Registration for NCTE’s 2026 Annual Convention is Open!
We can’t wait to welcome you to “Imagine. Innovate. Inspire.” at the 2026 NCTE Annual Convention at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia for a four-day weekend beginning November 19, 2026.
Long-time Convention attendees may be wondering, “Why so soon?” And the answer is easy: Because you asked us to.
Traditionally, NCTE has launched registration in the summer, after determining the 2026 prices. This year, in response to feedback from educators and school districts, we’ve moved the timeline up—opening registration before the end of the 2025–26 school year and before district budgets have been set.
NCTE is not only opening registration early this year, but, for a limited time, we are also honoring last year’s rates. Fallback pricing, available through June, allows educators to register for this year’s Convention at 2025 prices. That means next year’s professional development could fall in the 2025–26 budget.
It’s like early early-bird pricing. But just like the worm, it won’t last. Fallback pricing is only available through June 15. After that, NCTE will offer early-bird pricing until October 7. Standard rates apply from October 8 through the event.
How can you best take advantage of this early registration window? We’ve put together some ideas for securing funding for this important professional development, complete with a sample letter asking for financial support to send to your administrators.
#NCTE26 will feature A-list speakers like LeVar Burton, the OG host and executive producer of the beloved PBS children’s series Reading Rainbow. After welcoming the show’s new host, Mychal Threets, to the Convention in Denver last year—and hosting a successful National African American Read-In (AARI) event with him—we can’t wait to hear from Burton on reading today and the show that shaped so many of us as young readers.
As always, there will be hundreds of professional development sessions taught by educators from around the country, along with all your favorite things about Convention, from networking after a keynote to shopping at NCTE Central to loading up on books and nerd vibes in the Exhibit Hall. Philadelphia will see NCTE in full force and better than ever!
Be sure to sign up for email announcements and follow us on social media for exciting updates about additional keynote speakers, plus Meal Events, Get-Togethers, hotels, and everything #NCTE26. Better yet, register now for the best prices of the year!
We’re already counting the days until we reconnect and recharge together in Philadelphia. We can’t wait to see you there.