’m still trying to wrap my head around teaching on a Friday in one classroom, and then teaching in a different building/classroom on the following Monday. My remaining read aloud options. One of the things that I have been packing are my picture books. Most of what I have in my room are books, so packing them seems to be a good use of my time.
A conversation with librarian Betsy Bird
It feels great to be halfway done with my two-day school week. I feel like the stretch from Labor Day to Thanksgiving is the longest stretch of the entire school year. The rest of the school year seems to be broken up a little more. One more day! We are currently nine chapters and eighty pages into our read aloud of Gordon Korman’s Restart, and it is totally crushing with the kids. They cannot get enough! sharpread | Colby Sharp is a reader-supported publication.
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