Reading Is Fundamental and Macy's introduce new resources to help parents and educators support childhood literacy. (Washington, DC, August 23, 2018) Just in time for back to school, Reading Is Fundamental today announced the launch of new resources and activities created in partnership with Macy’s to help parents and educators support children’s literacy goals including a tool to track reading progress, new book collections, and reading events across the country. The tools are part of Reading Is Fundamental’s Literacy Central, a digital destination that includes thousands of free supplemental resources for children grades K-6, parents, and educators that increase interest, comprehension, and frequency of reading among children. “Back to School is an exciting time in a child’s life and reading plays a critical role in preparing them to make the most of the school year,” said Beth Meyer, Chief Marketing Officer of Reading Is Fundamental. “With Macy’s generous support, Reading Is Fundamental has created new tools and resources that help children to read, learn and grow.” The new back to school selection and events debut this month and include the following features: • The Macy's "Be the Best You" Book Collection features a variety of books for developing readers of all levels. Designed specifically for back to school, the collection features helpful social-emotional learning books that benefit children by providing context for the transition back to school and into their school year routine. • Literacy Tracker helps determine your child's reading level and appropriate book selections through an informal assessment tool that supports and tracks reading improvement. From finding a great starting place to benchmarking progress, to seeing how your child improves during the school year, Literacy Tracker supports each child's reading. • Macy’s is sponsoring events in 10 cities across the United States as part of Reading is Fundamental’s Books for Ownership flagship reading program, which enables children to select new, age-appropriate books to take home and to own. Books for Ownership is supported with resources for parents, educators, and caregivers to create a continuous focus on reading. Events will take place in Columbus, OH; Troy, MI; Boston, MA; Wayne, NJ; Roseville and Torrance CA; Tigard, OR; Frisco, TX; Hialeah, FL and Richmond, VA. People can also help support childhood literacy this school year by participating in Macy’s Thanks for Sharing annual campaign. From August 29 through December 31, 2018, Macy’s shoppers can enroll in the Thanks for Sharing program and Macy’s will donate a portion of the fee to charitable partners, including Reading Is Fundamental. “At Macy’s, giving back is a cornerstone of what we do, and we are deeply proud of our long-standing support of Reading Is Fundamental,” said Sam Harrison, vice president of corporate giving and volunteerism at Macy’s. “As a beneficiary of Thanks for Sharing, donations from our neighbors and customers help strengthen our communities nationwide by providing resources that support childhood literacy and impact the lives of millions of children.” Developed with the support of Macy’s, Literacy Central builds on Reading Is Fundamental’s efforts to combat the children’s literacy crisis in the United States, which to date includes the distribution of 415 million books, impacting the lives of 40 million children. Literacy Central houses thousands of free high-quality learning materials including lesson plans, calendars, activities, games, reading passages, and videos all paired with classic and popular children’s books. The digital destination features a broad selection of resources tied to fiction and non-fiction titles spanning STEAM content, multicultural themes, and special needs materials for varying grade levels. In addition, Literacy Central provides an easy to use search function that enables students, parents and educators to search for content by grade level, Lexile, theme/topic, keyword, author or illustrator depending on their desired reading focus. To facilitate an easy user experience, this new digital destination allows users to organize their favorite titles and resources, create book lists, and share support materials. About Macy's: Macy's, the largest retail brand of Macy's, Inc. delivers fashion and affordable luxury to customers at approximately 650 locations in 44 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam, as well as to customers in the U.S. and more than 100 international destinations through its leading online store at macys.com. Via its stores, e-commerce site, mobile and social platforms, Macy's offers distinctive assortments including the most desired family of exclusive and fashion brands for him, her and home. Macy's is known for such epic events as Macy's 4th of July Fireworks and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, as well as spectacular fashion shows, culinary events, flower shows and celebrity appearances. Macy's flagship stores – including Herald Square in New York City, Union Square in San Francisco, State Street in Chicago, and Dadeland in Miami and South Coast Plaza in southern California – are known internationally and are leading destinations for visitors. Building on a more than 150-year tradition, and with the collective support of customers and employees, Macy's helps strengthen communities by supporting local and national charities giving more than $52 million each year, plus 153,000 hours of volunteer service, to help make a difference in the lives of our customers. About Reading Is Fundamental: Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) is committed to a literate America by inspiring a passion for reading among all children, providing quality content to create impact, and engaging communities in the solution to give every child the fundamentals for success. As the nation’s largest nonprofit organization for children’s literacy, RIF has provided more than 415 million books to 40 million kids in all 50 states, inspiring generations to read, learn and grow.