RIF's Back-to-School List 2025

Kick off back to school with Reading Is Fundamental’s (RIF) free 2026–2027 Reading School Supply List. Explore RIF’s recommended back-to-school supplies for young readers and discover free literacy resources, including book collections, classroom activities, family resources, and reading tools. Support your students’ reading success from the first day of school and throughout the year.

For Educators For Parents Rally to Read

Educator & Classroom Tools for Back to School

Every resource RIF develops is built with intentionality. RIF's literacy experts and educator partners have shaped these tools around real classroom needs, not just what looks good on a worksheet. The best part, Literacy Central, RIF’s free book resource website, gives educators over 30,000 free resources tied directly to the books your students already love, built on the science of reading and designed with practicing teachers in mind. At RIF, we don’t ask you to rethink your curriculum; rather, we it enhances what you're already doing.

Each resource is tagged with content categories to help you find the right resource for your goals.

PLAN	Research-backed resources for building high-quality literacy instruction.
IMPLEMENT	Print-ready lesson guides with vocabulary support, discussion prompts, and extension activities built in. No prep required.
ASSESS	Check comprehension, track skill growth, and adjust instruction with tools that fit your existing routines.

Grade Level Reading Passages

Engaging fiction and nonfiction texts matched to grade-level reading expectations that help students build fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and confidence while supporting differentiated instruction.

Graphic Organizers

Printable visual tools that support language development, critical thinking, and reading comprehension by helping students organize ideas and deepen their understanding of texts.

illustration of laptop with people on a webinar

Webinars and Professional Development

Free expert-led webinars and professional learning resources that provide educators with practical, research-based strategies to strengthen literacy instruction and support student reading success.

Reading Lists and Book Collections

Curated book lists organized by themes, topics, grade levels, and interests that make it easy for educators and families to find engaging books for every young reader.

Author Study

Curated author study resources that introduce students to beloved children's authors and illustrators through book collections, activities, and discussion prompts that deepen reading engagement and literary appreciation.

samples of different kinds of word puzzles

Literacy Games

Create interactive literacy games that help students strengthen foundational reading skills, including phonics, vocabulary, comprehension, and word recognition, through fun, engaging practice.

Literacy Tracker

A free formative assessment tool that helps educators and families monitor reading progress, identify students' literacy needs, and discover personalized book recommendations that encourage reading growth year-round.

Hands holding books with school icons on the background

Lesson Planning Resources

Ready-to-use lesson plans, classroom activities, and instructional materials that help educators bring high-quality children's books to life while supporting literacy skills and curriculum goals.

a girl hugging herself with a note all about her on the background

Reader Interest Inventory

A simple questionnaire that helps educators discover students' reading interests, build stronger classroom connections, and recommend books that inspire a lifelong love of reading.

Family Reading Tools for Back to School

Families play a critical role in helping children build strong reading skills and a lifelong love of books. As you prepare for back to school, RIF’s Family Reading Tools provide easy-to-use resources, activities, book recommendations, and reading supports to help families create meaningful reading experiences at home and reinforce literacy learning throughout the school year.

Each resource is tagged with content categories to help you find the right resource for your goals.

READ TOGETHER	Use these resources to deepen literacy knowledge and engage with texts.
MAKE IT FUN	Encourage your child to read with these fun ideas and resources.
KEEP IT GOING	Resources to use all year long to intentionally bring joy to reading.

Family Planner (English and Spanish)

A printable family planner available in English and Spanish that helps caregivers organize reading goals, literacy activities, and learning routines throughout the school year.

Smiling child holding a tablet with Skybrary app on

Skybrary Read-Alouds and Discussion Questions

Interactive read-aloud videos paired with discussion questions that help families build reading comprehension, vocabulary, and meaningful conversations around books.

Literacy Kit

Ready-to-use literacy activities and family resources designed to make reading engaging and support children's literacy growth at home. This includes fun printables for parents like bookmarks, lunchbox notes, a reading log and more!

a girl with a cape on flying across a blue background

Well-Being Center

Resources and book recommendations that help families support children's social-emotional learning, mental well-being, and resilience through reading.

Family Reading Tips

Practical, research-based tips that help parents and caregivers support reading development, build confidence, and make reading a fun part of everyday life.

Back-to-School Book Collection

Curated book collections organized by age, grade, topic, and interest to help families discover books that inspire children to read throughout the year.

Rally to Read 100: A Back-to-School Reading Challenge

Jump into back-to-school season with Rally to Read 100! RIF’s annual reading challenge helps students stay motivated, engaged, and excited about reading. Visit Rally to Read from October 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027, to join the challenge, watch free monthly author read-alouds, access downloadable literacy activities, and find plenty of reading inspiration along the way.

SNEAK PEEK: RALLY TO READ

Back-to-School Reading Supply List & Literacy Resources