Canvas Reading List
Course reserves can be managed through the Canvas Reading List Tool.
The Canvas Reading List Tool:
- Allows you to search the library catalog within Canvas, where you can add books and electronic resources to your Reading List with the click of a button.
- Automatically notifies the library when a physical item is added to your list and needs to be pulled and placed in the reserves section.
- Can be quickly accessed by students, who see all materials in one place, and can mark items as read to keep track of their progress.
Need help getting started? Follow our step-by-step instructions or watch our video tutorial. Use the detailed guide to Canvas Reading Lists to find more information or contact us if you have a question—we’re happy to help!
No-cost course materials
You can also add links to no-cost course materials and open educational resources to the Reading List. Tisch offers a variety of services to support using no-cost course materials, including:
- assisting in locating materials that are free for students to use
- providing financial support for the time required to create or incorporate no-cost material into a syllabus
- visiting your department or hosting a workshop to talk about using & creating these materials
Find out more about our services or submit our contact form to get in touch.
The library proactively acquires textbooks listed at the Tufts bookstore when available in ebook format. If you'd like assistance in determining if the library has or can purchase an unlimited user eBook copy of a text so that your class can access it at no cost, get in touch with your liaison librarian.
Requesting scanned material
New for Fall 2026: The library can now digitize portions of books and journals from our print collection for course reserves.
Policies and Copyright
- Before we scan from items in our print collection, we will first check to see if an ebook version is available for the library to purchase. Whenever possible, we will license the ebook version instead of scanning.
- Copyright guidelines allow us to scan no more than 10-20% of the total book, or 1-2 chapters—whichever comes first. It is at the discretion of library staff to cancel any request that they determine does not meet copyright guidelines.
How to Place a Request
- Scan requests can be submitting directly through the Reading List in Canvas. For step-by-step instructions, visit the detailed guide to Canvas.
- We also accept scan requests via email. Feel free to reach out to us directly for assistance.
Turnaround Time
- Because of high demand, the turnaround time for digitization reserves requests can be up to two weeks.
- Please submit your requests as early as possible to ensure that they are ready for the start of the semester.
Films and streaming video
See our Streaming Media Introduction and FAQ for courses.
You can add streaming films and DVDs from the catalog to your course reading list using the Canvas Reading List tool, or by submitting your list of titles to us via our our streaming media request form or via email at: tischstreamingmedia@tufts.edu.
If a streaming version is not available, we can place a DVD copy on reserve at the library for your course.
For help getting started with finding streaming films and DVDs for your course, check out our Help page for finding film and streaming video resources. Please reach out to us at tischstreamingmedia@tufts.edu with any questions.
Requests or assistance
Please contact us if you need more help or would like an in-person demonstration of the Canvas Reading List tool.
- Tisch Library
- SMFA Library
- Lilly Music Library
For assistance with your Canvas site, contact canvas@tufts.edu.