CLELCON 2025 IS COMING

SAVE THE DATE! CLELCON 2025 will be held this year on October 16th and October 17th from 11 AM to 4:30 PM (MST) both days. Cost for this year’s conference will be $45 and it will be a virtual platform. Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy is committed to training and staff development.  During our annual …

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Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library a Perfect Partner for Colorado’s Public Libraries

by Thea Martinez and Kate Compton Every month, over 80,000 Colorado children receive a special package in the mail—a brand- new, age-appropriate book delivered directly to their doorstep. This simple act represents something profound: the Imagination Library Colorado program is quietly revolutionizing early childhood literacy across our state, one book at a time. What Makes …

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July 2025 Member Meetup Review

Our July meetup had a small but dedicated group joining us to discuss how summerprogramming is progressing for everyone and what we might be looking forward to in the next season. The first question posed to the group, and one that had the greatest dialogue, was how to decompress when summer gets too hectic. When …

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Summer 2025 Digest

ALL THINGS CLEL – OUR 2025 SUMMER DIGEST  Special Election for Conference Committee Member being held now We are looking for an individual to fill a spot on our Conference Committee right away.  We will be holding a special election to fill this important role. If you have a passion for attending conferences, organizing people …

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Notes From Our May Meetup

On May 13, 2025, over 28 CLEL members from around the country came together to talk about managing program burnout (and burnout overall). As one of the most well-attended CLEL Meetups in recent memory, it is clear that this subject is top of mind for many people. After introductions, the conversation shifted to investigate where …

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2025 CLEL Conference

Save the Date! October 16 and 17th will be dates for our Annual Conference. The conference will be virtual this year on our Zoom Platform.

Notes From our March Meetup

Next Steps After Storytime: A Meetup Recap On March 11, 2025, we had a small but lively discussion about serving emerging readers in a holistic way after storytimes. Our talk centered on how we can promote and encourage literacy for young pre-readers as well as support caregivers trying to bridge the gap to help children …

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March Member Meet Up

Member Meetups are an informal way to network with other professionals around a topic relevant to youth librarianship. Librarians promote early learning for ages birth to 5 primarily through ECRR. But how do you support children as they transition into reading independently?  Join our next meetup to be held on March 11th from 1-2 (MST) …

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2024 Conference Materials

CLELCON24 Final Schedule Cena Con Cuentos: Spanish-Language Storytime and a Shared Meal Sara Meldrum Challenging Post-COVID Impacts on School Readiness through Storytime Standards Cassandra Welch and Kristin Hare CLEL Mini Grant Winners Kellyanne Healey, Sarah Bean Thompson DEI and Belonging in Children’s Programming Tiffany Miller Teaching a Baby Storytime Tiffany Miller Windows and Mirrors: Library …

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Meetup Recap: Best Books of 2024

On the afternoon of November 7, a small yet mighty group of librarians came together to discuss the books they have been enjoying this year, both inside of Storytime and out. The booktalks were animated, and the list grew longer with each passing minute. Below are the titles that were shared, and a recommended age …

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