John Schumacher (aka Mr. Schu) is a teacher-librarian at Brook Forest Elementary School in Oak Brook, Illinois. John serves on AASL’s Best Websites for Teaching and Learning, the Monarch Readers’ Choice Selection Committee, and the 2014 John Newbery Selection Committee. In his spare time, he reads, travels, and blogs at Watch. Connect. Read. John is a 2011 Library Journal Mover and Shaker.

This year John has planned an incredible celebration of literacy and reading aloud for Brook Forest, including Skype chats with other classrooms around the country, and guest authors Katherine Applegate, Joanne Levy, Laurel Snyder, Leeza Hernandez, and Dori Hillestad Butler!

John is also taking the World Read Aloud Day Blogging Challenge and his insights, humor and reflections on the power of reading and sharing stories are moving and hilarious all at once. In his first post he set a timer for 90 seconds and typed the first read aloud memories that came to mind. In his second post he channeled his 10-year-old self, and in his third post he shares a snapshot of his reading life.

Follow him on twitter @MrSchuReads, and as a special treat, watch this video for a tour of his bookcase, and count how many titles you add to your "to read" list in the first minute!